Mari-ki Puzur-Ishtar Shakkanakku inscription

Puzur-Ishtar (, ''Puzur4-Eš4-tár'', (died c. 2025 BC) was a ruler of the city of Mari, northern

Mesopotamia Mesopotamia is a historical region of West Asia situated within the Tigris–Euphrates river system, in the northern part of the Fertile Crescent. Today, Mesopotamia is known as present-day Iraq and forms the eastern geographic boundary of ...

, after the fall of the

Akkadian Empire The Akkadian Empire () was the first known empire, succeeding the long-lived city-states of Sumer. Centered on the city of Akkad (city), Akkad ( or ) and its surrounding region, the empire united Akkadian language, Akkadian and Sumerian languag ...

. He was contemporary of the

Third Dynasty of Ur The Third Dynasty of Ur or Ur III was a Sumerian dynasty based in the city of Ur in the 22nd and 21st centuries BC ( middle chronology). For a short period they were the preeminent power in Mesopotamia and their realm is sometimes referred to by ...

, and probably their vassal. He had several sons, who succeeded him, Hitlal-Erra and Hanun-Dagan.

Statue

A statue of him is known from the

Royal Palace of Mari The Royal Palace of Mari was the royal residence of the rulers of the ancient kingdom of Mari in eastern Syria. Situated centrally amidst Syria, Babylon, Levant, and other Mesopotamian city-states, Mari acted as the “middle-man” to these larg ...

. Statues of gods and past rulers were the most common among statues unearthed at the Palace of Zimri-Lin. The title of Shakkanakku (military governor) was borne by all the princes of a dynasty who reigned at Mari in the late third millennium and early second millennium BC. These kings were the descendants of the military governors appointed by the kings of Akkad. The statue of Puzur-Ishtar once stood in one of the sanctuaries of the Palace of Zimri-Lim, but was discovered in the museum of Nebuchadrezzar’s palace at Babylon (604-562 BCE), where it was likely transported as a trophy. The inscription on the hem of the statue’s skirt mentions Puzur-Ishtar, Sakkanakku of Mari, and also mentions his brother the priest Milaga.Gates, Henriette-Marie. "The Palace of Zimri-Lim at Mari." ''The Biblical Archaeologist'' 47 (June.,1984): 70-87. Horned caps are usually limited to divine representations in Mesopotamian art but they do not occur on depictions of kings during the Ur III period, therefore it is considered that perhaps the horns of divinity on Puzur-Ishtar’s cap qualified him (to the Babylonian soldiers) as a god to be carted home as the ultimate symbol of their victory over the people of Mari.Gates, "The Palace of Zimri-Lim at Mari," 70-87.

Inscriptions

The inscription on the arm of the statue reads: The inscription on the hem of the statue reads: File:Puzur-Ishtar statue cuneiform inscription.jpg, Puzur-Ishtar statue inscription (hem).For transcript and translation:

Other statues

A second statue of Puzur-Ishtar is known, now in the Museum of Ancient Near East,

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

. File:Vorderasiatisches Museum Berlin 037.jpg, Head of Puzur-Ishtar. Museum of Ancient Near East,

. File:Vorderasiatisches Museum Berlin 036.jpg, A second statue of Puzur-Ishtar, with inscriptions intentionally damaged in antiquity (only the beginning remains). Museum of Ancient Near East,

References

{{Istanbul Archaeology Museums 21st-century BC monarchs Kings of Mari 21st-century BC deaths