The Manishtushu Obelisk is a

diorite Diorite ( ) is an intrusive igneous rock formed by the slow cooling underground of magma (molten rock) that has a moderate content of silica and a relatively low content of alkali metals. It is intermediate in composition between low-sil ...

, four-sided

stele A stele ( ),Anglicized plural steles ( ); Greek plural stelai ( ), from Greek language, Greek , ''stēlē''. The Greek plural is written , ''stēlai'', but this is only rarely encountered in English. or occasionally stela (plural ''stelas'' or ...

. The stele is

obelisk An obelisk (; from grc, ὀβελίσκος ; diminutive of ''obelos'', " spit, nail, pointed pillar") is a tall, four-sided, narrow tapering monument which ends in a pyramid-like shape or pyramidion at the top. Originally constructed by An ...

-shaped, as well as it narrows upward to its (damaged) top, in a

pyramid A pyramid (from el, πυραμίς ') is a structure whose outer surfaces are triangular and converge to a single step at the top, making the shape roughly a pyramid in the geometric sense. The base of a pyramid can be trilateral, quadrilate ...

al-form. The obelisk was erected by Manishtushu, son of Sargon the Great, of the

Akkadian Empire The Akkadian Empire () was the first ancient empire of Mesopotamia after the long-lived civilization of Sumer. It was centered in the city of Akkad () and its surrounding region. The empire united Akkadian and Sumerian speakers under one r ...

, who ruled circa 2270–2255 BC. As a spoil of war, the stele was taken to

Susa Susa ( ; Middle elx, 𒀸𒋗𒊺𒂗, translit=Šušen; Middle and Neo- elx, 𒋢𒋢𒌦, translit=Šušun; Neo- Elamite and Achaemenid elx, 𒀸𒋗𒐼𒀭, translit=Šušán; Achaemenid elx, 𒀸𒋗𒐼, translit=Šušá; fa, شوش ...

by the

Elam Elam (; Linear Elamite: ''hatamti''; Cuneiform Elamite: ; Sumerian: ; Akkadian: ; he, עֵילָם ''ʿēlām''; peo, 𐎢𐎺𐎩 ''hūja'') was an ancient civilization centered in the far west and southwest of modern-day Iran, stretc ...

ite king

Shutruk-Nakhunte Šutruk-Nakhunte was king of Elam from about 1184 to 1155 BC (middle chronology), and the second king of the Shutrukid Dynasty. Elam amassed an empire that included most of Mesopotamia and western Iran. Under his command, Elam defeated the K ...

in the 12th century BC.

Description and purpose

P1050578 Louvre Obélisque de Manishtusu détail rwk

The Manishtushu Obelisk is 1.4 m tall, and 0.6 m wide on its four sides. It is made of deep black diorite, and incised in

Akkadian language Akkadian (, Akkadian: )John Huehnergard & Christopher Woods, "Akkadian and Eblaite", ''The Cambridge Encyclopedia of the World's Ancient Languages''. Ed. Roger D. Woodard (2004, Cambridge) Pages 218-280 is an extinct East Semitic language t ...

cuneiform Cuneiform is a logo- syllabic script that was used to write several languages of the Ancient Middle East. The script was in active use from the early Bronze Age until the beginning of the Common Era. It is named for the characteristic wedge- ...

in horizontal rows on all sides. The cuneiform is written within 1519 boxes, as lined

register Register or registration may refer to: Arts entertainment, and media Music * Register (music), the relative "height" or range of a note, melody, part, instrument, etc. * ''Register'', a 2017 album by Travis Miller * Registration (organ), th ...

s. The material was imported into Sumer from

Magan Magan may refer to: Places *Magan (civilization), also written Makan or Makkan, an ancient region referred to in Sumerian texts *Magan, Russia, a rural locality (a ''selo'') in the Sakha Republic, Russia *Magan Airport, an airport in the Sakha Re ...

– today the area covered by the

United Arab Emirates The United Arab Emirates (UAE; ar, اَلْإِمَارَات الْعَرَبِيَة الْمُتَحِدَة ), or simply the Emirates ( ar, الِْإمَارَات ), is a country in Western Asia (Middle East, The Middle East). It is ...

and

Oman Oman ( ; ar, عُمَان ' ), officially the Sultanate of Oman ( ar, سلْطنةُ عُمان ), is an Arabian country located in southwestern Asia. It is situated on the southeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula, and spans the mouth of ...

, and on

clay tablet In the Ancient Near East, clay tablets (Akkadian ) were used as a writing medium, especially for writing in cuneiform, throughout the Bronze Age and well into the Iron Age. Cuneiform characters were imprinted on a wet clay tablet with a sty ...

s Manishtushu recorded: "From mountains beyond the 'lower sea' (

Persian Gulf The Persian Gulf ( fa, خلیج فارس, translit=xalij-e fârs, lit=Gulf of Fars, ), sometimes called the ( ar, اَلْخَلِيْجُ ٱلْعَرَبِيُّ, Al-Khalīj al-ˁArabī), is a mediterranean sea in Western Asia. The bo ...

), he took black stones; he loaded

hem A hem in sewing is a garment finishing method, where the edge of a piece of cloth is folded and sewn to prevent unravelling of the fabric and to adjust the length of the piece in garments, such as at the end of the sleeve or the bottom of the g ...

on boats and docked

on the quay at Akkad. He fashioned his statue nddedicated tto

Enlil Enlil, , "Lord f theWind" later known as Elil, is an ancient Mesopotamian god associated with wind, air, earth, and storms. He is first attested as the chief deity of the Sumerian pantheon, but he was later worshipped by the Akkadians, Ba ...

." The obelisk text is a legal record that records the distribution of four parcels of land, in large estates, and its allotment to his officers, for his control of

Kish Kish may refer to: Geography * Gishi, Nagorno-Karabakh, Azerbaijan, a village also called Kish * Kiş, Shaki, Azerbaijan, a village and municipality also spelled Kish * Kish Island, an Iranian island and a city in the Persian Gulf * Kish, Iran, ...

Ilshu-rabi

The name of

Ilšu-rabi Ilshu-rabi, also Ilšu-rabi ( ''Il-shu-rabi'') was a ruler of Pashime around 2250 BCE. He was a vassal of the Akkadian Empire ruler Manishtushu. While Ilshu-rabi was in charge of Pashime, another Governor of Manistushu named Eshpum was in charge ...

as Governor of

Pashime Pashime, also Bashime ( ''ba-si-meKI''), was an ancient region of southern Mesopotamia. It has recently been identified with Tell Abu Sheeja, Iraq, about 7 km from Iraq's border with Iran. Pashime corresponded to an area of interaction between Mes ...

appears in the Manishtushu Obelisk inscription, in several mentions of his son Ipulum, who is said to be: File:Manishtushu Obelisk with inscription Son of Ilshu-rabi, Governor of Pashime.jpg, "Ilšu-rabi, Governor of Pashime" appears in the Manishtushu Obelisk File:Son of Ilshu-rabi the Governor.jpg, "Son of Ilshu-rabi the Governor / of Pashime" on the Manishtushu Obelisk (Columns 22 and 23, surface c). File:Son of Ilshu-rabi, Governor of Pashime.jpg, "Son of Ilshu-rabi, Governor of Pashime" on the Manishtushu Obelisk (Column 15, surface d).

References

External links

Manishtusu Obelisk, Near Eastern Antiquities, Louvre
23rd-century BC steles Ancient Near East steles Ancient obelisks Babylonia Akkadian inscriptions {{Semitic-lang-stub