Enrolling in a course lets you earn progress by passing quizzes and exams. If the verb does come from the noun, then qran suggests that Moses' face was "horned" in some fashion. A god standing on or seated on a pattern of scales is a typical scenery for the depiction of a theophany. These represented natural features, the forces of nature and the heavenly bodies. To the southwest, Egypt was ruled by the 12th dynasty; further to the west the Minoan civilization, centred on Crete with the Old Palace in Knossos, dominated the Mediterranean. (Tablet IV, lines 4-6). Jahrtausend v. Chr. Compared with how important religious practice was in Mesopotamia, and compared to the number of temples that existed, very few cult figures at all have been preserved. King Hammurabi united Mesopotamia and made the citystate of Babylon the capital of the Babylonian Empire. [5][6], The Crown was sundered by her future consort, the archmage Khelben "Blackstaff" Arunsun, who locked its pieces away within the heavily protected walls of his tower, Blackstaff Tower. However modern translations have instead: "In its trunk, the phantom maid built herself a dwelling, the maid who laughs with a joyful heart. I feel like its a lifeline. The feathers in the top register are shown as overlapping scales (coverts), the lower two registers have long, staggered flight feathers that appear drawn with a ruler and end in a convex trailing edge. Regardless, Anu was never fully forgotten in Mesopotamia and retained a cult of worship in many cities, especially Uruk. [citationneeded], It is unknown what powers the artifact had before it was possessed by Myrkul other than its sentience and its capability to interfere with the minds of its wearers. the plaque, According to the British Museum, this figure of which only the upper part is preserved presumably represents the sun-god. Located between the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers of what's now roughly Iraq, Mesopotamia was home to the first settled, urban societies in the world, and those people had a religion of their own. Over time, however, Anu was replaced by other deities in both mythology and practical worship. He was said to have created the heavens, as well as all the other gods and even many of the monsters and demons of Mesopotamian mythology. Even after his prominence in mythology faded, it was still understood that he was the king of the gods. Read about Anu's symbols and role in Mesopotamian mythology. Anu then brings about a change in views for how the gods should behave. An also had a "seat" in the main temple of Babylon [~/images/Babylon.jpg], Esagil, and received offerings at Nippur [~/images/Nippur.jpg], Sippar [~/images/Sippar.jpg] and Kish [~/images/Kish.jpg]. The god Enlil, who was a god of air and who also granted kings their authority, came to replace Anu in some places by the end of the second millennium BCE. Anu is the Mesopotamian god of the sky. In later literary texts, Adad, Enki/Ea, Enlil, Girra, Nanna/Sin, Nergal and ara also appear as his sons, while goddesses referred to as his daughters include Inana/Itar, Nanaya, Nidaba, Ninisinna, Ninkarrak, Ninmug, Ninnibru, Ninsumun, Nungal and Nusku. It is emblematic of the horn possessed by Zeus's nurse, the Greek nymph Amalthaea (q.v. The flood sweeps the land and Zi-ud-sura is on a huge boat for seven days and seven nights, before Utu (the sun god) illuminates heaven and earth. Otherwise, Anu is seen as the Father in a religious trinity or tripartite with Enlil and Enki. Marduk defeats a chosen champion of Tiamat, and then kills Tiamat herself. The ancient civilizations of Mesopotamia had many gods, but chief among them was Anu, also spelled An. Sacral text was usually written in, Lowell K. Handy article Lilith Anchor Bible Dictionary, Bible Review Vol 17 Biblical Archaeology Society - 2001 "LILITH? First print edition: 9789004122598, 20110510. They appear as either eagle-headed or human-headed and wear a horned crown to indicate divinity. The figure was initially identified as a depiction of Ishtar (Inanna)[nb 15][2] but almost immediately other arguments were put forward: The identification of the relief as depicting "Lilith" has become a staple of popular writing on that subject. [11] The lions' bodies were painted white. The Crown itself wasn't destroyed, but it was lost. During the early dynastic period (middle of the 3rdmillennium BC) the horned crown (HC) is developed in Mesopotamia in order to enable recognition of the divine character in anthropomorphic representations of gods. Like many supreme deities, Anu was largely characterized by his