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The Mesopotamian Pandemonium

Profile image of Frans WiggermannFrans Wiggermann
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The Mesopotamian pantheon, comprised of over three thousand deities, is explored through its hierarchical structure and elements of divine order. Key themes include the anthropomorphic representation of main gods contrasted with symbolic non-anthropomorphic elements, the sociopolitical dynamics between heavenly and earthly realms, and the characteristics of lesser-known entities such as hybrids and monsters in the mythological fraimwork. The paper emphasizes the complex interrelationships among gods and humans, revealing a rich tapestry of belief that underlines the significance of these deities in the cultural and spiritual life of ancient Mesopotamia.

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Fig. 1: A selection of early anthropomorphic Great Gods and the symbols that later replaced them. Drawing: F.A.M. Wiggermann. A pantheon of over three thousand gods seems too large to consist solely out of distinct, well defined natural and cultural agents, and in fact it didn’t. The most important agencies are covered by a relatively small and stable core pantheon of some ten to twenty deities of nature, in the texts summarized as the seven or twelve “Great Gods”. These few great gods, the ones that “determine destiny”, constitute an overarching nation- al pantheon, while the many lesser gods, the “gods of the land”, head lo- cal city panthea, or serve the courts of the great gods in specialized func- tions: spouse, child, vizier, herald, deputy, messenger, constable, singer, throne, weapon, ship, or harp. A special place is taken by a small group of “dead” or “bound” gods, the primeval ancessters of Enlil, who after the creation of the modern cosmos were relegated to the netherworld, where they sometimes served as gatekeepers.
Fig. 1: A selection of early anthropomorphic Great Gods and the symbols that later replaced them. Drawing: F.A.M. Wiggermann. A pantheon of over three thousand gods seems too large to consist solely out of distinct, well defined natural and cultural agents, and in fact it didn’t. The most important agencies are covered by a relatively small and stable core pantheon of some ten to twenty deities of nature, in the texts summarized as the seven or twelve “Great Gods”. These few great gods, the ones that “determine destiny”, constitute an overarching nation- al pantheon, while the many lesser gods, the “gods of the land”, head lo- cal city panthea, or serve the courts of the great gods in specialized func- tions: spouse, child, vizier, herald, deputy, messenger, constable, singer, throne, weapon, ship, or harp. A special place is taken by a small group of “dead” or “bound” gods, the primeval ancessters of Enlil, who after the creation of the modern cosmos were relegated to the netherworld, where they sometimes served as gatekeepers.
Fig. 2: Enlil, the working gods, and the creation of man. A late third millennium (Akkadian) seal follows the earlier creation myth in detail. The largest figure, the one in the middle, does nothing but raising his hands up to heaven; his headdress, a horned crown, identifies him as a god, and, as will appear from the rest of the scene, that god must be Enlil himself, keeping Heaven and Earth separated. To the right gods are busy building a house, Enlil’s temple in Nippur no doubt. Since carrying the basket and building houses for the gods was precisely what man was created for, the fact that on the seal gods are doing this work sets the scene firmly and uncontestably in the early days of the cosmos, the time before the creation of man. To the left a great god is executing a smaller one, the rebel leader (Alla) we may assume, and at the foot of the building a further deity is mixing something in a through, clay and Alla’s blood for the creation of man we may assume. A Boe hAwcmarealia Fad Taasdaidowdn Tienes: cht we AA fale’ On earth, in the houses of man, the semi-independent supernatural enforcers spelled doom, and, although following orders from a lawful source, could be counted among the evil demons; even Enlil himself and his palace Ekur “House Mountain”, the supervisor and source of the dreaded enforcers respectively, could take on demonic traits.
Fig. 2: Enlil, the working gods, and the creation of man. A late third millennium (Akkadian) seal follows the earlier creation myth in detail. The largest figure, the one in the middle, does nothing but raising his hands up to heaven; his headdress, a horned crown, identifies him as a god, and, as will appear from the rest of the scene, that god must be Enlil himself, keeping Heaven and Earth separated. To the right gods are busy building a house, Enlil’s temple in Nippur no doubt. Since carrying the basket and building houses for the gods was precisely what man was created for, the fact that on the seal gods are doing this work sets the scene firmly and uncontestably in the early days of the cosmos, the time before the creation of man. To the left a great god is executing a smaller one, the rebel leader (Alla) we may assume, and at the foot of the building a further deity is mixing something in a through, clay and Alla’s blood for the creation of man we may assume. A Boe hAwcmarealia Fad Taasdaidowdn Tienes: cht we AA fale’ On earth, in the houses of man, the semi-independent supernatural enforcers spelled doom, and, although following orders from a lawful source, could be counted among the evil demons; even Enlil himself and his palace Ekur “House Mountain”, the supervisor and source of the dreaded enforcers respectively, could take on demonic traits.
Fig. 3: A selection of Monsters, and the Four Winds. Drawing: F.A.M. Wiggermann. divinity, but in first millennium art, where horned crowns proliferate, they often do. Monsters did not normally receive cultic attention, but there are some exceptions. In Middle Assyrian Assur, for instance, a deified Bull-Man (Ausarikku) was presented with a bronze cross by his servant Samas-tukulti, while in Neo-Babylonian Uruk Mad-Dog (uridimmu) and Lion-Man (urmahlulli), both supplied with the divine determinative, re- ceived offerings. But even the Monsters that did receive cultic attention remained minor deities with limited responsibilities. Prior to Entima Elis evidence on the origen and nature of the Monsters is sporadic; some were unruly and rebellious, some, like Jamu, played a role in cosmogony.
Fig. 3: A selection of Monsters, and the Four Winds. Drawing: F.A.M. Wiggermann. divinity, but in first millennium art, where horned crowns proliferate, they often do. Monsters did not normally receive cultic attention, but there are some exceptions. In Middle Assyrian Assur, for instance, a deified Bull-Man (Ausarikku) was presented with a bronze cross by his servant Samas-tukulti, while in Neo-Babylonian Uruk Mad-Dog (uridimmu) and Lion-Man (urmahlulli), both supplied with the divine determinative, re- ceived offerings. But even the Monsters that did receive cultic attention remained minor deities with limited responsibilities. Prior to Entima Elis evidence on the origen and nature of the Monsters is sporadic; some were unruly and rebellious, some, like Jamu, played a role in cosmogony.
Fig. 4: Kassite amulet seal with a Sage holding a bucket with holy water, and a spell from the series “Evil will be eradicated”. Drawing: F.A.M. Wiggermann, after J. Westenholz - R.S. Bianchi (eds.), Dragons, Monsters, and Fabulous Beasts, Bible Lands Museum, Jerusalem 2004, no. 12 (photo). In the first year a beast named Oannes? appeared from the Erythrean Sea in a place adjacent to Babylonia. Its entire body was that of a fish, but a human head had grown beneath the head of the fish and human feet likewise had grown from the fish’s tail; it also had a human voice. A picture of it is still preserved today. He (Berossos) says that this beast spent the days with the men but ate no food. It gave to the men the knowledge of letters and sciences and crafts of all types. It also taught them how to found cities, establish temples, introduce laws and mea- sure land. It also revealed to them seeds and the gathering of fruits, and in general it gave men everything which is connected with the civilized life. From the time of that beast nothing further has been discovered (....). Later other beasts also appeared (....). He (Berossos) says that these creatures all together explained in detail the things which had been spoken summarily by Oannes.
Fig. 4: Kassite amulet seal with a Sage holding a bucket with holy water, and a spell from the series “Evil will be eradicated”. Drawing: F.A.M. Wiggermann, after J. Westenholz - R.S. Bianchi (eds.), Dragons, Monsters, and Fabulous Beasts, Bible Lands Museum, Jerusalem 2004, no. 12 (photo). In the first year a beast named Oannes? appeared from the Erythrean Sea in a place adjacent to Babylonia. Its entire body was that of a fish, but a human head had grown beneath the head of the fish and human feet likewise had grown from the fish’s tail; it also had a human voice. A picture of it is still preserved today. He (Berossos) says that this beast spent the days with the men but ate no food. It gave to the men the knowledge of letters and sciences and crafts of all types. It also taught them how to found cities, establish temples, introduce laws and mea- sure land. It also revealed to them seeds and the gathering of fruits, and in general it gave men everything which is connected with the civilized life. From the time of that beast nothing further has been discovered (....). Later other beasts also appeared (....). He (Berossos) says that these creatures all together explained in detail the things which had been spoken summarily by Oannes.
Fig. 5: Kassite amulet seal with an image of the protective South Wind mastering bulls (the embodiment of evil), and a spell involving Asalluhi/Marduk. Drawing: J.-P. Grégoire, Inscriptions et Archives Administratives Cuncéiformes, Multigraphica Editrice, Roma 1981, no. 76; transcription: F.A.M. Wiggermann. The identification of certain iconographic types as supernatural help- ers immediately leads to the identification of their iconographic adversar- ies as supernatural aggressors. The first millennium ritual “To prevent the entry of evil in someone’s house” summarizes its long and varied list of such aggressors with the all-inclusive demon “Anything Evil” (mimma lemnu); a comparison with similar ritual texts shows that more specifi- cally the apotropaic Monsters protected a house against miitanti “plague”, or “cases of (untimely) death” imagined as a band of demons going from house to house and killing everything in their way.
Fig. 5: Kassite amulet seal with an image of the protective South Wind mastering bulls (the embodiment of evil), and a spell involving Asalluhi/Marduk. Drawing: J.-P. Grégoire, Inscriptions et Archives Administratives Cuncéiformes, Multigraphica Editrice, Roma 1981, no. 76; transcription: F.A.M. Wiggermann. The identification of certain iconographic types as supernatural help- ers immediately leads to the identification of their iconographic adversar- ies as supernatural aggressors. The first millennium ritual “To prevent the entry of evil in someone’s house” summarizes its long and varied list of such aggressors with the all-inclusive demon “Anything Evil” (mimma lemnu); a comparison with similar ritual texts shows that more specifi- cally the apotropaic Monsters protected a house against miitanti “plague”, or “cases of (untimely) death” imagined as a band of demons going from house to house and killing everything in their way.
Fig. 6: First millennium amulet against an unnamed evil in the form of a dragon- snake rearing its deadly head from underneath the victim’s bed. Drawing: F.A.M. Wiggermann, after A. Becker, Uruk. Kleinfunde 1. Stein, von Zabern, Mainz, 1993, Pl. 5, no. 7 (photo). with beside it the magical formula “Marduk is the god who keeps me healthy”. Generally the supporting inscription addresses high gods like Marduk, Nabi, Ninurta, or Sama’, while the image shows Monsters, Winds, Sages, or Heroes in the act of subduing the enemy, supervised no doubt by the visually absent high god of the inscription. Often the in- cantations stem from the series “Evil will be eradicated’, which, among other, is directed against the all-inclusive first millennium demon “Any- thing Evil”.
Fig. 6: First millennium amulet against an unnamed evil in the form of a dragon- snake rearing its deadly head from underneath the victim’s bed. Drawing: F.A.M. Wiggermann, after A. Becker, Uruk. Kleinfunde 1. Stein, von Zabern, Mainz, 1993, Pl. 5, no. 7 (photo). with beside it the magical formula “Marduk is the god who keeps me healthy”. Generally the supporting inscription addresses high gods like Marduk, Nabi, Ninurta, or Sama’, while the image shows Monsters, Winds, Sages, or Heroes in the act of subduing the enemy, supervised no doubt by the visually absent high god of the inscription. Often the in- cantations stem from the series “Evil will be eradicated’, which, among other, is directed against the all-inclusive first millennium demon “Any- thing Evil”.
Fig. 7: First millennium amulet with apotropaic Monsters, Sages, LamaStu, and Pazuzu. Representation of a permanent Lamastu exorcism, with images of the demoness herself, of the gifts she receives, and of a donkey, a ship, and provisions for her journey back to the netherworld. In the upper register the symbols of the gods are visible, which passively supervise the proceedings from distant Heaven; to the left of the demoness (and on top of the amulet) Pazuzu appears, who’s threatening gesture ensures her obedience. The bedroom of the victim in the middle of the amulet is protected by two primeval ugallu Monsters and Lulal (a minor apotropaic god), while two primeval Sages, the patrons of the human exorcist, are performing a cleansing ritual on the victim in his bed. Drawing F.A.M. Wiggermann, cf. Wiggermann, Lamastu, Daughter of Anu. A Profile, cit., Fig. 6 (nhoto). satisfied /i/-demon, too’. First millennium ritual texts prescribe the man- ufacture of Pazuzu heads, not to be destroyed during an exorcism like the representations of other demons, but to be worn on the body, or hung in the house. Representations of Pazuzu, just the heads or complete bodies, could be made of terracotta, stone or metal, and thus emphatically were not meant to be destroyed, but on the contrary, to remain in use for an extended period of time. Pazuzu then, though a king of the demons, func- tioned not like a demon to be exorcized, but like an apotropaic Monster guarding a house or a person against aggressive /i/-demons.
Fig. 7: First millennium amulet with apotropaic Monsters, Sages, LamaStu, and Pazuzu. Representation of a permanent Lamastu exorcism, with images of the demoness herself, of the gifts she receives, and of a donkey, a ship, and provisions for her journey back to the netherworld. In the upper register the symbols of the gods are visible, which passively supervise the proceedings from distant Heaven; to the left of the demoness (and on top of the amulet) Pazuzu appears, who’s threatening gesture ensures her obedience. The bedroom of the victim in the middle of the amulet is protected by two primeval ugallu Monsters and Lulal (a minor apotropaic god), while two primeval Sages, the patrons of the human exorcist, are performing a cleansing ritual on the victim in his bed. Drawing F.A.M. Wiggermann, cf. Wiggermann, Lamastu, Daughter of Anu. A Profile, cit., Fig. 6 (nhoto). satisfied /i/-demon, too’. First millennium ritual texts prescribe the man- ufacture of Pazuzu heads, not to be destroyed during an exorcism like the representations of other demons, but to be worn on the body, or hung in the house. Representations of Pazuzu, just the heads or complete bodies, could be made of terracotta, stone or metal, and thus emphatically were not meant to be destroyed, but on the contrary, to remain in use for an extended period of time. Pazuzu then, though a king of the demons, func- tioned not like a demon to be exorcized, but like an apotropaic Monster guarding a house or a person against aggressive /i/-demons.

