Meskigal ( sux, , ''mes-ki-g̃al₂-la'') was a
Sumer
Sumer () is the earliest known civilization in the historical region of southern Mesopotamia (south-central Iraq), emerging during the Chalcolithic and early Bronze Ages between the sixth and fifth millennium BC. It is one of the cradles of c ...
ian ruler of the
Mesopotamian city of
Adab in the mid-3rd millennium BCE, probably circa 2350 BCE.
He was contemporary with
Lugal-zage-si and the founder of the
Akkadian Empire,
Sargon of Akkad
Sargon of Akkad (; akk, ''Šarrugi''), also known as Sargon the Great, was the first ruler of the Akkadian Empire, known for his conquests of the Sumerian city-states in the 24th to 23rd centuries BC.The date of the reign of Sargon is highl ...
.
In a fragmentary inscription, he claimed to have been on an expedition to the "Mountain of the
Cedar forests" (
, ''
KURg̃eš-erin'',
Lebanon), perhaps together with
Sargon I:
It has been suggested that Meskigal had actually defected to the Akkadian Empire, in opposition to Lugal-zage-si. Another known case is
Lugalushumgal
Lugal-ushumgal (, ''lugal-ušumgal'') was a Sumerian ruler ( ensi, formerly read "Patesi") of Lagash ("Shirpula"), circa 2230-2210 BCE. Several inscriptions of Lugal-ushumgal are known, particularly seal impressions, which refer to him as gov ...
, who was also a collaborator of the
Akkadian Empire.
According to an inscription however, the Akkadian ruler
Rimush, successor of Sargon, captured him following a rebellion:
It is uncertain if this is the same Meskigal being mentioned in these several inscriptions.
There is a statue of Meskigal in the
Baghdad Museum
The Iraq Museum ( ar, المتحف العراقي) is the national museum of Iraq, located in Baghdad. It is sometimes informally called the National Museum of Iraq, a recent phenomenon influenced by other nations' naming of their national museum ...
, in a style reminiscent of Akkadian statuary. Meskigal is also known from inscriptions.
References
{{Rulers of Sumer
Sumerian rulers
24th-century BC Sumerian kings
Kings of Adab