role in creating and organizing the rest of the pantheon. Name and character [ edit] Das Archiv fr Orientforschung verffentlicht Aufstze und Rezensionen auf dem Gebiet der altorientalischen Philologie (Sprachen: Sumerisch, Akkadisch, Hethitisch, Hurritisch, Elamisch u.a. The group is placed on a pattern of scales, painted black. [citationneeded] Forged by Trebbe, a Netherese arcanist,[1] and later enhanced by Myrkul, the former god of Death,[citationneeded] it carried with it a long history of corruption and tragedy. Old Babylonian period. Egyptian Hieroglyphics Isis with Horned Crown Ancient Cool Wall Decor Art Print Poster 12x18 . In one creation myth, Anu's power is passed to Enlil, and then later to Enki's son Marduk. The HC that developed in the following period, with horns tapering to points and having several pairs of inward-turned horns one on top of another, is represented until well into the. Its like a teacher waved a magic wand and did the work for me. [7] The British Museum's Department of Scientific Research reports, "it would seem likely that the whole plaque was moulded" with subsequent modelling of some details and addition of others, such as the rod-and-ring symbols, the tresses of hair and the eyes of the owls. A comparison of two types of ED divine headdresses (pp. and eventually became the keeper of the Tablets of Destiny, in which the fate of humankind was recorded. ancient mesopotamia poster. Others were made to punish humans. Kraeling believes that the figure "is a superhuman being of a lower order"; he does not explain exactly why. Marduk and Enki then set out to create humans. Klicken Export nach Refworks wird ein neues Fenster ffnen, oder ein bestehendes Fenster, wenn Refworks bereits offen ist. Heaven talked with Earth; Earth talked with Heaven. Within each culture's pantheon, he is the highest deity or God. Initially, the lives of humans and animals were comfortable. E. von der Osten-Sacken describes evidence for a weakly developed but nevertheless existing cult for Ereshkigal; she cites aspects of similarity between the goddesses Ishtar and Ereshkigal from textual sources for example they are called "sisters" in the myth of "Inanna's descent into the nether world" and she finally explains the unique doubled rod-and-ring symbol in the following way: "Ereshkigal would be shown here at the peak of her power, when she had taken the divine symbols from her sister and perhaps also her identifying lions".[43]. Black basalt. [1][2][citationneeded], In its original form this crown was a helmet made of electrum and fully covered with small horns, and a row of black gems. Moreover, examples of this motif are the only existing examples of a nude god or goddess; all other representations of gods are clothed. During the early dynastic period (middle of the 3rdmillennium BC) the horned crown (HC) is developed in Mesopotamia in order to enable recognition of the divine character in anthropomorphic representations of gods. 2144-2124 BCE), while Ur-Namma (ca. [nb 13] To the east, Elam with its capital Susa was in frequent military conflict with Isin, Larsa and later Babylon. [3], The Crown of Horns was originally designed by the Netherese archwizard Trebbe, the founder of the flying Netherese enclave Shadowtop Borough. The Ubaid culture are thought to have developed into the Mesopotamians. A four-monthly periodical devoted to the scientific study of the Ancient Near East. Ishtar, the goddess of war and sexual love, offers herself as a bride to Gilgamesh. copyright 2003-2023 Study.com. Today, the figure is generally identified as the goddess of love and war ", BM WA 1910-11-12, 4, also at the British Museum, line 295 in "Inanna's descent into the nether world", "(AO 6501) Desse nue aile figurant probablement la grande desse Ishtar", "Complexity, Diminishing Marginal Returns and Serial Mesopotamian Fragmentation", Colossal quartzite statue of Amenhotep III, Amun in the form of a ram protecting King Taharqa, Kition Necropolis Phoenician inscriptions, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Burney_Relief&oldid=1141940511, Ancient Near and Middle East clay objects, Middle Eastern sculptures in the British Museum, Terracotta sculptures in the United Kingdom, Short description is different from Wikidata, Articles with dead external links from August 2017, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, The hypothesis that this tablet was created for worship makes it unlikely that a demon was depicted. One symbol of Anu in cuneiform is four lines that intersect at the middle creating an eight-pointed star, with four of the points