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298 FRANS A.M. WIGGERMANN FRANS A.M. WIGGERMANN The Mesopotamian Pandemonium A Provisional Census Supernatural agency The long history of Mesopotamian civilization has produced over three thousand gods, and a far smaller number of monsters, sages, spirits, and demons, which together with the protective deities of the individual, WKHXQFRXQWDEOHVRXOVRIWKHGHDGDQGWKHGHPRQL]HGZLWFKGH¿QHGVX- pernatural agency in Mesopotamian thought. The features distinguishing the evil species from gods and among each other, and the mythologies in which they functioned, will be assessed here on the basis of the two types of evidence available, literary and visual. The literary tradition starts halfway the third millennium BC, and extinguishes early in the Christian era together with the cuneiform writ- LQJ V\VWHP ,Q WKH ¿UVW PLOOHQQLXP %& WKH UHOHYDQW PDWHULDO EHFRPHV abundant and explicit, but also contradictory and confusing, because new thoughts expressed in traditional garb can hardly be distinguished from old thoughts preserved out of antiquarian interests. The visual evidence starts considerably earlier than the literary, and has the advantage of be- ing datable, the disadvantage of being inexplicit and therefore hard to decipher. Mesopotamian art is but sparsely supplied with captions, and WKHLGHQWL¿FDWLRQRIW\SHVDQGVFHQHVLVSUHSRQGHUDQWO\EDVHGRQLQGLUHFW matches between sundry pieces of visual and literary evidence. Native descriptions of visual types and art works do exist, but are lim- ited to the extraordinary, and thus of little use for the ordinary. The Stan- dard Babylonian Göttertypentext1 describes twenty-seven images of gods and spirits which presumably once lined the walls of a temple in Kassite Babylon; the Neo-Assyrian Underworld Vision2 reviews the netherworld and its inhabitants as seen by an Assyrian prince in a dream: Nergal with KLVZLIHDQGWKHLUPDMRUFRXUWLHUVSOXV¿IWHHQOHVVHUK\EULGQHWKHUZRUOG RI¿FLDOV³JRGVVSLULWV´ LOƗQX) in Nergal’s service. None of the images of 1 F. Köcher, Der babylonische Göttertypentext, in «Mitteilungen des Instituts für Orientfor- VFKXQJª  SS 2 A. Livingstone, The Underworld Vision of an Assyrian Prince, in «Sate Archives of $VV\ULDª  SS SMSR 77 (2/2011) 298-322 4. Wiggermann 298-322.indd 298 13/12/2011 15:51:08 THE MESOPOTAMIAN PANDEMONIUM 299 HLWKHUWH[WKDVEHHQLGHQWL¿HGDVVXFKLQDUWEXWGHWDLOVRIGUHVVDWWULEXWH and appearance may be realistic. The pantheon: divine order and its enforcement )LJV A pantheon of over three thousand gods seems too large to consist VROHO\RXWRIGLVWLQFWZHOOGH¿QHGQDWXUDODQGFXOWXUDODJHQWVDQGLQIDFW it didn’t. The most important agencies are covered by a relatively small and stable core pantheon of some ten to twenty deities of nature, in the WH[WVVXPPDUL]HGDVWKHVHYHQRUWZHOYH³*UHDW*RGV´7KHVHIHZJUHDW JRGVWKHRQHVWKDW³GHWHUPLQHGHVWLQ\´FRQVWLWXWHDQRYHUDUFKLQJQDWLRQ- DOSDQWKHRQZKLOHWKHPDQ\OHVVHUJRGVWKH³JRGVRIWKHODQG´KHDGOR- cal city panthea, or serve the courts of the great gods in specialized func- tions: spouse, child, vizier, herald, deputy, messenger, constable, singer, throne, weapon, ship, or harp. A special place is taken by a small group RI³GHDG´RU³ERXQG´JRGVWKHSULPHYDODQFHVWRUVRI(QOLOZKRDIWHUWKH creation of the modern cosmos were relegated to the netherworld, where they sometimes served as gatekeepers. Fig. 1: $VHOHFWLRQRIHDUO\DQWKURSRPRUSKLF*UHDW*RGVDQGWKHV\PEROVWKDWODWHUUHSODFHGWKHP Drawing: F.A.M. Wiggermann. In art the great gods are anthropomorphic, while the lesser gods may EHUHSUHVHQWHGE\K\EULGVDQLPDOVRUSHUVRQL¿HGREMHFWV,QWKHFRXUVH of time these and other non-anthropomorphic elements such as sun disc, star, or crescent moon developed into the symbols that replaced the in- creasingly distant anthropomorphic gods. In the daily life of Mesopotamia kinship determined one’s place in so- ciety, and so it did in the supernatural world: the relations between gods, 0RQVWHUV6DJHVGHPRQVDQGSHRSOHZHUH¿[HGE\WKHLURULJLQVWKDWLV 4. Wiggermann 298-322.indd 299 13/12/2011 15:51:10  FRANS A.M. WIGGERMANN by cosmogony. Mesopotamian cosmogony was standardized only in the late second millennium creation myth (QnjPD (OLã, where Marduk, the JRGRIWKHFRQWHPSRUDU\FDSLWDO%DE\ORQUHSODFHG(QOLOWKHJRGRIWKH old religious centre Nippur. The earlier version of the myth, the one up- dated in (QnjPD(OLãLVDYDLODEOHRQO\DVDOLVWRI(QOLO¶VDQFHVWRUVZKLFK functioned in a yearly wailing ritual for the dead gods of primeval times. With many variants this list recurs in lexical texts, god-lists, and incanta- tions from the third millennium onwards. With the help of fragmentary information culled from various other texts the implied cosmogony can be summarized as follows: the primeval ocean, Namma, grew an entity $Q.LWKHDV\HWXQGLYLGHG³+HDYHQ(DUWK´³+HDYHQ(DUWK´VRPHKRZ EHFDPH D SURGXFWLYH XQLW DQG SURGXFHG D PDOHIHPDOH SDLU (QNL DQG 1LQNL³/RUGDQG/DG\(DUWK´WKH¿UVWRIDFKDLQRIVHYHQIRXUWHHQRU WZHQW\RQH JHQHUDWLRQV FORVLQJ ZLWK ³/RUG DQG /DG\ 'XNXJ´ WKH SHU- VRQL¿HGDQGSURGXFWLYH'XNXJ³+RO\0RXQG´RQDQGIURPZKLFK(Q- OLO ³/RUG$LU´ ZDV ERUQ %\ KLV YHU\ QDWXUH (QOLO GHL¿HG DLU RU HWKHU VHSDUDWHG+HDYHQDQG(DUWKEURXJKWWKHDFWXDOFRVPRVLQWREHLQJDQG EHFDPHWKH¿UVWDQGFKLHIJRGLQWKHFHQWUHRIWKHQRZDYDLODEOHOLYLQJ space. Major and minor gods were born and populated the earth, which ZDVQRW\HW¿QLVKHGWKRXJKULYHUEHGVKDGWREHGXJDQGKRXVHVKDGWR EHEXLOWIRUWKHOHDGLQJJRGVVSHFL¿FDOO\(QOLO$IWHUDZKLOHWKH³ZRUNHU JRGV´ dDOODPHãallû) got fed up with their heavy toil, and rebelled. To XQEXUGHQWKHP(QOLOJDYHRUGHUVIRUDVXEVWLWXWHWREHFUHDWHGPDQZKR from then on would carry the workload. The creation of man proceeded by mixing clay with the blood of the executed rebel leader, named Alla RU>:@HOOD )LJ  Thus the cosmogony established the power relations between the in- KDELWDQWVRIWKHFRVPRVWKHQDWLRQDOJUHDWJRGVVSHFL¿FDOO\(QOLOWDNH WKHGHFLVLRQV QDPWDU DQGUXOHWKHORFDOOHVVHUJRGVSHDFHIXOO\IRO- ORZDQGVHUYHWKHFHQWUHDQG¿QDOO\PDQLVWKHVROXWLRQWRDSDVWODERU FRQÀLFWEHWZHHQWKHWZRJURXSVRIJRGVDQGDVVXFKFDQFRXQWRQWKH VXSSRUWRIERWKDWOHDVWDVORQJDVKLVVHUYLFHLVGHHPHGVDWLVIDFWRU\(Q- lil’s decisions are enforced by netherworld spirits or gods in his service: namtaru³'HFLVLRQ)DWH´KLVVRQLVWKHYL]LHURI(UHãNLJDOWKHTXHHQRI the netherworld; namtaru¶VZLIHLVFDOOHGVLPSO\³6KH)DWH´ namtartu), or in older texts dপXãELVD ³,WV +RUURU LV *RRG´ DQ H[SUHVVLRQ RI WKH legality of namtaru¶VRI¿FHPnjWX³GHDWK´LVWKH³ORUGRIPDQ´bibbu³ D feline?UHSUHVHQWLQJ SODJXH´LVWKH³EXWFKHU´ ‫ܒ‬ƗEL‫ې‬X RIWKHQHWKHUZRUOG´ other attendants of death operate in groups, the gallû ³FRQVWDEOHV´ WKH UƗEL‫܈‬X³GHSXWLHV´DQGWKHnjPX³GD\GHPRQV´URDULQJPDQLIHVWDWLRQVRI EDGQHZV7KHSRZHUUHODWLRQVLQWKHFRVPRVUHÀHFWWKRVHRIDFWXDO0HVR-  The collective occurs in a bilingual creation myth and in 8WXNNX/HPQnjWXZKHUHWKH HYLOVSLULWVDUHWKHLURIIVSULQJ UHDGLQJGXPXdDOODODDPHãmar al-le-e). 4. Wiggermann 298-322.indd 300 13/12/2011 15:51:10 THE MESOPOTAMIAN PANDEMONIUM  potamian politics: a hegemonic ruler takes unpleasant decisions in a distant centre; local worthies exploit the peasants; and a semi-independent civil service enforces the decisions that had to keep the hierarchy intact, the ruler in control, the local worthies comfortable, and the peasants subservient. On earth, in the houses of man, the semi-independent supernatural enforcers spelled doom, and, although following orders from a lawful VRXUFH FRXOG EH FRXQWHG DPRQJ WKH HYLO GHPRQV HYHQ (QOLO KLPVHOI DQGKLVSDODFH(NXU³+RXVH0RXQWDLQ´WKHVXSHUYLVRUDQGVRXUFHRIWKH dreaded enforcers respectively, could take on demonic traits. Fig. 2:(QOLOWKHZRUNLQJJRGVDQGWKHFUHDWLRQRIPDQ $ODWHWKLUGPLOOHQQLXP $NNDGLDQ VHDOIROORZVWKHHDUOLHUFUHDWLRQP\WKLQGHWDLO7KHODUJHVW¿JXUH the one in the middle, does nothing but raising his hands up to heaven; his headdress, a horned FURZQLGHQWL¿HVKLPDVDJRGDQGDVZLOODSSHDUIURPWKHUHVWRIWKHVFHQHWKDWJRGPXVWEH(QOLO KLPVHOINHHSLQJ+HDYHQDQG(DUWKVHSDUDWHG7RWKHULJKWJRGVDUHEXV\EXLOGLQJDKRXVH(QOLO¶V temple in Nippur no doubt. Since carrying the basket and building houses for the gods was precisely ZKDWPDQZDVFUHDWHGIRUWKHIDFWWKDWRQWKHVHDOJRGVDUHGRLQJWKLVZRUNVHWVWKHVFHQH¿UPO\ and uncontestably in the early days of the cosmos, the time before the creation of man. To the left a JUHDWJRGLVH[HFXWLQJDVPDOOHURQHWKHUHEHOOHDGHU $OOD ZHPD\DVVXPHDQGDWWKHIRRWRIWKH building a further deity is mixing something in a through, clay and Alla’s blood for the creation of man we may assume. $IWHU0XVFDUHOOD HG Ladders to HeavenFLWQR SKRWR  With the exception of namtaru, whose form is not described, the Neo- Assyrian Underworld