Baranamtarra (died 2375 BC) was the Queen consort of

Lagash Lagash (; cuneiform: LAGAŠKI; Sumerian language, Sumerian: ''Lagaš'') was an ancient city-state located northwest of the junction of the Euphrates and Tigris rivers and east of Uruk, about east of the modern town of Al-Shatrah, Iraq. Lagash ( ...

. Around 2384 BC, Baranamtarra and her husband, Lugalanda, seized power in

, one of the oldest cities in

Sumer Sumer () is the earliest known civilization, located in the historical region of southern Mesopotamia (now south-central Iraq), emerging during the Chalcolithic and Early Bronze Age, early Bronze Ages between the sixth and fifth millennium BC. ...

. They became the largest landholders in the city, and Baranamtarra presided over a temple and several estates herself. She was daughter of Ashag, and exchanged presents with Ninigidubti, wife of the en of Adab.Queen Baranamtarra managed her own private estates and those of the temple of the goddess Bau. She bought and sold slaves and sent diplomatic missions to neighboring states. Records that still exist today reflect the private business activities of the royal wife during Lagash’s great age of international trade and prosperity. Baranamtara sent woolen clothes and

silver Silver is a chemical element; it has Symbol (chemistry), symbol Ag () and atomic number 47. A soft, whitish-gray, lustrous transition metal, it exhibits the highest electrical conductivity, thermal conductivity, and reflectivity of any metal. ...

Dilmun Dilmun, or Telmun, ( Sumerian: ,Transliteration: Similar text: later 𒉌𒌇(𒆠), NI.TUKki = dilmunki; ) was an ancient East Semitic–speaking civilization in Eastern Arabia mentioned from the 3rd millennium BC onwards. Based on contextual ...

and sold

copper Copper is a chemical element; it has symbol Cu (from Latin ) and atomic number 29. It is a soft, malleable, and ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. A freshly exposed surface of pure copper has a pinkish-orang ...

imported from Dilmun in the neighboring city of

Umma Umma () in modern Dhi Qar Province in Iraq, was an ancient city in Sumer. There is some scholarly debate about the Sumerian and Akkadian names for this site. Traditionally, Umma was identified with Tell Jokha. More recently it has been sugges ...

. In keeping with the standard practices of international merchants, she dedicated a bronze statue to the goddess Nanshe. For her estates, which marketed milk products, Baranamtara purchased cattle in

Elam Elam () was an ancient civilization centered in the far west and southwest of Iran, stretching from the lowlands of what is now Khuzestan and Ilam Province as well as a small part of modern-day southern Iraq. The modern name ''Elam'' stems fr ...

. The expression “property of Baranamtara” is found on lists of people, animals, estates, and various objects. Due to the political instability at the time, they in turn were overthrown by another ruler,

Urukagina Uru-ka-gina, Uru-inim-gina, or Iri-ka-gina ( ; died 2370 BC) was King of the city-states of Lagash and Girsu in Mesopotamia, and the last ruler of the 1st Dynasty of Lagash. He assumed the title of king, claiming to have been divinely appointe ...

, around 2378 BC.

References

{{Reflist Sumerian people 24th-century BC women Ancient queens consort Ancient landowners Ancient businesswomen Lagash 3rd-millennium BC births 24th-century BC deaths