having the distinct triangular cuneiform tip. Egyptian goddess Hathor is also commonly depicted as a cow goddess with head horns in which is set a sun disk with Uraeus. The beginning of the tablet is missing, but the remainder explains how Anu, Enlil, Enki, and Ninhursag (wife of Enki) created the Sumerians. The Trustees of the British Museum, Daily: 10.0017.00 (Fridays: 20.30) Most likely a derivative of the Sumerian word for ''sky,'' this cosmic being was a personification of the sky and heavens themselves, and the oldest of Mesopotamia's supreme rulers. The authenticity of the object has been questioned from its first appearance in the 1930s, but opinion has generally moved in its favour over the subsequent decades. In Ancient Rome it was Jupiter, in Ancient Greece it was Zeus and in Ancient Egypt it was Amun-Ra. "[33] The earlier translation implies an association of the demon Lilith with a shrieking owl and at the same time asserts her god-like nature; the modern translation supports neither of these attributes. [1], In 644DR, the Crown was finally rediscovered by the archwizard Shadelorn. 22 editions. This image shows a stamp created by the Ubaid peoples. representations of the gods show them in human form but wearing a horned crown or helmet. For the sake of continuity, An will be referred to as Anu for the remainder of the overview. A typical representation of a 3rd millenniumBCE Mesopotamian worshipper, Eshnunna, about 2700BCE. Citations regarding this assertion lead back to Henri Frankfort (1936). Anu does offer immortality to Adapa, however. Enki's son, Marduk, steps forward and offers himself to be elected king. It originates from southern Mesopotamia, but the exact find-site is unknown. To the north of Mesopotamia, the Anatolian Hittites were establishing their Old Kingdom over the Hattians; they brought an end to Babylon's empire with the sack of the city in 1531BCE. +91-7207507350 All other trademarks and copyrights are the property of their respective owners. One of the biggest cults to Anu was found at the city of Uruk, which is where the most famous temple to Anu was found. The only other surviving large image from the time: top part of the Code of Hammurabi, c.1760BCE. The earliest texts make no reference to An's origins. He functioned as the sukkal (attendant deity) of Ningishzida, and most likely was a dying god similar to Dumuzi and Damu, but his character is not well known otherwise. 2112-2095 BCE) built a garden and shrine for him at Ur [~/images/Ur.jpg]. . Goddess representation in Egyptian monuments: in this triad the Egyptian goddess Hathor (left) and the nome goddess Bat (right) lead Pharaoh Menkaura (middle). Rather, they are part of the vast supernatural population that for ancient Mesopotamians animated every aspect of the world. I have lived a hundred stolen . Jahrtausend v. Chr. An was the god of the sky, and eventually viewed as the Father of the Gods and personally responsible for the heavens. From the third millennium onwards he was worshipped, with some interruptions, together with Inana/Itar at the -an-na temple in Uruk [~/images/Uruk.jpg], and in the Achaemenid and Seleucid periods at the new Re temple with Antu. Both types of figure usually have wings. Dal 1913 G e B Press pubblica libri e periodici che riflettono la missione affidata al Pontificio Istituto Biblico e alla Pontificia Universit Gregoriana. In many of these, Anu has the basic appearance of a human, but that's not necessarily how Mesopotamian people saw him. Julia M. Asher-Greve, Published By: Archiv fr Orientforschung (AfO)/Institut fr Orientalistik, Archiv fr Orientforschung (AfO)/Institut fr Orientalistik. The Standard of Ur I am Renata Convida. millennium. A creation date at the beginning of the second millennium BCE places the relief into a region and time in which the political situation was unsteady, marked by the waxing and waning influence of the city states of Isin and Larsa, an invasion by the Elamites, and finally the conquest by Hammurabi in the unification of the Babylonian empire in 1762BCE. The other one is the top part of the Code of Hammurabi, which was actually discovered in Elamite Susa, where it had been brought as booty. This item is part of a JSTOR Collection. He wears a horned crown so he resembles a god. Some of which directly descend from Anu and Ki, while others are grandchildren. To unlock this lesson you must be a Study.com Member. 