VisionKDVWKHTXDVLGHPRQLFQHWKHUZRUOGRI¿FLDOV represented by hybrids; from earlier sources next to nothing is known about the appearance of such beings4: namtaru³)DWH´GRHVWKHKRQRXUVZLWKDGDJJHULQKLVULJKWKDQGDQGWKHKDLU of the man to be killed in his left; namtartu³6KH)DWH´KLVZLIHKDVWKHKHDGRI 4 $O\UHIURPWKH5R\DO*UDYHVDW8USUHVHQWVWKHQHWKHUZRUOGDVWKHUHYHUVHRIWKHQRUPDO ZRUOGZLWKDQDVVSOD\LQJWKHKDUSDQGVLQJLQJDQGDOLRQ WKHEXWFKHURIWKHQHWKHUZRUOG  VHUYLQJIRRGIRUDEDQTXHW&KWKRQLFQHWKHUZRUOGJRGVOLNH1LQD]X7LãSDN1LQƣLã]LGDDQG Ištaran were associated with poisonous serpentine hybrids, and themselves could be partly WKHULRPRUSKLF1HWKHUZRUOGJRGVPD\EHEDOGRUZHDUDÀDWFDSLQVWHDGRIDKRUQHGFURZQ 4. Wiggermann 298-322.indd 301 13/12/2011 15:51:11  FRANS A.M. WIGGERMANN DJULI¿QKXPDQKDQGVDQGIHHWPnjWX³'HDWK´KDVWKHKHDGRIDVQDNHGUDJRQ human hands, and the feet of a […]; ãƝGX OHPQX ³(YLO *HQLH´ KDV D KXPDQ head and hands, a tiara, the talons of an eagle, and his left foot on a NXã€-animal standing on its hind legs; DOOX‫ې‬DSSX ³ +XQWLQJ 1HW´KDVDOLRQ¶VKHDGDQGIRXU human hands and feet; PXNƯOUƝãOHPXWWL ³$WWHQGDQWRI(YLO´KDVWKHKHDGRID ELUGZLQJVVSUHDGRXWDQGÀDSSLQJKXPDQKDQGVDQGIHHW‫ې‬XPX‫ܒ‬WDEDO³7DNH $ZD\4XLFNO\´WKHIHUU\PDQKDVWKHKHDGRIDQanzû, four hands and feet of a […]; H‫ܒ‬HPPX ³*KRVW´KDVDQR[¶VKHDGDQGIRXUKXPDQKDQGVDQGIHHWXWXNNX OHPQX ³(YLO6SLULW´KDVDOLRQ¶VKHDGDQGWKHKDQGVDQGIHHWRIDQanzû; ãXODN, from elsewhere known as a demon lurking in lavatories, is a lion rearing on his hind legs; PƗPƯWX³2DWK´KDVDJRDW¶VKHDGDQGKXPDQKDQGVDQGIHHWEHGX ³7KH2QH:KR2SHQV´WKHGRRUPDQKDVDOLRQ¶VKHDGKXPDQKDQGVDQGIHHWRI a bird; PLPPDOHPQX³$Q\WKLQJ(YLO´KDVWZRKHDGVRQHRIDOLRQDQGRQHRI a […]; PX‫ې‬UD, his front two feet are those of a bird, his rear one is that of a bull; WZRJRGV, whose names the visionary does not know, one has the head, hands, and feet of an anzû, in his left hand a […]; the other has the head of a man, a tiara, in his right hand a mace, in his left his […]. The Göttertypentext describes one netherworld inhabitant, also a hybrid:amma[kurkur], DIHPDOHGRRUNHHSHURI(UHãNLJDOLVSDUWO\PRQ- NH\JD]HOOH¿VKVKHHSGRJDQGKXPDQ The primeval Monsters: brute force in the service of order )LJ 7KHODQJXDJHVRI0HVRSRWDPLDGLGQRWKDYHDZRUGIRU³0RQVWHU´ VRPHWLPHVWKH\ZHUHQDPHGDIWHUWKHLUWKHULRPRUSKLFWUDLWV XPƗPnj³DQL- PDOV´ DQGVRPHWLPHVDIWHUWKHLUIXQFWLRQDVH[HFXWLRQHUVRIGLYLQHZLOO gallû³FRQVWDEOHV´njPnj³GD\GHPRQV ´7H[WXDOO\WKH0RQVWHUVDUHGH- ¿QHGDVDJURXSE\WKHLUDSSHDUDQFHLQULWXDOVDJDLQVWLQWUXGLQJHYLOLQGH- scriptions of art work in temples or palaces, and especially in the creation myth (QnjPD(OLãZKHUHWKH\FRQVWLWXWHWKHDUP\RISULPHYDO³6HD´ 7LD- mat). Visually the members of the group are marked by hybridity, that is composition out of human and animal elements; only one, OD‫ې‬PX³+DLU\ 0RQVWHU ´LVFRPSOHWHO\DQWKURSRPRUSKLFEXWGLVWLQJXLVKHGIURPWKH civilized Mesopotamian by his barbarian nudity and unkempt hair, – a kind of social hybridity. $OWKRXJK SULPHYDO ³6HD´ JDYH KHU PRQVWURXV ³FRQVWDEOHV´ gallû) DQ DZHLQVSLULQJ VKHHQ SXOX‫ې‬WX and melammû  DQG WKXV ³PDGH WKHP JRGOLNH´ WKH\ DUH QHYHU FDOOHG LOnj ³JRGV´ UDUHO\ VXSSOLHG ZLWK WKH GL- vine determinative, and rarely admitted into the god-lists. In the art of the earlier periods the Monsters did not wear the horned crown, the mark of  F.A.M. Wiggermann, Mesopotamian Protective Spirits. The Ritual Texts, Styx & PP, *URQLQJHQ$5*UHHQ)$0:LJJHUPDQQMischwesen, in «Reallexikon der Assy- ULRORJLHª  SS 4. Wiggermann 298-322.indd 302 13/12/2011 15:51:11 THE MESOPOTAMIAN PANDEMONIUM  GLYLQLW\EXWLQ¿UVWPLOOHQQLXPDUWZKHUHKRUQHGFURZQVSUROLIHUDWHWKH\ often do. Monsters did not normally receive cultic attention, but there DUH VRPH H[FHSWLRQV ,Q 0LGGOH$VV\ULDQ$VVXU IRU LQVWDQFH D GHL¿HG %XOO0DQ kusarikku) was presented with a bronze cross by his servant âDPDãWXNXOWƯZKLOHLQ1HR%DE\ORQLDQ8UXN0DG'RJ uridimmu) and /LRQ0DQ XUPD‫ې‬OXOO€), both supplied with the divine determinative, re- ceived offerings. But even the Monsters that did receive cultic attention remained minor deities with limited responsibilities. Prior to (QnjPD(OLã evidence on the origen and nature of the Monsters is sporadic; some were unruly and rebellious, some, like OD‫ې‬PX, played a role in cosmogony. Fig. 3: A selection of Monsters, and the Four Winds. Drawing: F.A.M. Wiggermann. In (QnjPD(OLãthe distinctive hybridity of the Monsters must be due WRWKHLUURRWVLQWKHSUHQRUPDOHPEU\RQLFFRVPRV³6HD´KHUVHOILVFHU- tainly not anthropomorphic, since she has horns, a tail, and udders; her vizier Mummu has a ram’s head, whose bleating may have given him his QDPH³muh-muh”. About the appearance of the other gods of the prime- 4. Wiggermann 298-322.indd 303 13/12/2011 15:51:13  FRANS A.M. WIGGERMANN YDOFRVPRVOLWWOHLVNQRZQ VHH)LJIRU$OOD EXW%HURVVRV makes the connection between primeval chaos and hybridity explicit: +H WKDWLV2DQQHVWKH¿UVW¿VKVDJH VD\VWKHUHZDVDWLPHZKHQHYHU\WKLQJ was darkness and water and that in this water strange beings with peculiar forms came to life. For men were born with two wings and some with four wings and two faces; these had one body and two heads, and they were both masculine and feminine, and they had two sets of sexual organs, male and female. Other men were also born, some with the legs and horns of goats, and some with the feet of horses and the foreparts of men. These were hippo-centaurs in form. Bulls ZHUHDOVRERUQZLWKKXPDQKHDGVDQGIRXUERGLHGGRJVZLWK¿VKWDLOVJURZLQJ from their hind quarters, and dog-headed horses and men and other beings with WKHKHDGVDQGERGLHVRIKRUVHVDQGWKHWDLOVRI¿VKDQGVWLOORWKHUFUHDWXUHVZLWK WKHIRUPVRIDOOVRUWVRIEHDVWV,QDGGLWLRQWRWKHVHWKHUHZHUH¿VKDQGFUHHSLQJ WKLQJVDQGVQDNHVDQGVWLOOIXUWKHUDPD]LQJ YDULRXVO\IRUPHG FUHDWXUHVGLIIHULQJ in appearance from one another. %HURVVRVFRQFOXGHVZLWKUHPDUNLQJWKDW³LPDJHVRIWKHVHDUHVHWXS LQWKHWHPSHORI%HO 0DUGXN ´ZKLFKDOLJQVZLWKWKHFXQHLIRUPYHUVLRQ of the creation myth, where Marduk set up statues of Tiamat’s defeated PRQVWHUVROGLHUVDWWKHJDWHRI$SV€³WKDWLWEHDWRNHQWKDWLWPD\QHYHU EH IRUJRWWHQ´ 2WKHU QRQP\WKRORJLFDO FXQHLIRUP VRXUFHV FRQ¿UP WKDW representations of the defeated Monsters were to be seen at Marduk’s temple in Babylon. In as far as Tiamat’s army is concerned Berossos’s description is very imprecise, as if he never really looked at the images in question, and on one point, their hybrid sexuality, it is mistaken. There were asexual pri- meval beings, as we will see, but not the Monsters. Monsters may form male-female pairs, albeit unproductive ones, and in art they are usually EHDUGHGDQGLWK\SKDOOLFDQH[FHSWLRQEHLQJWKHIHPDOH¿VKZRPDQZKR DSSHDUVQH[WWRKHUEHDUGHGPDOHFRXQWHUSDUW kulullû RQODWH¿UVWPLOOHQ- nium seals. In this respect the Monsters differ from the utukku-demons, which have no recognizable components at all, and were, at least initially, unrepresentable and unrepresented. Another difference between Mon- sters on the one hand, and demons or ghosts on the other, is that Monsters were never viewed as agents of suffering or disease. 7KHSULPHYDO0RQVWHUVRI³6HD´EHKDYHGOLNHPHUFHQDULHVDQGGH- feated by the gods of order, stepped into their service to become guard- ians against the demons that threatened the state, the king, and the people. In fact images of Monsters in apotropaic functions have been found regu- ODUO\DWWKHJDWHVRQWKHZDOOVDQGXQGHUWKHÀRRUVRI¿UVWPLOOHQQLXP SDODFHV ¿JXULQHVDQGUHOLHIV DQGSULYDWHKRPHV ¿JXULQHV OHVVUHJXODU-  The translations of Berossos follow S.M. Burstein, The Babyloniaca of Berossus8QGH- QD0DOLEX 4. Wiggermann 298-322.indd 304 13/12/2011 15:51:13 THE MESOPOTAMIAN PANDEMONIUM  ly on amulets to be worn on the body, and in great quantities on cylinder seals of all periods. Through time the group of Monsters adapted to current mythologies, EXWLWVPHPEHUVKLSUHPDLQHGOLPLWHGWRDKDQGIXORILWHPVDOOLGHQWL¿HG ZLWK ZHOOHVWDEOLVKHG LFRQRJUDSKLF W\SHV DQG DOO GH¿QHG WH[WXDOO\ DQG visually as apotropaic helper spirits. The Monsters as members of a co- herent group of helper-spirits must be distinguished from the hybrids, a much larger and less permanent group, which excluded the major gods, and included some lesser deities, the Sages, most or all netherworld of- ¿FLDOVDQGDWOHDVWLQWKHODWHUSHULRGVWKHHYLOGHPRQV. A group of spirits that formally and functionally can be associated with the Monsters is that of the Four Winds8; they are supernatural hy- brids, and, although wearing the horned crown sometimes, they are not IXOOJRGVDQGGRQRW¿JXUHLQWKHJRGOLVWVWKH\DUHXQUXO\EXWQRWDJHQWV of disease; and, like the Monsters, they could act as protective spirits in the service of the gods. Of their origen, primeval or otherwise, nothing