Cylinder seal impression of "Mesanepada, king of Kish", excavated in the
Royal Cemetery at Ur (U. 13607).[1][2][3] The seal shows
Gilgamesh and the mythical bull between two lions, one of the lions biting him in the shoulder. On each side of this group appears
Enkidu and a hunter-hero, with a long beard and a Kish-style headdress, armed with a dagger. Under the text, four runners with beard and long hair form a human
Swastika. They are armed with daggers and catch each other's foot.[3] University of Pennsylvania. Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology, UPM 31.16.677.[1]
Mesannepada was a son of
Meskalamdug.[8] A
lapis-lazuli bead with the name of King Meskalamdug was found in
Mari, in the so-called "Treasure of Ur", and reads:[9][10][11]
"To god Lugalkalam ("the Lord of the Land", identified with
Dagan or
Enlil), Mesannepada, king of
Ur, son of
Meskalamdug, king of
Kish, has consecrated this bead""
Initially, it was thought that this bead (reference M. 4439) referred to a gift by Mesannepada to a king of Mari named Gansud or
Ansud.[20][21] This has now been corrected with the translation given above.[9][10] The God "Lugal-kalam" (๐ญ๐๐ฆ, "Lord of the Land") to whom the dedication is made, is otherwise known in a dedication by a local ruler ล aba (ล alim) of Mari, also as Lugal-kalam, or in the dedication of
Ishtup-Ilum where he is named "Lugal-mฤtim" (๐ญ๐๐ค๐ด, "Lord of the Land"), and is considered identical with the local deity
Dagan, or
Enlil.[22]
It is unclear how this bead came to be in Mari, but this points to some kind of relation between Ur and Mari at that time.[23] The bead was discovered in a jar containing other objects from Ur or Kish, the so-called "Treasure of Ur".[24][25] The jar was recognized as an offering for the foundation of a temple in Mari.[26] Similar dedication beads have also been found from later rulers, such as
Shulgi who engraved two
carnelian beads with dedication to his gods
c. 2100 BC.[27]
A'annepada dedication tablet
Several dedication tablets by "
A'annepada, son of Mesannepada" for the god
Ninhursag are also known, which all have similar content:[30][29]
Dnin-hur-sag / a-an-ne2-pa3-da / lugal uri5{ki} / dumu mes-an-ne2-pa3-da / lugal uri5{ki} /Dnin-hur-sag-ra / e2 mu-na-du3
"For Nin-hursag: A'annepada, king of Ur, son of Mesannepada, king of Ur, built the temple for Ninhursag."
โ Dedication tablet by King A'annepada, British Museum, BM 116982.[29][28][5]
Mesannepada appears in the
Sumerian King List, as the first ruler of the
First Dynasty of Ur, and is credited with a reign of 80 years. His successors are also named:
"...
Uruk with weapons was struck down, the kingship to Ur was carried off. In Ur Mesannepada was king, 80 years he ruled;
Meskiagnun, son of Mesannepada, was king, 36 years he ruled;
Elulu, 25 years he ruled; Balulu, 36 years he ruled; 4 kings, the years: 171(?) they ruled. Ur with weapons was struck down; the kingship to
Awan was carried off.
It is considered unlikely for a king to inherit a throne in his
childhood and reign thereafter for 80 years.[5] The length of the son's reign was probably added to that of the father.[5]
Old Babylonian tablet: the Tummal Chronicle
Mesannepada and his other son are also mentioned in an
Old Babylonian tablet (1900-1600 BC), the
Tummal Inscription, relating the accomplishments of several kings. Such tablets are usually copies of older tablets, now lost:
"
En-me-barage-si, the king, built the Iri-nanam in
Enlil's temple.
Aga, son of En-me-barage-si, made the Tummal flourish and brought Ninlil into the Tummal. Then the Tummal fell into ruins for the first time. Meลก-Ane-pada built the Bur-ลกuลกua in Enlil's temple.
Meskiagnun, son of Meลก-Ane-pada, made the Tummal flourish and brought
Ninlil into the Tummal."