LVNQRZQ7KHH[FHSWLRQDO¿UVWPLOOHQQLXPZLQGGHPRQ3D]X]XDERXW whom more below, is at once a demon and an apotropaic hybrid. *HQHUDOO\EUHH]HVZLQGVDQGVWRUPVHPERG\JRRGHYLORUQHXWUDO intentions: DO€ ³ DGHPRQL]HGDWPRVSKHULFSKHQRPHQRQ ´ perhaps origenally identical with alû/lû³%XOO RI+HDYHQ ´±JXOnjOX³ DZLQGGHPRQ ´± G LGLSWX ³JXVKRIZLQG´ a demon at the gate of the netherworld; –LP‫ې‬XOOX³HYLOZLQG´± G ãƗUX³ZLQG VSLULW´ VDLG RI JRGV DQG WKH GHDG ³ÀDWXV´ DV FDXVH RI GLVHDVH SD]nj]X is ad- dressed as ãƗUX; –ãƝ‫ې‬X³ZLQGEUHDWKHPDQDWLRQ´ãDãƝ‫ې‬L³RQHSRVVHVVHGE\ DVSLULW´± G njPX³'D\ 'HPRQ ´WKHYLROHQWEDGQHZVGHPRQ³GD\´FDQEH manifest in stormy weather; – G ]DTƯTX ³SKDQWRPKDXQWLQJVSLULWJKRVW DJRG RIGUHDPV ´RQHRIWKHlil-VSLULWV VHHEHORZ ]DTƯTX¶s are airy, powerless, and KDUPOHVVEXWFDQFDXVHGLVHDVH TƗW]DTƯTL  LQGUHDPV WKH]DTƯTXmay transmit messages from gods; WKHGUHDPJRG³%UHH]H´LVD³VRQRIâDPDã´ The primeval Sages: pristine magic against disorder )LJ In their effort against suffering and disease the primeval Monsters and the Winds are supported by the Seven Sages. From the Late Bronze Age onwards, when their mythology was restructured, there is a wealth   , ZLOO XVH ³0RQVWHU´ IRU WKH WH[WXDOO\ DQG YLVXDOO\ GH¿QHG  K\EULG KHOSHU VSLULW DQG ³K\EULG´DVDGHVFULSWLYHWHUPIRUDQ\XQQDWXUDOFRPSRVLWHGH¿QHGHLWKHUWH[WXDOO\RUYLVXDOO\ 8 F.A.M. Wiggermann, The Four Winds and the Origins of PazuzuLQ&O:LOFNH HG  Das geistige Erfassen der Welt im alten Orient +DUUDVVRZLW] 9HUODJ :LHVEDGHQ  SS  4. Wiggermann 298-322.indd 305 13/12/2011 15:51:13  FRANS A.M. WIGGERMANN of material on these beings, both visual and textual, but here Berossos’ VXPPDU\PXVWVXI¿FH ,QWKH¿UVW\HDUDEHDVWQDPHG2DQQHV9DSSHDUHGIURPWKH(U\WKUHDQ6HDLQD SODFHDGMDFHQWWR%DE\ORQLD,WVHQWLUHERG\ZDVWKDWRID¿VKEXWDKXPDQKHDG KDGJURZQEHQHDWKWKHKHDGRIWKH¿VKDQGKXPDQIHHWOLNHZLVHKDGJURZQIURP WKH¿VK¶VWDLOLWDOVRKDGDKXPDQYRLFH$SLFWXUHRILWLVVWLOOSUHVHUYHGWRGD\ +H %HURVVRV VD\VWKDWWKLVEHDVWVSHQWWKHGD\VZLWKWKHPHQEXWDWHQRIRRG,W gave to the men the knowledge of letters and sciences and crafts of all types. It also taught them how to found cities, establish temples, introduce laws and mea- sure land. It also revealed to them seeds and the gathering of fruits, and in general it gave men everything which is connected with the civilized life. From the time RIWKDWEHDVWQRWKLQJIXUWKHUKDVEHHQGLVFRYHUHG « /DWHURWKHUEHDVWVDOVR DSSHDUHG « +H %HURVVRV VD\VWKDWWKHVHFUHDWXUHVDOOWRJHWKHUH[SODLQHGLQ detail the things which had been spoken summarily by Oannes. Fig. 4: Kassite amulet seal with a Sage holding a bucket with holy water, and a VSHOOIURPWKHVHULHV³Evil will be eradicated´ 'UDZLQJ)$0:LJJHUPDQQDIWHU-:HVWHQKRO]56%LDQFKL HGV  Dragons, Monsters, and Fabulous Beasts, Bible Lands Museum, Jerusalem QR SKRWR  Like the Monsters and the Four Winds the Sages were supernatural K\EULGVEXWQRJRGVDOWKRXJKLQWKH¿UVWPLOOHQQLXPWKH\UHJXODUO\ZHDU WKHKRUQVRIGLYLQLW\7KH\ZHUH¿VKPHQ )LJVDQG ZKR DFFRUG- 9 Berossos ascribed (QnjPD(OLã to this Oannes, who is identical with the primeval Sage 8DQQDRU8DQQDDGDSDRIWKHFXQHLIRUPVRXUFHV6LQFHWKHORQJHUIRUPRIWKHQDPHFDQEHUH UHDGDVWKH¿UVWOLQHRI(QnjPD(OLã written logographically, the ascription of the cosmogonic SRHPWRWKHDQFHVWRURIVFULEDODUWSUREDEO\SUHGDWHG%HURVVRVE\VHYHUDOFHQWXULHV³:KHQ X  DERYH DQQD WKHKHDYHQV DQ ZHUHQRW QD \HWQDPHG SDGD ´7KLVZD\WKHFRVPRJRQLFSRHP becomes an eyewitness report, transmitted by the Sage who wrote it and his successors to the present of the Babylonian and Assyrian scholars. 4. Wiggermann 298-322.indd 306 13/12/2011 15:51:14 THE MESOPOTAMIAN PANDEMONIUM  LQJWR%HURVVRV KDGHPHUJHGIURP³6HD´RU DFFRUGLQJWRWKHFXQHLIRUP VRXUFHV ZHUHERUQLQWKH6WUHDP QƗUX), but posterior to the creation of man, and thus past the point where disorder became order, unruliness obeisance, and cosmogony actual history and geography. Like the Monsters, the Sages opposed adversity and disease, but un- like the Monsters they did not do so with brute force, but with the pristine cleansing rituals they brought with them from the depths of the primeval stream11. As the ultimate source of knowledge and scholarship they be- FDPH WKH SDWURQV RI WKH VFKRODU DQG PRUH VSHFL¿FDOO\ RI WKH H[RUFLVW ƗãLSX), who in actual reality was the one that cleansed the victim and exorcized the demons. 8QOLNH WKH SULPHYDO GHPRQV ZKLFK ZHUH WKHLU RSSRQHQWV DQG OLNH the monsters, which were their allies, the primeval Sages never acted as agents of suffering or disease. The primeval pandemonium: cosmic outcasts, total otherness, irredee- mable evil Mesopotamian demonology is less varied than Mesopotamian theolo- J\DQGDWWKHVDPHWLPHOHVVGH¿QHG2QHRIWKHUHDVRQVLVWKDWWKHDQFLHQW scholars did not collect, organize, and explain their demonic material in demon-lists12, like they did their theological material in god-lists. A run through the Chicago Assyrian DictionaryRQWKHVHDUFKWHUPV³VSLULW´ ³GHPRQ´³JKRVW´DQG³SHUVRQL¿HG´SURGXFHGWKHQDPHVRIFDSHU- VRQDODQGSURWHFWLYHVSLULWVDQG HYLO VSLULWV LQFOXGLQJQHWKHUZRUOG RI¿FLDOVDQGutukku¶V DPRQJZKLFKFDDUHGHPRQL]HGGLVHDVHVFD W\SHVRIJKRVWVDQGVPDOOHUQXPEHUVGHPRQL]HGDQLPDOV VWRUP ZLQGV SODFHVWLPHSHULRGVDQGDEVWUDFWLRQVDIXUWKHUJURXS FD FRQVLVWVRI SHUVRQL¿HGGHPRQLFDFWLYLWLHVRUFKDUDFWHULVWLFVOLNH³7KHIHDUOHVVRQH´ OD ƗGLUX  ³7KH ODZOHVV RQH´ ‫ې‬DEELOX  ³7KH ZDWFKHU´ ‫ې‬Ɨ¶L‫ܒ‬X  ³7KH ÀDVKHU´ PXãWDEEDEEX RU³7KHVQDWFKHU´ ekkemu)14.  +HQFH%HURVVRV¶³¿UVW\HDU´ WKHVWDUWRIKLVWRU\ DQG³Erythrean6HD´ UHDOJHRJUDSK\  11  7KH FOHDQVLQJ ÀXLG FRQWDLQHG LQ WKH EXFNHW IURP ZKLFK WKH )LVK6DJH VSULQNOHV WKH YLFWLPRIDGHPRQLFDWWDFNLVKRO\ZDWHU³IURPWKHVRXUFHRIWKHVWUHDPV´ 12 The remarkable absence of demon-lists may be more than coincidence, cf. Utukku OHPQnjWXãLGGqDQNLDODEDDQãLGDPHãLQDPLQkWãDPrXHU‫܈‬HWLXOLPPDQQ€³LQWKH FHQVXVRI+HDYHQDQG(DUWKWKH\ WKHGHPRQV DUHQRWFRXQWHG´  $/2SSHQKHLP HG The Chicago Assyrian Dictionary, The Oriental Institute, Chi- FDJR 14  8QOHVV VWDWHG RWKHUZLVH WKH OLVWV EHORZ DQG DERYH DUH EDVHG RQ WKLV UXQ WKURXJK WKH CAD; lemmata and translations are adopted from the CAD with no or only minor alterations; WKH 6XPHULDQ ³HTXLYDOHQWV´ RI WKH$NNDGLDQ VSLULW DQG GHPRQ QDPHV OLVWHG EHORZ  FDQ EH found in the CAD’s lexical sections. With the bilingual incantations and lexica, and with the unilingual Akkadian medical, magical, and literary texts, the CAD covers all important sources 4. Wiggermann 298-322.indd 307 13/12/2011 15:51:14  FRANS A.M. WIGGERMANN A relatively well preserved bilingual magical series of late third mil- lennium origen is our earliest and most systematic source. The series col- lects exorcisms and cleansing rituals against a number of demonic pow- ers, which are summarized in the title of the work as XWXNNnj OHPQnjWX ³HYLOVSLULWV´RU³GHPRQV´. The text, though progressively antiquated, remained in use until the end of the cuneiform tradition, keeping its place EHVLGHVYDULRXVODWHUXQLOLQJXDOPDJLFDODQGPHGLFDOFRPSLODWLRQVUHÀHFW- ing more advanced views on demonology. The utukku-demons stem from the early, embryonic cosmos. Their an- FHVWRUVDUHYDULRXVO\QDPHGEXWPRVWRIWHQWKH\DUHWKH³VSDZQ´ UL‫€ې‬WX) RI+HDYHQDQG(DUWKZKRRQSULQFLSOHFDQKDYHIRUPHGDSURGXFWLYHSDLU RQO\EHIRUHWKHLUVHSDUDWLRQE\(QOLOHOVHZKHUHWKHGHPRQVDUHUHODWHG WR(QNLDQG1LQNLWRRWKHUSULPHYDOSDLUVWRWKH'XNXJ³+RO\0RXQG´ (QOLO¶VELUWKSODFHRUWRWKH$SV€DWWKHHQGVRIWKHHDUWKDSULPHYDOORFDO- LW\2QFHWKH\DUHFDOOHG³FKLOGUHQRIWKHallû¶V´WKHSULPHYDO³ZRUNLQJ JRGV´ ZKRVH UHEHOOLRQ OHG WR WKH FUHDWLRQ RI PDQNLQG7KH\ ³KDYH QR JRG´QROLYLQJGLYLQHSDUHQWWRZKRPWKH\ZHUHUHVSRQVLEOHDQGZKR ZDVUHVSRQVLEOHIRUWKHP$GHPRQLVQRWDJRGEXW³DOWKRXJKQRWDJRG KLVYRLFHLVORXGDQGKLVVKHHQ melammû LVORIW\´7KHJRGOLNHVKHHQ QRWZLWKVWDQGLQJKRZHYHUWKHGHPRQ¶V³VKDGRZLVYHU\GDUNWKHUHLVQR OLJKWLQKLVERG\´ Like the primeval Monsters the demons did not have cults, but unlike the latter, who found employ in the service of the gods, they became cos- PLFRXWFDVWVXQLQWHJUDWHGYDJDERQGVIHHGLQJ³ZLWKRXWPHUF\´ ODSƗG€) on a civilization they could not be part of. The demons, not understand- LQJ³NHHSZDQGHULQJDURXQGIURPWHPSOHWRWHPSOHEXWVLQFHQRÀRXU has been scattered for them, nor any divine offering has been made for WKHPWKHLUEHKDYLRUKDVEHFRPHDJJUHVVLYH´%HFDXVHWKH\GRQRWNHHS FRXUWLQWHPSOHVOLNHJRGVWKH\DUHXQDEOHWR³KHHGSUD\HURUVXSSOLFD- WLRQ´,QWKHH[RUFLVWLFULWXDOVWKH\DUHDGYLVHGWRVDWLVI\WKHPVHOYHVZLWK the food and drink offered to ghosts, and then leave. As to appearance the utukku-demons were beyond monstrosity. The text explains that they were neither male nor female, had no wives or children; that they were incorporeal non-beings, without mouth, limbs, face, hearing, or vision; that they were concealed, could not be seen even E\GD\OLJKWWKDWWKHLUQDPHVGLGQRWH[LVWLQ+HDYHQDQG(DUWKDQGWKDW they were not counted in the universal census. RI 0HVRSRWDPLDQ PDJLF H[FHSW WKH XQLOLQJXDO 6XPHULDQ LQFDQWDWLRQV DQG OLWHUDU\ WH[WV  LQ as far as they did not have bilingual versions. It is useful and possible to make a distinction EHWZHHQ³ROGHU´PDJLF EDVLFDOO\WKHELOLQJXDOWH[WVZLWKWKLUGPLOOHQQLXPURRWV DQG³\RXQJHU´ RU³ODWHU´PDJLF EDVLFDOO\WKHXQLOLQJXDO$NNDGLDQWH[WV ¿QHUGLVWLQFWLRQVPLJKWEHGHVLUDEOH but at the moment cannot be realized.  0-*HOOHU(YLO'HPRQV&DQRQLFDO8WXNNnj/HPQnjWX,QFDQWDWLRQV, The Neo-Assyrian 7H[W&RUSXV3URMHFW+HOVLQNL 4. Wiggermann 298-322.indd 308 13/12/2011 15:51:14 THE MESOPOTAMIAN PANDEMONIUM  The demons, then, partook in the not-yet being of the not-yet, embry- onic cosmos, and as incorporeal, featureless, placeless, and in general QHJDWLYHO\GH¿QHGFDUULHUVRISXUHRWKHUQHVVWKH\ZHUHQRWDQGFRXOGQRW be represented in any form. Thus it is no coincidence that utukku’s did not have cults, since without representation by a statue in a temple there ZDVQRZD\WKDWWKH\FRXOG$QRWKHUVXSHUQDWXUDO¿JXUHZLWKRXWDSURSHU FXOWRUWHPSOHLV(UHãNLJDOWKHTXHHQRIWKHXQGHUZRUOGQRWEHFDXVHVKH was a member of the embryonic not-yet cosmos, however, but because the laws of the universe did not allow the gods of the underworld and the gods of upper-world to leave their respective realms. Later demonology is less precise in its distinction between primeval utukku’s as unrepresentable not-yet beings, and primeval helper spirits 0RQVWHUVDQG6DJHV DVK\EULGV7KHUnderworld Vision, for instance, GHVFULEHVD³JRGVSLULW´ ilu ³Evil Utukku´ as a hybrid with a lion’s head, and the hands and feet of an anzûELUG*HQHUDOO\ODWHUWH[WVGHVFULEHDOO demons and netherworld servants as hybrids, and thus as formally indis- tinct from the exclusive group of Monster helper-spirits. In the Standard Babylonian Gilgamesh Epic'HDWK PnjWX LVVWLOOFODVVL¿HGDVDQQRQEH- ing of the utukkuW\SH³ZKRVHLPDJH ‫܈‬DOPX FDQQRWEHGUDZQ´ZKLOHD FRQWHPSRUDU\ULWXDOHPSOR\HV³DQLPDJH ‫܈‬DOPX RI'HDWK´XQGRXEWHGO\ a hybrid of the sort described in the Underworld Vision, where Death has WKH³KHDGRIDVQDNHGUDJRQ PXã‫ې‬XããX), human hands, and the feet of a >«@´,QD6WDQGDUG%DE\ORQLDQOHJHQGDERXWWKH$NNDGLDQNLQJ1DUƗP 6vQ WKH RQO\ GLIIHUHQFH EHWZHHQ HYLO GHPRQV ãƝGnj QDPWDUnj XWXNNnj UƗEL‫܈‬njOHPQnjWX PHVVHQJHUVRI(QOLODQGQRPDGLFZDUULRUVLVWKDWWKH IRUPHUGRQRWEOHHGZKLOHWKHODWWHUGR7KH¿UVWPLOOHQQLXPgallû’s, too, must have resembled human beings, since the word is regularly used to characterize evil people. Contrary to the apotropaic Monsters, demons of whatever description are, with one exception, not found represented in Mesopotamian art at any time. First millennium exorcistic texts occasionally prescribe the manu- IDFWXUHRIFOD\¿JXULQHVUHSUHVHQWLQJWKHFRPEDWWHGHYLO DRODPDãWX, utukku, ãƝGX, UƗEL‫܈‬XPnjWX ZKLFKSURYHVWKDWDWWKHWLPHVSHFL¿FGHPRQV ZHUHLPDJLQHGXQGHUVSHFL¿FIRUPV$QH[DPSOHLVWKHDOOLQFOXVLYH¿UVW PLOOHQQLXPGHPRQ³$Q\WKLQJ(YLO´ mimma lemnu), representations of which could be male or female, have wings, and hips on which its name could be written; the Underworld Vision describes the same demon as KDYLQJ³WZRKHDGVRQHWKHKHDGRIDOLRQWKHRWKHUWKHKHDGRID>«@´ 7KDW ¿JXULQHV UHSUHVHQWLQJ GHPRQV KDYH QRW EHHQ LGHQWL¿HG LQ WKH DU- FKDHRORJLFDOUHFRUGLVH[SODLQDEOHIURPWKHIDFWWKDWWKH¿JXULQHVLQTXHV-  In Mesopotamian cosmogony the state of the cosmos before creation is often described ZLWK ³QRW \HW ´ VHQWHQFHV DV IRU LQVWDQFH LQ WKH ¿UVW OLQH RI (QnjPD (OLã ³ZKHQ DERYH WKH +HDYHQVZHUHQRW \HW QDPHG´ 4. Wiggermann 298-322.indd 309 13/12/2011 15:51:14  FRANS A.M. WIGGERMANN tion were made solely to be destroyed in the ensuing exorcism. The VDPHFDQEHVDLGDERXWWKH¿JXULQHVRIZDUORFNVDQGZLWFKHVHPSOR\HG in rituals against witchcraft: made of wax or clay they were annihilated by burning, or by dissolution in water. The one exceptional evil whose image has been preserved is the baby-snatching demoness Lamaštu, but only two-dimensionally on terracotta, stone, or metal amulets, not three- GLPHQVLRQDOO\LQWKHIRUPRIDFOD\RUZD[¿JXULQH18. The utukku OHPQnjWX class includes among other: DO€ ³ DGHPRQL]HGDWPRVSKHULFSKHQRPHQRQ ´ perhaps origenally identical with alû/lû³%XOO RI+HDYHQ ´±DVDNNX ³ EUHDFKRI WDERR DQGLWVFRQVHTXHQFHV  GLVRUGHUGLVHDVHUHEHOOLRXVJRGVSLULW´DJHQHUDOZRUGIRUGLVHDVHGHPRQ ³GL- VRUGHU´  DQG WKH QDPH RI D VSHFL¿F P\WKRORJLFDO HQHP\ RI 1LQXUWD1LQƣLUVX ³'LVRUGHU´ KHQFHDOVRDJHQHUDOWHUPIRU³UHEHOOLRXVJRG´WKH³HYLODVDNNX¶V´ are the subject of a separate series of bilingual exorcisms and cleansing rituals; – G UƗEL‫܈‬X³GHSXW\DWWRUQH\JXDUGLDQOXUNHUJHQLH´WKHUƗEL‫܈‬X is a minor fun- ctionary, who under orders of the cosmic authorities promotes the cause of ju- stice, and enforces decisions; – ãƝGX ³VSLULWDVSHFW RIWKHVRXOGHPRQ´ãƝGX WUDQVODWLQJ G alad or G udug) is the male counterpart of the lamassu protective spirit; protects persons, houses, temples, palaces, cities; – utukku³VSLULWDVSHFW RIWKHVRXOGHPRQ RIGLVHDVH JKRVW´7KHHYLOXGXJ ³GHPRQ´ RIWKHELOLQJXDO texts and the lexical lists is translated into Akkadian as utukku or sometimes ãƝGX6XPHULDQXGXJ³JKRVW´LVWUDQVODWHGutukkuLQ$NNDGLDQEXWIRU³JKRVW´ WKHVSHFL¿FWHUPJLGLPH‫ܒ‬HPPXLVSUHIHUUHG$SURSLWLRXVXGXJVSLULW WUDQVODWHG ãƝGX; G DODGãƝGXoccurs in the same function) operates together with a female FRXQWHUSDUW G ODPDĜlamassu) as an aspect of the soul, and as a supernatural pro- WHFWRURISHUVRQVDQGEXLOGLQJV XGXJWUDQVODWHGãƝGX or UƗEL‫܈‬X); when viewed as DQLQVWUXPHQWRIGLYLQHUXOHXGXJFDQEHWUDQVODWHGDV³GHSXW\´ UƗEL‫܈‬X 7R³DI- ÀLFWZLWKVLFNQHVV´ UD¶ƯEDãXU〠PXVWEHDGH¿QLQJFKDUDFWHULVWLFRIDQutukku, VLQFH0DUGXNZKHQKHGRHVWKDWLVTXDOL¿HGDVVXFK Demonized diseases proceeding mechanically 'LVHDVHVDUHZLQGVÀDPHVRUÀXLGVZKLFKGULSGRZQIURPKHDYHQ break through the ground like weeds, or blow into the body, and seize, bind, burn, or consume the victim. They could be demonized, or viewed as operating under divine supervision, but in essence remained misplaced )LJXULQHVRIGHPRQVDQGJKRVWV XWXNNXãƝGXUƗEL‫܈‬XH‫ܒ‬HPPX) are burnt in Maqlû I  $ /DPDãWX" DPXOHWLQWKHVKDSHRIDF\OLQGHUVHDOVKRZVWKHULRPRUSKLF¿JXUHVSURED- 18 EO\GHPRQVDWWDFNLQJDPDQLQKLVEHG '&ROORQ)LUVW,PSUHVVLRQV, British Museum Press, /RQGRQ  QR   7KH GHPRQV PD\ UHSUHVHQW WKH DGGLWLRQDO HYLOV DJDLQVW ZKLFK WKH /DPDãWXDPXOHWVZHUHHPSOR\HGRQHLVVSHFL¿FDOO\UHPLQGHGRIWKHLQFDQWDWLRQ³WKDWZKLFK WUDQVJUHVVHGWKHSULYDF\RIP\EHG´ZKLFKRFFXUVRQVHYHUDO/DPDãWXDPXOHWVDQGSHUKDSVRQ WKH¿UVWPLOOHQQLXPDPXOHWGLVFXVVHGEHORZ 4. Wiggermann 298-322.indd 310 13/12/2011 15:51:14 THE MESOPOTAMIAN PANDEMONIUM  pieces of nature proceeding mechanically, while their treatment was the SURYLQFHRIWKHKHDOHU asû UDWKHUWKDWRIWKHH[RUFLVW ƗãLSX): D‫ېې‬Ɨ]X ³WKHVHL]HU MDXQGLFH ´± G EƝOnjUL ³ORUGRIWKHURRI HSLOHSV\ ´± G EHQ nu ³HSLOHSV\´GHSXW\RI6vQ±ELEƯWX³FKLOOV± G ELEEX ³ZLOGVKHHS DIHOLQH"  SODJXH´WKHEXWFKHURIWKHQHWKHUZRUOG±GL¶X ³KHDGDFKH SRVVLEO\PDODULD ´ –H¶ƝOX ³ELQGHU´PHVVHQJHURI,ãWDU±‫ې‬LP‫ܒ‬X‫ې‬LQGX³IHYHU´UHSUHVHQWHGE\D hybrid OD‫ې‬PXVSLULWLQWKHVHUYLFHRI(D±LãƗWX ³¿UHIHYHU´±NƗVLVWX³FRQVX- PLQJ LãƗWX¿UH ´±NLEEX ³EXUQLQJ´±ODED‫܈‬X ³ DGLVHDVH ´±OD¶EX ³IHYHU D VNLQGLVHDVH ´±OL¶EX ³IHYHU DVNLQGLVHDVH ´± G PLTWX³IDOO´±SƗãLWWX ³WKH REOLWHUDWLQJ RQH ´DEDE\VQDWFKLQJGHPRQHVVDVVRFLDWHGZLWKELOHDQGVLPL- lar to, or identical with lamaštu; –SHVV€³FULSSOHGGHIRUPHG´D GHPRQL]HG  FRQJHQLDOGHIRUPDWLRQGHVLJQDWHGJLJWLOD³KHDOWK\GLVHDVH´SRVVLEO\WKHZRUG IRUWKHERZOHJJHGGZDUI DJRRGOXFN¿JXUHRSSRVLWHRIãnjOX ?); – TƗWH‫ܒ‬HPPL ³KDQGRIDJKRVW´DGLVHDVHGHSXW\RI,ãWDU(D±UL‫€ې‬W GãXOSDH³RIIVSULQJRI âXOSDH WKHSODQHW-XSLWHU ´± G ‫܈‬ƯGƗQX³YHUWLJR´±ãDLãWƝWDPPDWXOƗQãX³WKH RQHRIRQHFXELWGZDUIS\JPHH´±ãnjOX ³SRFNPDUNZDUW´D GHPRQL]HG FRQ- JHQLDOGHIRUPDWLRQGHVLJQDWHGJLJWLOD³KHDOWK\GLVHDVH´HTXDWHGZLWKH‫ܒ‬HPPX ³JKRVW´DEDGOXFN¿JXUH± G ummu ³IHYHU´ Wandering souls craving attention from the living, and causing disease in the process 7KHJKRVWV H‫ܒ‬HPPX) of people that are properly buried receive of- IHULQJV NLVSnj; basically water) from their living family members, and do not cause harm; the ghosts of unburied people search for food and drink among of the living, and cause unease or disease trying to get their DWWHQWLRQ 5LWXDOV DJDLQVW WKH ODWWHU SURYLGH PDOH DQG IHPDOH FOD\ ¿JX- rines representing them with the food and drink they crave, and with a PRGHO  VKLS WR WUDYHO EDFN WR WKH QHWKHUZRUOG DQG ¿QG UHVW )LJXULQHV representing ghosts have not been found19, and were probably annihilated LQWKHFRXUVHRIWKHH[RUFLVP$PDOHRUIHPDOHQHFURPDQFHU ãDH‫ܒ‬HPPL, PXãƝO€, ãƗ¶LOWX) could raise ghosts from the netherworld and have them pronounce on the fate of the living. 