Mesannepada is associated with an expansion of Ur, at least diplomatically.[34][35] A lapis-lazuli bead in the name of Mesannepada was found in
Mari, and formed part of the "Treasure of Ur", made for the dedication of a temple in Mari. Seals from the royal cemetery at Ur have also been found bearing the names of Mesannepada and his predecessors Meskalamdug and
Akalamdug, along with Queen
Puabi. A seal impression in the name of "Mesannepada, king of Kish" was found in the
Royal Cemetery at Ur.[3]
Mesannepada, and his son and successor
Meskiagnun, who reigned 36 years,[5] are both named on the Tummal Inscription as upkeepers of the main temple in
Nippur along with
Gilgamesh of Uruk and his son
Ur-Nungal, verifying their status as overlords of Sumer. Judging from the inscriptions, Mesannepada then assumed the title "King of
Kish",[6] to indicate his hegemony.[40]
Another son of Mesannepada, named
Aannepadda, (Aja-ane-pada or A-Anne-pada, "father chosen by An"), whose years of reigned are unknown,[5] is known for having the temple of
Ninhursag constructed (at modern
Ubaid) near el-Obed, though he is not named on the kinglist.[4]
A small
ziggurat beneath the structure built at Ur by
Ur-Nammu may date back to the time of Mes-Anne-pada.[41]
In the 1950s, Edmund I. Gordon conjectured that Mesannepada, and an archaeologically attested early "king of Kish",
Mesilim, were one and the same, as their names were interchanged in certain proverbs in later Babylonian tablets; however this has not proved conclusive. More recent scholars tend to regard them as distinct, usually placing Mesilim in Kish before Mesannepada.[42]
Mesannepada seal (combat scene)
Mesannepada seal (human wheel scene)
Royal Cemetery of Ur
Mesannapeda's tomb may have been located in the
Royal Cemetery at Ur. It has been suggested that tomb PG 1232, or PG 1237, nicknamed "the Great Death-Pit," might belong to him.[8]
^
abcdHall, H. R.; Woolley, Leonard; Legrain, Leon (1900).
Ur excavations. Trustees of the Two Museums by the aid of a grant from the Carnegie Corporation of New York. p. 312.
^
abcdImage of a Mesanepada seal in: Legrain, Lรฉon (1936).
UR EXCAVATIONS VOLUME III ARCHAIC SEAL-IMPRESSIONS(PDF). THE TRUSTEES OF THE TWO MUSEUMS BY THE AID OF A GRANT FROM THE CARNEGIE CORPORATION OF NEW YORK. p. 44 seal 518 for description, Plate 30, seal 518 for image.
^For the discovery of the "Treasure of Ur" and detailed content of the jar, see: Parrot, Andrรฉ (1965).
"Les Fouilles de Mari". Syria. Archรฉologie, Art et Histoire. 42 (3): 197โ225.
doi:
10.3406/syria.1965.5808.
Cylinder seal impression of "Mesanepada, king of Kish", excavated in the
Royal Cemetery at Ur (U. 13607).[1][2][3] The seal shows
Gilgamesh and the mythical bull between two lions, one of the lions biting him in the shoulder. On each side of this group appears
Enkidu and a hunter-hero, with a long beard and a Kish-style headdress, armed with a dagger. Under the text, four runners with beard and long hair form a human
Swastika. They are armed with daggers and catch each other's foot.[3] University of Pennsylvania. Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology, UPM 31.16.677.[1]
Mesannepada was a son of
Meskalamdug.[8] A
lapis-lazuli bead with the name of King Meskalamdug was found in
Mari, in the so-called "Treasure of Ur", and reads:[9][10][11]
"To god Lugalkalam ("the Lord of the Land", identified with
Dagan or
Enlil), Mesannepada, king of
Ur, son of
Meskalamdug, king of
Kish, has consecrated this bead""
Initially, it was thought that this bead (reference M. 4439) referred to a gift by Mesannepada to a king of Mari named Gansud or
Ansud.[20][21] This has now been corrected with the translation given above.[9][10] The God "Lugal-kalam" (๐ญ๐๐ฆ, "Lord of the Land") to whom the dedication is made, is otherwise known in a dedication by a local ruler ล aba (ล alim) of Mari, also as Lugal-kalam, or in the dedication of
Ishtup-Ilum where he is named "Lugal-mฤtim" (๐ญ๐๐ค๐ด, "Lord of the Land"), and is considered identical with the local deity
Dagan, or
Enlil.[22]
It is unclear how this bead came to be in Mari, but this points to some kind of relation between Ur and Mari at that time.[23] The bead was discovered in a jar containing other objects from Ur or Kish, the so-called "Treasure of Ur".[24][25] The jar was recognized as an offering for the foundation of a temple in Mari.[26] Similar dedication beads have also been found from later rulers, such as
Shulgi who engraved two
carnelian beads with dedication to his gods
c. 2100 BC.[27]
A'annepada dedication tablet
Several dedication tablets by "
A'annepada, son of Mesannepada" for the god
Ninhursag are also known, which all have similar content:[30][29]
Dnin-hur-sag / a-an-ne2-pa3-da / lugal uri5{ki} / dumu mes-an-ne2-pa3-da / lugal uri5{ki} /Dnin-hur-sag-ra / e2 mu-na-du3
"For Nin-hursag: A'annepada, king of Ur, son of Mesannepada, king of Ur, built the temple for Ninhursag."