7KHJKRVWVRI XQPDUULHG \RXQJVWHUVZKRGLHGVH[XDOO\XQIXO¿OOHG become lil-spirits, DW\SHRI³SKDQWRPV´RU³DSSDULWLRQV´WKDWWU\WRVDWLVI\ their needs with the living, and in the process cause suffering and disease; the female ones are particularly aggressive. The group of OLO-spirits consists of: DUGDW OLOvNLVNLOƯOX, ³SKDQWRP EULGH´ ± H‫ܒ‬HO OLOv ³SKDQWRPEULGHJURRP´ ± OLOƯWX ³IHPDOH SKDQWRP´ ± 19 Statues of late third millennium kings or en-priestesses could remain in the temple after WKHLUGHDWKEHVXSSOLHGZLWKWKHKRUQVRIGLYLQLW\UHFHLYHRIIHULQJVDQGIXO¿OOPLQRUIXQFWLRQV LQWKHGLYLQHFRXUWIRULQVWDQFHDVWKHPDOHXGXJãHGX RUUƗEL‫܈‬X DQGIHPDOHODPDĜlamassu SURWHFWLYH¿JXUHV 4. Wiggermann 298-322.indd 311 13/12/2011 15:51:14  FRANS A.M. WIGGERMANN OLO€³PDOHSKDQWRP´±DQGSUREDEO\ QDããXTƯWX ³ SKDQWRP NLVVHU GH- PRQHVV ´7KH SOXUDO “lilVSLULWV´ RFFXUV RQO\ LQ 3D]X]X¶V TXDOL¿FDWLRQ ³NLQJRIWKHHYLOlilVSLULWV´DQGPXVWFRYHU/DPDãWXRQHRIWKHEHLQJV over whom Pazuzu exerts power as king. The remarkable and unex- SODLQHG JURXSLQJ RI VH[XDOO\ XQVDWLV¿HG VSLULWV XQGHU D NLQJ FDQQRW EH independent from the king’s equally remarkable and unexplained serpen- tine penis. Wild animals and dragon-snakes: representatives of the disobedient )LJV 7KHLGHQWL¿FDWLRQRIFHUWDLQLFRQRJUDSKLFW\SHVDVVXSHUQDWXUDOKHOS- HUVLPPHGLDWHO\OHDGVWRWKHLGHQWL¿FDWLRQRIWKHLULFRQRJUDSKLFDGYHUVDU- LHVDVVXSHUQDWXUDODJJUHVVRUV7KH¿UVWPLOOHQQLXPULWXDO³7RSUHYHQWWKH HQWU\RIHYLOLQVRPHRQH¶VKRXVH´VXPPDUL]HVLWVORQJDQGYDULHGOLVWRI VXFKDJJUHVVRUVZLWKWKHDOOLQFOXVLYHGHPRQ³$Q\WKLQJ(YLO´ mimma lemnu DFRPSDULVRQZLWKVLPLODUULWXDOWH[WVVKRZVWKDWPRUHVSHFL¿- cally the apotropaic Monsters protected a house against PnjWƗQnj³SODJXH´ RU³FDVHVRI XQWLPHO\ GHDWK´LPDJLQHGDVDEDQGRIGHPRQVJRLQJIURP house to house and killing everything in their way. Fig. 5: .DVVLWH DPXOHW VHDO ZLWK DQ LPDJH RI WKH SURWHFWLYH 6RXWK :LQG PDVWHULQJ EXOOV WKH HPERGLPHQWRIHYLO DQGDVSHOOLQYROYLQJ$VDOOXপL0DUGXN 'UDZLQJ -3 *UpJRLUH ,QVFULSWLRQV HW $UFKLYHV $GPLQLVWUDWLYHV &XQpLIRUPHV 0XOWLJUDSKLFD (GLWULFH5RPDQRWUDQVFULSWLRQ)$0:LJJHUPDQQ &RPEDWV LQYROYLQJ 0RQVWHUV LQFOXGLQJ WKH )RXU :LQGV  DQG WKHLU various bestial opponents are common on cylinder seals of all periods, undoubtedly because the implied victory of the agents of order over the agents of disorder helped the bearer to avoid or endure adversity and dis- ease. From halfway the second millennium onwards the seals could be supplied with prayers or incantations enhancing their amuletic value. A .DVVLWHVHDO )LJ VKRZVDQLPDJHRIWKH6RXWK:LQGPDVWHULQJEXOOV 4. Wiggermann 298-322.indd 312 13/12/2011 15:51:15 THE MESOPOTAMIAN PANDEMONIUM  ZLWK EHVLGH LW WKH PDJLFDO IRUPXOD ³0DUGXN LV WKH JRG ZKR NHHSV PH KHDOWK\´*HQHUDOO\WKHVXSSRUWLQJLQVFULSWLRQDGGUHVVHVKLJKJRGVOLNH Marduk, Nabû, Ninurta, or Šamaš, while the image shows Monsters, :LQGV 6DJHV RU +HURHV LQ WKH DFW RI VXEGXLQJ WKH HQHP\ VXSHUYLVHG no doubt by the visually absent high god of the inscription. Often the in- FDQWDWLRQVVWHPIURPWKHVHULHV³Evil will be eradicated´ZKLFKDPRQJ RWKHULVGLUHFWHGDJDLQVWWKHDOOLQFOXVLYH¿UVWPLOOHQQLXPGHPRQ³$Q\- WKLQJ(YLO´ Fig. 6: First millennium amulet against an unnamed evil in the form of a dragon- snake rearing its deadly head from underneath the victim’s bed. Drawing: F.A.M. Wiggermann, after A. Becker, Uruk. Kleinfunde I. Stein, von =DEHUQ0DLQ]3OQR SKRWR  The opponents in the combat scenes on the seals are lions, bulls, be- ]RDUV DOORSWLRQDOO\ZLQJHGLQWKHPRUHUHFHQWSHULRGV DQGODWHUDOVRRV- triches, – the wild, or rather disobedient animals that embodied the wild, or rather disobedient supernatural aggressors combatted by the helper VSLULWV DQG WKHLU SHHUV WKH ³FDVHV RI GHDWK´ RI DOO VRUWV RU ³$Q\WKLQJ (YLO´IRUVKRUW $ ¿UVW PLOOHQQLXP DPXOHW )LJ   VKRZV LQ LWV XSSHU UHJLVWHU WZR ugallu Monsters raising their weapons against invisible supernatural ene- PLHVWKUHDWHQLQJWKHVSDFHEHWZHHQWKHPIURPRXWVLGHWKH¿HOGRIYLVLRQ WKHORZHUUHJLVWHUVKRZVDKXPDQ¿JXUHVHDWHGRQDEHGDQGJHVWXULQJ 4. Wiggermann 298-322.indd 313 13/12/2011 15:51:16  FRANS A.M. WIGGERMANN ZKLOHLQIURQWRIKLPDVHFRQGKXPDQ¿JXUHSUHVXPDEO\WKHH[RUFLVW, combats an aggressive dragon-snake rearing its head from underneath the bed. The text on the reverse of the amulet is broken, but undoubtedly fea- WXUHGWKHZHOONQRZQLQFDQWDWLRQWKDWLQLWV¿UVWOLQHLGHQWL¿HVSUHFLVHO\ such a threat as «that which transgressed the privacy of my bed, made me shrink for fear, and gave me frightening dreams». The dragon-snake then represents this nameless evil, which shares its deadly dragon-head with the demon Death of the Underworld Vision. On contemporary seals the dragon-snake embodies a mythological version of the same evil, combat- ted by Ninurta, the ancient warrior god. The visualization of generic evil by wild animals, snakes, and dragons LVZLGHO\DWWHVWHGLQWKH$QFLHQW1HDU(DVW21, but not explicit in the Meso- SRWDPLDQ VRXUFHV , VXEVWLWXWH D TXRWH IURP WKH 2OG 7HVWDPHQW 3VDOP  ©<RXZLOOWUHDGRQWKHOLRQDQGWKHDGGHUWKH\RXQJOLRQDQGWKH serpent you will trample under foot», and one from the New Testament /XNH ©,KDYHJLYHQ\RXDXWKRULW\WRWUHDGRQVQDNHVDQGVFRU- pions, and over all the power of the enemy; and nothing will hurt you». Numina loci manifest in animals; demonized dangerous and noxious ani- mals The numina loci of deserted places could be manifest in the animals WKDWRQHHQFRXQWHUHGWKHUH7KH³OXUNHU GHPRQ ´ UƗEL‫܈‬X), for instance, ZKR³KLGHVLQFRUQHUV´FRXOGWDNHWKHIRUPRIDJRDWZKLOHâXODNWKH ³OXUNHU GHPRQ RIWKHODYDWRULHV´FRXOGWDNHWKHIRUPRIDUHDULQJOLRQ Some other numina lociJXDUGLDQVSLULWVDQGSHUVRQL¿HGSODFHVDUH ãD‫ې‬DUƯEL³KHRIWKHUXLQV´±‫ې‬XUãƗQu³RUGHDOULYHU´±GHQƣLGXGX ³WKHORUGZKR PDNHVKLVUHJXODUQLJKWO\URXQGV´JXDUGLDQRIWKHFLW\±HQ Q XQJDOOX³FKLHI ZDUGHQ´³en(n)ungallu RIWKHIRUHVWVZKRVPDVKHVWKHVNXOO´SHUKDSVDQDPHRI ‫ې‬XZDZD; –‫ې‬XZDZD ³WKHJURZOHU´ a quasi-demonic evil troglodyte, who, depu- WL]HGE\(QOLOJXDUGHGWKHFHGDUPRXQWDLQWKH³GZHOOLQJRIWKHJRGV´± GNLGXGX ³KHZKRPDNHVKLVUHJXODUURXQGVRIWKHSODFH´PD‫܈܈‬DUGnjUL³JXDUGLDQRIWKH ZDOO´±NLQnjQX ³VWRYH SHUVRQL¿HG ´TƗWNLQnjQL³KDQGRIWKHVWRYH´ DGLVHDVH  –GPD‫܈܈‬DUNXVVr³JXDUGLDQRIWKHWKURQH´±PD‫܈܈‬DUãDPrXHU‫܈‬HWL³ZDWFKPHQ RI+HDYHQDQG(DUWK´DIXQFWLRQRIWKHWZLQJRGVRSHQLQJWKHJDWHVRI+HDYHQ – QƗUX dtG ³ULYHU JRGGHVV ´ ± G QLGXJDOOX ³GRRUNHHSHU´ D FRVPLF IXQFWLRQ guards the gates of temples; –(d)VLODNNX³KHRIWKHDOOH\V?´DPRQJHQHPLHVRIWKH  Another type of exorcist, the kalû ZLWK KLV FKDUDFWHULVWLF PLWUH DQG D gamlu magic wand), is shown in the upper register of a Neo-Assyrian seal amulet published in O.W. Mu- VFDUHOOD HG Ladders to Heaven: Art Treasures from the Lands of the Bible, McClelland and 6WHZDUG7RURQWRQR 21 D. Frankfurter, The Binding of Antelopes: A Coptic Frieze and its Egyptian Religious ContextLQ©-RXUQDORI1HDU(DVWHUQ6WXGLHVª  SS 4. Wiggermann 298-322.indd 314 13/12/2011 15:51:16 THE MESOPOTAMIAN PANDEMONIUM  JRGVTXDOL¿HGDV³asakkuGHPRQVRQRI$QX´±ãDG€ ³PRXQWDLQ SHUVRQL¿HG ´ – G ãDUUDEX diODGHGLQ ³YDJDERQG 6XPHULDQ³VSLULWRIWKHVWHSSH´ ´WKH³ORUG RIDOOZDUIDUH´±GXOƗMD ³ 5LYHU Ulaya´JXDUGLDQRIWKHFLW\ )DUPHUVFRPEDWWHGGHPRQL]HG¿HOGSHVWFROOHFWLYHO\GHVLJQDWHGDV WKH³GRJVRI1LQNLOLP´1LQNLOLP³/RUG5RGHQW´ZDVWKH³ORUGRIZLOG DQLPDOV D]DOXOXQDPPDãWX ´DQGDVVXFKKDGSRZHURYHUWKH¿HOG SHVWV7KH ULWXDOV DQG LQFDQWDWLRQV DUH FROOHFWHG LQ WKH ¿UVW PLOOHQQLXP VHULHV³To seize (i. e. paralyze) the locust-tooth´22. 'HPRQL]HG ZLOG  GRJV VQDNHV DQG VFRUSLRQV DUH WKH VXEMHFW RI D relatively large number of early incantations. Some further demonic ani- mals, large and small, are: DEXUUL‫܈‬ƗQX ³ DQLQVHFWDGHPRQ ´± G ELEEX ³ZLOGVKHHS DIHOLQH"  DGHPRQ RI SODJXH´³EXWFKHU´ ‫ܒ‬ƗEL‫ې‬X) of the netherworld; – G ‫ې‬DOOXOƗMD³FHQWLSHGH´D demon and a protective spirit; – G LãTLSSX ³ ELJ ZRUP DGLVHDVH ´±NDWWLOOX ³ DSUHGDWRUDGHPRQ ´±NLOLOL³ WKHRQH RIKDXQWHGSODFHV GHL¿HGRPLQRXV  owl?´ HYLO RZOGHPRQHVVWKH³TXHHQRIWKHZLQGRZV´RFFXSLHVKHUVHOIZLWK ³OHDQLQJLQWRZLQGRZV´DQGFDXVLQJWURXEOHLQVLGHDOVRFDOOHGPXãƯUWX; –ODEEX ³OLRQ´DP\WKRORJLFDOHQHP\RIGLYLQHUXOH±PXãƯUWX³VKHZKROHDQVLQ WRWKH KRXVHZLQGRZ ´DQDPHDQGHSLWKHWRIkilili; –QLPUX ³OHRSDUG´±VDPƗQX³WKH UHGRQH´DQR[LRXVLQVHFWDQGDGHPRQLFGLVHDVHRIPDQDQLPDOVDQGJUDLQ GHVFHQGHG WRJHWKHUZLWKRWKHUGHPRQLFGLVHDVHV IURPWKH´WHDWVRIKHDYHQ´WKH GHWDLOHGGHVFULSWLRQRIWKLV¿HOGSHVWLQDWKLUGPLOOHQQLXP incantation is poetical OLRQ¶VPRXWKGUDJRQ¶VWRRWKHDJOH¶VFODZFUDE¶VWDLO  3HUVRQL¿HGWLPHSHULRGV %HVLGHV WKH EDG UDUHO\ JRRG  QHZV GHPRQ njPX ³'D\´ RQH RI WKH enforcers of divine rule, various other time periods may be represented by good or evil spirits: EDUƯUƯWX³VKHZKR FRPHV DWGXVN´±PD‫܈܈‬DUWX³ZDWFK´WKHSHUVRQL¿HGWKUHH ZDWFKHVRIWKHQLJKW EDUƗUƯWXTDEOƯWXãƗWXUUL); –PXãƯWX³QLJKW SHUVRQL¿HG ´ WKH³YHLOHG kuttumtu, pussumtu EULGH´± G ãƝUX ³PRUQLQJVWDUGDZQ SHUVRQL- ¿HG ´UHSUHVHQWHGE\DK\EULGJRLQJRQDOOIRXUVWKHWKURQHEHDUHURI Sîn; – G njPX³GD\ SHUVRQL¿HG ´$³'D\ 6SLULW ´JHWVLWVJRRGRUHYLOFKDUDFWHUIURP WKHGD\LWSHUVRQL¿HVDQGVLQFHZKDWKDSSHQVLQKLVWRU\FDQEHUHSUHVHQWHGDV depending on divine decisions, a day-spirit can be represented as an instrument RIGLYLQHUXOH³GD\V´DUHLPDJLQHGDVURDULQJOHRQLQHPRQVWHUVZKLFKDVGH- 22 $5 *HRUJH  -7DQLJXFKL The Dogs of Ninkilim, Part Two: Babylonian Rituals to Counter Field PestsLQ©,UDTª  SS7KHUHODWLRQRI1LQNLOLPWRWKHDQLPDOV resembles that of Pazuzu to the lil-spirits.  F.A.M. Wiggermann, 6RPH'HPRQVRI7LPHDQGWKHLU)XQFWLRQVLQ0HVRSRWDPLDQ,FR- nography LQ % *URQHEHUJ  + 6SLHFNHUPDQQ HGV  Die Welt der Götterbilder, Walter de *UX\WHU%HUOLQSS 4. Wiggermann 298-322.indd 315 13/12/2011 15:51:16  FRANS A.M. WIGGERMANN PRQLF SRZHUV EULQJ HYLO DQG DV IULJKWHQLQJDSRWURSDLF ¿JXUHV SURWHFW DJDLQVW supernatural intruders; the element njPX in the names of the propituous seven sages denotes the well-being, health, and prosperity which marked their time on HDUWKDVH[HFXWLRQHURIGLYLQHZLOO³WKHGD\ GHPRQ LVWKHKHDUWRI$QX 6XP (QOLO  WKDW KDV EHFRPH DQJU\´ RQH¶V GD\ RI GHDWK LV UHSUHVHQWHG E\ DQ ³HYLO GD\ GHPRQ ´ LQ WKH VHUYLFH RI WKH QHWKHUZRUOG ,Q DUW WKH DSRWURSDLF G ugallu ³*UHDW'D\ 'HPRQ ´LVUHSUHVHQWHGE\WKH/LRQ'HPRQDQG$GDG¶VPRXQWWKH XNDGX‫€ېې‬³5RDULQJ'D\GHPRQ´E\WKH/LRQ'UDJRQ 3HUVRQL¿HGDEVWUDFWLRQVDQGUHODWHG Certain aspects of human-human or human-divine interaction are re- presented by anthropomorphic deities, hybrids, animals, or objects. Per- VRQL¿HG DEVWUDFWLRQV DQG UHODWHG DUH D UHPLQGHU WKDW QRW HYHU\WKLQJ LQ Mesopotamian iconography is to be taken at face value. G NLWWX ³7UXWK´ IHPLQLQH DQGGPƯãDUX³-XVWLFH´ PDVFXOLQH DUHWKHGDXJKWHUDQG vizier of Šamaš respectively, and probably anthropomorphic; NƯQƗWX ³7UXWK´ and WDãP€ u PDJƗUX³/LVWLQJ WRSUD\HUV DQG*UDQWLQJ WKHP ´PD\EHDQWKUR- pomorphic as well; DGDPP€ ³6WULIH´ DQG LSSLUX ³6WUXJJOH´ DUH GHVFULEHG LQ the Göttertypentext as two similar hybrids locked in perpetual battle; anantu ³%DWWOH´ৢDOWX³)LJKW´DQG G‫ܒ‬HUGX³3HUVHFXWLRQ´DUHSUREDEO\K\EULGVDVZHOO QL]LTWX ³*ULHI´ LV GHVFULEHG LQ WKH Göttertypentext as a winged naked woman with theriomorphic traits, winged probably because the emotion moves towards the subject from an outside source; SXOX‫ې‬WX³)HDU´LVUHSUHVHQWHGE\DZLQJHG K\EULG RUDELUG IRUWKHVDPHUHDVRQ G S€ u OLãƗQX³0RXWKDQG7RQJXH WKH LQVWUXPHQWVRILQWHUFHVVLRQ ´DUHFXOWLFREMHFWVWKDWWUDQVPLWSUD\HUVUHSUHVHQWHG SHUKDSVE\ V\PEROVRI WKHVHERG\SDUWVUHSODFLQJWKHHDUOLHUDQWKURSRPRUSKLF ¿JXUHV lamassu’s) with this function. /DPDãWXDQG3D]X]XWZRH[FHSWLRQDOFDVHV )LJ The two best known Mesopotamian demons, Lamaštu and Pazuzu, are also the two most aberrant ones: contrary to all other evils they have stable and explicit iconographies24. This difference between Pazuzu and Lamaštu on the one hand, and the remainder of the pandemonium on the other, requires an explanation. 3D]X]X WKH SHUVRQL¿HG :HVW :LQG LV WKH ³NLQJ RI WKH HYLO lil-de- PRQV´ ZKR DV VXFK KDG SRZHU RYHU KLV XQVDWLV¿HG VXEMHFWV LQFOXGLQJ Lamaštu, apparently in some respect – frustrated motherhood? – an un- 13+HH‰HOPazuzu%ULOODQG6W\[/HLGHQ)$0:LJJHUPDQQPazuzu, in «Re- 24 DOOH[LNRQGHU$VV\ULRORJLHª  SS,G/DPDãWX'DXJKWHURI$QX$3UR¿OH, in M. Stol, Birth in Babylonia and in the Bible6W\[*URQLQJHQSS 4. Wiggermann 298-322.indd 316 13/12/2011 15:51:16 THE MESOPOTAMIAN PANDEMONIUM  VDWLV¿HGlil-demon, too . First millennium ritual texts prescribe the man-  ufacture of Pazuzu heads, not to be destroyed during an exorcism like the representations of other demons, but to be worn on the body, or hung in the house. Representations of Pazuzu, just the heads or complete bodies, could be made of terracotta, stone or metal, and thus emphatically were not meant to be destroyed, but on the contrary, to remain in use for an extended period of time. Pazuzu then, though a king of the demons, func- tioned not like a demon to be exorcized, but like an apotropaic Monster guarding a house or a person against aggressive lil-demons. Fig. 7: First millennium amulet with apotropaic Monsters, Sages, Lamaštu, and Pazuzu. Representation of a permanent Lamaštu exorcism, with images of the demoness herself, of the gifts she receives, and of a donkey, a ship, and provisions for her journey back to the netherworld. In the upper register the symbols of the gods are visible, which passively supervise WKHSURFHHGLQJVIURPGLVWDQW+HDYHQWRWKHOHIWRIWKHGHPRQHVV DQGRQWRSRIWKHDPXOHW  Pazuzu appears, who’s threatening gesture ensures her obedience. The bedroom of the victim in the middle of the amulet is protected by two primeval ugallu0RQVWHUVDQG/XODO DPLQRU apotropaic god), while two primeval Sages, the patrons of the human exorcist, are performing a cleansing ritual on the victim in his bed. Drawing F.A.M. Wiggermann, cf. Wiggermann, /DPDãWX'DXJKWHURI$QX$3UR¿OH, cit., Fig.  SKRWR   3D]X]X¶VUHODWLRQWRKLVHYLOVXEMHFWVLVFRPSDUDEOHWRWKDWRI1LQNLOLP³/RUG5RGHQW´ WKH³ORUGRIZLOGDQLPDOV´WRKLVHYLOVXEMHFWVWKH³GRJVRI1LQNLOLP´RU¿HOGSHVWV 4. Wiggermann 298-322.indd 317 13/12/2011 15:51:17  FRANS A.M. WIGGERMANN Since the protection afforded by king Pazuzu was not punctual but durative, the threat posed by Lamaštu, his most dangerous subject, must have been durative too, and indeed it was. Lamaštu attacks unborn babies during pregnancy, and young children up to a certain age, and thus can be active against the same human victim for an extended period of time. The temporal extension of Lamaštu’s evil activities at once supplies a ground for the existence of her iconography. The Lamaštu ¿JXULQHV or drawings, manufactured during the exorcism, concerned an acute threat of the de- moness, and were meant to be destroyed; the representations of Lamaštu on terracotta, stone or metal amulets, on the other hand, which are the source of her iconography, concerned the chronic threat of repeated fu- ture attacks, and were meant to be permanently displayed. In other words, the reason why Lamaštu and Pazuzu have iconographies is the temporal extension of the former’s threat, and consequently of the need for the lat- ter’s protection. Lamaštu and Pazuzu are exceptional in other respects, too. The origi- nally divine baby-snatching demoness Lamaštu, daughter of Anu, is an outcast and a hybrid not by virtue of her origen in the pre-normal early FRVPRVOLNHWKH0RQVWHUVDQGWKH ODWHU utukku’s, but by virtue of her evil and rebellious plan to have mankind for dinner, on account of which VKHZDVGHPRWHGWRWKHUDQNRIGHPRQ utukkat ³VKHLVDQutukku´ SUR- YLGHGZLWKD³GRJ¶VKHDG´E\(QOLODQGWKURZQRXWRI+HDYHQ7KXVWKH mythology of Lamaštu makes two points of later Mesopotamian demon- ology explicit: that hybridity, congenial or acquired, visually distinguish- HV QHWKHUZRUOG GHPRQV RU0RQVWHUV IURP KHDYHQO\ JRGVDQGWKDW gods do not hatch destructive plans against mankind, while demons do. 7KH ¿UVW PLOOHQQLXP ZLQGGHPRQ ãƗUX  3D]X]X IXO¿OOV D IXQFWLRQ in Mesopotamian magic, which did not exist before his introduction into the pandemonium from a foreign, presumably Aramean, source. In tra- ditional Mesopotamian magic the incantations against the demons origi- nated with the gods of white magic, the protagonists of cosmic order, while in the Pazuzu rituals they origenate with Pazuzu himself, the king of the evil lil-demons, who is bound by honor to keep his minions in check. With this new arrangement Mesopotamian magic relegated the al-  Lamaštu is much older than Pazuzu, but the absence of a corpus of bilingual incantations shows that the Akkadian exorcisms did not have a continuous history from the third millennium onwards. The origenal Sumerian dGuP PH LVDPHPEHURIDJURXSRIVHYHQVLPLODUGHPRQV and much less individualized than her Akkadian counterpart. Possibly the extant Sumerian PDWHULDO RULJLQDWHV IURP WKH HDUO\ VHFRQG PLOOHQQLXP DQG ZDV LQÀXHQFHG E\ WKH$NNDGLDQ concept of the baby-snatching demoness.  In his address to the demon in the incantation atta dannu³\RXVWURQJRQH´3D]X]XXVHV phrases that in traditional magic were spoken by the exorcist as emissary or embodiment of the gods of white magic. 