โ Dedication tablet by King A'annepada, British Museum, BM 116982.[29][28][5]
Mesannepada appears in the
Sumerian King List, as the first ruler of the
First Dynasty of Ur, and is credited with a reign of 80 years. His successors are also named:
"...
Uruk with weapons was struck down, the kingship to Ur was carried off. In Ur Mesannepada was king, 80 years he ruled;
Meskiagnun, son of Mesannepada, was king, 36 years he ruled;
Elulu, 25 years he ruled; Balulu, 36 years he ruled; 4 kings, the years: 171(?) they ruled. Ur with weapons was struck down; the kingship to
Awan was carried off.
It is considered unlikely for a king to inherit a throne in his
childhood and reign thereafter for 80 years.[5] The length of the son's reign was probably added to that of the father.[5]
Old Babylonian tablet: the Tummal Chronicle
Mesannepada and his other son are also mentioned in an
Old Babylonian tablet (1900-1600 BC), the
Tummal Inscription, relating the accomplishments of several kings. Such tablets are usually copies of older tablets, now lost:
"
En-me-barage-si, the king, built the Iri-nanam in
Enlil's temple.
Aga, son of En-me-barage-si, made the Tummal flourish and brought Ninlil into the Tummal. Then the Tummal fell into ruins for the first time. Meลก-Ane-pada built the Bur-ลกuลกua in Enlil's temple.
Meskiagnun, son of Meลก-Ane-pada, made the Tummal flourish and brought
Ninlil into the Tummal."
Mesannepada is associated with an expansion of Ur, at least diplomatically.[34][35] A lapis-lazuli bead in the name of Mesannepada was found in
Mari, and formed part of the "Treasure of Ur", made for the dedication of a temple in Mari. Seals from the royal cemetery at Ur have also been found bearing the names of Mesannepada and his predecessors Meskalamdug and
Akalamdug, along with Queen
Puabi. A seal impression in the name of "Mesannepada, king of Kish" was found in the
Royal Cemetery at Ur.[3]
Mesannepada, and his son and successor
Meskiagnun, who reigned 36 years,[5] are both named on the Tummal Inscription as upkeepers of the main temple in
Nippur along with
Gilgamesh of Uruk and his son
Ur-Nungal, verifying their status as overlords of Sumer. Judging from the inscriptions, Mesannepada then assumed the title "King of
Kish",[6] to indicate his hegemony.[40]
Another son of Mesannepada, named
Aannepadda, (Aja-ane-pada or A-Anne-pada, "father chosen by An"), whose years of reigned are unknown,[5] is known for having the temple of
Ninhursag constructed (at modern
Ubaid) near el-Obed, though he is not named on the kinglist.[4]
A small
ziggurat beneath the structure built at Ur by
Ur-Nammu may date back to the time of Mes-Anne-pada.[41]
In the 1950s, Edmund I. Gordon conjectured that Mesannepada, and an archaeologically attested early "king of Kish",
Mesilim, were one and the same, as their names were interchanged in certain proverbs in later Babylonian tablets; however this has not proved conclusive. More recent scholars tend to regard them as distinct, usually placing Mesilim in Kish before Mesannepada.[42]
Mesannepada seal (combat scene)
Mesannepada seal (human wheel scene)
Royal Cemetery of Ur
Mesannapeda's tomb may have been located in the
Royal Cemetery at Ur. It has been suggested that tomb PG 1232, or PG 1237, nicknamed "the Great Death-Pit," might belong to him.[8]
^
abcdHall, H. R.; Woolley, Leonard; Legrain, Leon (1900).
Ur excavations. Trustees of the Two Museums by the aid of a grant from the Carnegie Corporation of New York. p. 312.
^
abcdImage of a Mesanepada seal in: Legrain, Lรฉon (1936).
UR EXCAVATIONS VOLUME III ARCHAIC SEAL-IMPRESSIONS(PDF). THE TRUSTEES OF THE TWO MUSEUMS BY THE AID OF A GRANT FROM THE CARNEGIE CORPORATION OF NEW YORK. p. 44 seal 518 for description, Plate 30, seal 518 for image.
^For the discovery of the "Treasure of Ur" and detailed content of the jar, see: Parrot, Andrรฉ (1965).
"Les Fouilles de Mari". Syria. Archรฉologie, Art et Histoire. 42 (3): 197โ225.
doi:
10.3406/syria.1965.5808.