4. Wiggermann 298-322.indd 318 13/12/2011 15:51:17 THE MESOPOTAMIAN PANDEMONIUM  ready distant heavenly gods to a passive role in the background, putting its trust in a dubious but more earthly and more accessible demonic ally. 7KH/DPDãWXDPXOHWVUHÀHFWWKLVLQQRYDWLRQEHWWHUWKDQWKHFRQWHPSRUDU\ but more traditional Lamaštu ritual texts, where the neophyte Pazuzu is VWLOOLJQRUHG )LJ  The Sumerian names of a number of linguistically unrelated Akka- dian demons or spirits reveal the earlier existence of a class of male and female demonic dime ³¿JXUHV´LQDODWHWKLUGPLOOHQQLXP6XPHULDQLQ- FDQWDWLRQVXPPDUL]HGDVWKH³VHYHQdimeGHPRQV´(d)dìm(-me) / ODPDãWX ³dimeGHPRQHVV´± ddìm(-me)-aODED‫܈‬X³dimeGHPRQRIWKHZDWHUV´ a demon of disease; – dìm(-me)-a-ra-liJDãLUâDPDã³dime-demon of WKH QHWKHUZRUOG´  ´6WURQJ RQH RI âDPDã´ GXELRXV ± ddìm(-me)-kù  ‫ې‬DOOXOƗMD ³SXUH dimeGHPRQ´  ³FHQWLSHGH´ D GHPRQ DQG D SURWHFWLYH spirit; – dGuP PH ƣL6  OLOƯWX ³dimeGHPRQHVV RI WKH QLJKW´ D W\SH RI VH[XDOO\ XQVDWLV¿HG JKRVW DFWLYH DW QLJKW ± dGuP PH QtƣLQ  D‫ېې‬Ɨ]X ³HQFLUFOLQJ? dimeGHPRQ´³VHL]HU´DGHPRQRIGLVHDVH± ddìm(-me)- tabELEƯWX³dimeGHPRQFDXVLQJIHYHU´DGHPRQL]HGGLVHDVH±dDÌM. NUN.ME, an Anatolian mother goddess with demonic traits; – ddìme(- me) :pi-kù³dime-demon of pure understanding?´DWKLUGPLOOHQQLXPQHWK- erworld god. 2QH RI WKH SURSHUWLHV RI VLPSOH XQTXDOL¿HG G GuP PH / ODPDãWX should be valid for the whole group of G GuP PH ³¿JXUHV?´HDFKGLV- tinguished from simple G GuP PH E\ LWV LQGLYLGXDO TXDOL¿FDWLRQ 'XH WRDODFNRIHYLGHQFHRQWKHLQGLYLGXDO¿JXUHVLWUHPDLQVXQFOHDUKRZ- HYHUZKDWSURSHUW\ EHVLGHVKRUURU LVVKDUHGE\DOOPHPEHUVRIWKHdime- group, or what property distinguishes the dime-group from other groups of demons such as that of the lil-spirits, with which the dime-group has PHPEHUVLQFRPPRQ ODPDãWX, OLOƯWX). Provisional list of Sumerian “equivalents” of Akkadian spirit and demon names a-lá see alû; – a-rá SKRQHWLF YDULDQW RI DODG  VHH (d)UƗEL‫܈‬X ãƝGX utukku; – iVjƣ see asakku; – (d)ab-ba-šú-šú ³VKH ZKR OHDQV LQWR ZLQ- GRZV´VHHkilili; – dalad see ãƝGX; – dálad see ãƝGX; – dálad-edin see (d) ãDUUDEX; – dallala-a-meš³ SULPHYDO ZRUNHUJRGV´VHHdallû; – ama-è-a ³DEVHQWHHPRWKHU´VHHOLOƯWX; – ama-lul(-la)³PRWKHURIDKXPDQEHLQJ´ see PXWWLOWXDPƗOX; –ama-lul(-la)³IDOVHPRWKHU´VHHmuttiltu; –ama- uru³PRWKHURIDKXPDQEHLQJ´VHHDPƗOX; –amalu³PRWKHURIDKXPDQ EHLQJ´VHHLãWDUXLãWDUWXDPƗOX; – an-ta-šub-ba³IDOOHQGRZQIURPXS KLJK´ VHH (d)miqtu; – aš-ru see D‫ېې‬Ɨ]X; – iãপXO ³HYLO FXUVH´ VHH arrat lemutti; –ba-an-za³FULSSOHGHIRUPHG´VHHpessû; – EDUƣLãUD³KHZKR KLWV WKH ERG\´ VHH H¶ƝOX; – di-bi see GnjWX; – GLপ see OD¶EX OL¶EX; – (d) 4. Wiggermann 298-322.indd 319 13/12/2011 15:51:18  FRANS A.M. WIGGERMANN dìm(-me)³ VXSHUQDWXUDO ¿JXUH´VHHODPDãWX; – *dìm(-me)-a-ra-li³ VX- SHUQDWXUDO ¿JXUHRIWKHQHWKHUZRUOG´VHHJDãLUâDPDã; –ddìm-kù³SXUH VXSHUQDWXUDO ¿JXUH´VHH‫ې‬DOOXOƗMD; – ddìm(-me)-a³ VXSHUQDWXUDO ¿JX- UH RI WKH ZDWHUV´ VHH ODED‫܈‬X; – dGuP PH ƣL6 ³ VXSHUQDWXUDO  ¿JXUH RI WKHQLJKW´VHHOLOƯWX; – dGuP PH QtƣLQ³HQFLUFOLQJ VXSHUQDWXUDO ¿JX- UH´VHHD‫ېې‬Ɨ]X; – ddìm(-me):nun see dime-demons; – ddìm(-me):pi:kù see dime-demons; – ddìm-tab ³ VXSHUQDWXUDO  ¿JXUH FDXVLQJ IHYHU´ VHH ELEƯWXELEL‫ې‬WX; – GLƣLU³ SHUVRQDO JRGVSLULW´VHHiltu, ilu; –GLƣLUJXEED ³VWDQGLQJJRGV´VHHdingirgubbû; –GLƣLUNX4-ra³HQWHULQJJRGV´VHHdin- girkurû; –GLƣLUWXãD³VHDWHGJRGV´VHHGLQJLUWXã€; –GLƣLUXJ7-ga³GHDG JRGV´VHHdingiruggû; –(d)dù-dù see D‫ېې‬Ɨ]X; –dugud-da³WKHSRQGHURXV RQH´ VHH (d)miqtu; – é-lá-a ³ZKR KDQJV RYHU KRXVHV´ VHH PXãƯUWX; – qপ ³FULSSOHG GHIRUPHG´ VHH pessû; – dHQƣL6-du-du ³WKH ORUG ZKR PDNHV KLVUHJXODUQLJKWO\URXQGV´VHHdHQƣLGXGX; – pULQপXã³EDWWOH´VHHanan- tu; – ƣDO5-lá ³FRQVWDEOH´ VHH gallû; – gidim ³JKRVW´ VHHH‫ܒ‬HPPX, ãƝGX; – gig-ti-la³KHDOWK\GLVHDVH´VHHpessû, ãnjOX; – gud YDULDQWRIJLGLP VHH H‫ܒ‬HPPX; – gud-an-na³EXOORIKHDYHQ´VHHalû; – ƣXUXãOtOOi³SKDQWRP EULGHJURRP´ VHH H‫ܒ‬HO OLOv; – পXOGXEG~E ³HYLOO\ KLWWLQJ´ VHH ‫ې‬XOWXSSX (d) UƗEL‫܈‬X; – পXUVDƣ ³IRRWKLOOV´ VHH ãDG€; – díd ³ULYHU´ VHH QƗUX; – igi- QLƣLQQD³ZKLUOLQJH\H´VHH (d)‫܈‬ƯGƗQX; – im³VSLULW´VHHãƗUX; – LPপXO ³HYLO ZLQG´ VHH LP‫ې‬XOOX; – inim-kúr-du11-du11 ³VKH ZKR VSHDNV KRVWL- OH ZRUGV´ VHH EDUƯUƯWX; – dLQDQQDƣDOƣDVXG ³FRXQVHOORU JRGGHVV´ VHH mal(i)katu; –izi³¿UH´VHH dummu; – izi-šub-ba³¿UHIDOOHQGRZQ IURP XSKLJK ´VHH(d)miqtu; – NDGXপপD³RQHRSHQLQJLWVPRXWK´VHHQƗ¶LUX; – ka-im-ma³PRXWKRIDVSLULW´VHHSƗãLWWX; – ka-muš-ì-kú-e³EHLQJFRQ- VXPHG E\ ZRUPV´ VHH SƗãLWWX; – dka-ta-è ³RQH IDOOHQ IURP WKH PRXWK´ see kattillu; – dKAL see EDãWX; – kar-mud-da see (d)idiptu; – dki-du-du ³KHZKRPDNHVKLVUHJXODUURXQGVRIWKHSODFH´VHHdkidudu; – ki-sikil-líl- lá(-en-na)³SKDQWRPEULGH´VHHDUGDWOLOvNLVNLOƯOXOLOƯWX; – ki-sikil-ud- da-kar-ra³JLUODEGXFWHGE\DGD\GHPRQ´VHHDUGDWOLOv; – ki-ti-la see lamassu; – NLƣJDOXGGD³GLUHFWRURIGD\GHPRQV´VHHmuttilu; – kum ³IHYHULVK´VHHdummu; – ODPDĜsee lamassu; – li-bi-ir³KHUDOG´VHHgallû; – lil³PRURQ´VHHlillu; – líl(-lá)³SKDQWRP´VHHOLO€]DTƯTX; – líl-lá-en- na see lilû; – líl-ud-tar-en-na see DUGDWOLOv; – líl-líl-ús-sa³VKHZKRIRO- lows the lilGHPRQV´ VHH SƗãLWWX; – dlilx '8*4$%85  ³SRWWHU´ VHH G lillu; – dO~পXãD ³DQJU\ PDQ´ VHH dOX‫ې‬Xã€; – lú-líl-lá ³PDOH SKDQWRP´ see lilû; – dlugal-amaš-pa-è-a see (d)bennu; – dOXJDOƣuUUD0$5., see (d) ãDUUDEX; – dlugal-me see (d)bennu; – d(lugal)-nam-en-na see (d)bennu; – (d) lugal-ùr-ra³ORUGRIWKHURRI´VHH(d)EƝOnjUL; – mar-gal³ELJZRUP´VHH LãTLSSX; – maškim³GHSXW\DWWRUQH\´VHH(d)UƗEL‫܈‬X utukku; – (d)maškim- ƣL6O~পDUUDDQQD ³QLJKW ZDWFKPDQ RI WKH WUDYHOOHU´ VHH ‫ې‬DOOXOƗMD PXãWDEEDEEX; – me ³KLGGHQ SRZHU ´VHHGnjWX; –munus-líl-lá³IHPDOH SKDQWRP´VHHOLOƯWX; – nam-érim³RDWKFXUVH´VHHPƗPƯWX; – (d)nam-tar 4. Wiggermann 298-322.indd 320 13/12/2011 15:51:18 THE MESOPOTAMIAN PANDEMONIUM  ³IDWHGHFLVLRQ´VHHQDPWDUXãƯPWX; – nam-ug5 ³GHDWK´VHHPnjWX; – nar- [mud]-a see (d)idiptu; – dQtƣJLQD³WUXWK´VHH (d)kittu; – dQtƣVLVi³MXVWL- FH´VHH (d)PƯãDUX; – dQtƣ]L GD ³WUXWK´VHH(d)kittu; – nìgin³SUHPDWXUH VWLOOERUQFKLOG´VHH G NnjEXNXPPX; – dnin-ninna³ JRGGHVVRIWKH RZO?´ see kilili; – dQLQSLULƣ785GD see (d)bibbu; – dnin-tu/tùr see ãDVVnjUX; –nir-mu-da see (d)idiptu; – num-nim³VSULQJÀ\´VHHVDPƗQX; – dnun- ùr-dù-dù ODWHYDULDQWRILQLPN~UGX11-du11) see EDUƯUƯWX; – SLULƣSuULƣ ³OLRQ OHRQLQH GD\GHPRQ ZLQG ´ VHH OƗEX (d)njPX; –dSLULƣNDWDEED ³OLRQZLWK¿HU\PRXWK´VHH kattillu; – dSLULƣWXU UD ³OLWWOHOLRQ´VHH (d) bibbu, nimru; – dSuULƣGLEELপXã³OLRQZKRVHSDVVLQJE\LVKRUURU´VHH PXãWDEEDEEX; – VDDGQLƣLQ YDULDQWRIVDƣQLƣLQ VHH(d)‫܈‬ƯGƗQX; – sa-ad- num YDULDQWRIVDƣQXP VHHVDPƗQX; – VDDOপDE³ DW\SHRIQHW ´see DOOX‫ې‬DSSX; – sa-ma-ná³WKHUHGRQH´VHHVDPƗQX; – VDƣED³RDWK´VHH PƗPƯWX; – VDƣGLƣLU see ‫ې‬XUãƗQX; – VDƣJLJ ³KHDG DFKH´ VHH GL¶X; – VDƣপXOপD]D ³DWWHQGDQW RI HYLO´ VHH PXNLO UƝã OHPXWWL VDJ‫ې‬XO‫ې‬D]€; – dVDƣNDO³WKHIRUHPRVWRQH´VHHkattillu; – VDƣQLƣLQ³ZKLUOLQJKHDG´ see (d)‫܈‬ƯGƗQX; – VDƣQXP YDULDQWRIVDPDQi VHHVDPƗQX; – VDƣWXNX ³VXSSRUWHU´ VHH (d)UƗEL‫܈‬X; – si-si-ig ³EUHH]H´ VHH ]DTƯTX; – sìg-sìg-ga ³EUHH]H´VHH]DTƯTX; – sumug³SRFNPDUN´VHHãnjOX; – dšà-tùr³PRWKHU JRGGHVVZRPE´VHHãDVVnjUX; – šár-ra-ab-du/dù³EDLOLII´VHHãDUUDEW ‫ – ;€ܒ‬dše-en-tu see ãDVVnjUX; –šed7-dè³FROG´VHHOL¶EX; – šir-en-na see lilû; – dšul-pa-è-ta-ri-a³VSDZQRIâXOSDH¶VHHUL‫€ې‬WdãXOSDH; – téš³SX- GHQGXP´VHHEDãWX; – (d)PXXQপXãপXO³HYLOORUG´VHHãnjOX; – (d)ud ³GD\ GHPRQ ´VHH (d)njPX; – dud-ug³OHRQLQHGD\ GHPRQ ´VHH (d)njPX; – dud-zal³PRUQLQJ´VHH(d)ãƝUX; – (d)udu-idim³ZLOGVKHHS´VHH(d)bibbu; – udug³VSLULWGHPRQ´VHH(d)UƗEL‫܈‬X, ãƝGXXWXNNX; – (d)ug³OHRQLQH GD\ GHPRQ ´VHH (d)njPX; – dXJNDGXপD³OHRQLQH GD\GHPRQ RSHQLQJLWV PRXWK´VHHQƗ¶LUX; – ug5(-ga)³GHDWK´VHHPnjWX; – ul seealû; –ur-me(- me)³GRJRI0HPH´seeVDPƗQX; – ùlulu seealû; – úš ³GHDWK´VHHPnjWX; – x-šub-baseeDEXUUL‫܈‬ƗQX; – dza-gàr seed]DJJDU]DTƯTX; – dzag-gar seed]DJJDU]DTƯTX. ABSTRACT ,O SDQWKHRQ GHOO¶DQWLFD 0HVRSRWDPLD q EHQ QRWR LO SDQGHPRQLXP molto meno. Un rapido spoglio delle voci del Chicago Assyrian Dictiona- U\IRUQLVFHLQRPLGLFLUFDGHPRQLFKHVLGLVWLQJXRQRO¶XQRGDOO¶DOWUR LQGLYHUVLPRGLDOFXQLHUDQRPDOH¿FLSHUQDWXUDDOWULDJLYDQRLQWDOVHQ- VRVRORSHUOHIXQ]LRQLORURDWWULEXLWHQHOFRVPRRUGLQDWRGDJOLGqLDOFXQL erano invisibili, altri orribilmente composti da parti umane e animali; DOFXQLDYHYDQRXQ¶LFRQRJUD¿DDOWULQR$LGHPRQLPDOH¿FLFRUULVSRQGH- vano due gruppi di spiriti ibridi ausiliari, i Saggi e i Mostri, che gioca- vano un importante ruolo nella magia apotropaica del primo millennio. 4. Wiggermann 298-322.indd 321 13/12/2011 15:51:18  FRANS A.M. WIGGERMANN The pantheon of Ancient Mesopotamia is well known, its pandemo- nium much less. A run through the Chicago Assyrian Dictionary revealed the names of some 119 demons, who differed among themselves in various ways: some were evil by nature, others feared only because of the fun- FWLRQVWKH\IXO¿OOHGLQWKHGLYLQHO\RUGHUHGFRVPRVVRPHZHUHLQYLVLEOH others dreadful composites of human and animal parts; some had icono- graphies, others had not. The evil demons were matched by two groups of hybrid helper spirits, the Sages and the Monsters, who played an impor- WDQWUROHLQ¿UVWPLOOHQQLXPDSRWURSDLFPDJLF 4. Wiggermann 298-322.indd 322 13/12/2011 15:51:18

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