11 chapters | Discover how Anu was worshipped. As such an important figure, it's not surprising that Anu was worshiped across Mesopotamia. The horned crown usually four-tiered is the most general symbol of a deity in Mesopotamian art. The HC that developed in the following period, with horns tapering to points and having several pairs of inward-turned horns one on top of another, is represented until well into the. Egyptian men and women are characterised in the visual arts by distinct headdresses. The Museum also renamed the plaque the "Queen of the Night Relief". Mesopotamian terracotta plaque in high relief, Such plaques are about 10 to 20 centimetres (3.9 to 7.9in) in their longest dimension. He is a wild man whom Gilgamesh defeats and befriends. Anu succumbs and provides her the Bull of Heaven. For example, in Enma eliTT the gods express Marduk's authority over them by declaring: "Your word is Anu!" Apsu then conspires to kill the younger gods. Louvre, Sb8. Even though the fertile crescent civilizations are considered the oldest in history, at the time the Burney Relief was made other late Bronze Age civilizations were equally in full bloom. VisitAccessibilityat the Museumfor more information. Mesopotamian sky-god, one of the supreme deities; known as An in Sumerian and Anu in Akkadian. [citationneeded] During the events of the Spellplague in the Year of Blue Fire, 1385 DR, Nhyris was fused with the Crown of Horns, losing his mind and twisting into a feral creature known as the Murkstalker. Mesopotamia is the land between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers (now Iraq, north-east . So, what exactly was Anu's role in Mesopotamian mythologies? Create an account to start this course today. An important administrative device typical of Mesopotamian society. However, it was later transformed to worship Inanna. . Both two-winged and four-winged figures are known and the wings are most often extended to the side. But holy Inanna cried. Request Permissions, Published By: GBPress- Gregorian Biblical Press. You can access a selection of, Some objects in this collection feature on the audio description guide, available on. Inscriptions from third-millennium Laga name An as the father of Gatumdug, Baba and Ningirsu. [2] But stylistic doubts were published only a few months later by D. Opitz who noted the "absolutely unique" nature of the owls with no comparables in all of Babylonian figurative artefacts. I would definitely recommend Study.com to my colleagues. [nb 1]. He assists Gilgamesh in subduing the Bull of Heaven. In heaven he allots functions to other gods, and can increase their status at will; in the Sumerian poem Inana and Ebih (ETCSL 1.3.2), Inana claims that "An has made me terrifying throughout heaven" (l.66). Overall, the relief is in excellent condition. Cf. Although Anu was one of the oldest Mesopotamian deities, his popularity faded with time. The beginning of the myth on the cylinder mentions a sort of consorting of the heaven (An) and the earth: "In the Sacred area of Nibru, the storm roared, the lights flashed. Mesopotamian temples at the time had a rectangular cella often with niches to both sides. Half of the necklace is missing and the symbol of the figure held in her right hand; the owls' beaks are lost and a piece of a lion's tail. The nude female figure is realistically sculpted in high-relief. The horned crown is a symbol of divinity, and the fact that it is four-tiered suggests one of the principal gods of the Mesopotamian pantheon; Inanna was the only goddess that was associated with lions. Forschungsgegenstand sind Mesopotamien und seine Nachbarlnder (Nordsyrien, Anatolien, Elam) d.h. Landschaften, in denen zu bestimmten Zeiten Keilschrift geschrieben wurde, und sekundr auch weiter entlegene Randzonen (gypten). In at least one story, Anu creates the Sebettu demons so that the war-god Erra can kill the humans. Philosophy, Missiology, Ancient Academic periodicals and prestigious series whose themes concern The Bible, Ancient Near Eastern Studies, Psychology, Religions and Cultures, Spirituality, Ecclesiastical History, Theology. In creating a religious object, the sculptor was not free to create novel images: the representation of deities, their attributes and context were as much part of the religion as the rituals and the mythology. 1). Enkidu, friend of Gilgamesh created by Anu, leaps upon the bull and provides Gilgamesh with the opportunity to thrust his sword into it. 96-104) 5. Sometimes it was said that he did this alone, other times it was said he worked with two of the other most powerful gods, Enlil and Ea. In the beginning it consists of a circlet or a simple cap, onto which a pair of cow's horns is fixed. horned crown mesopotamia. Explore the gallery using Google Street View and see if you can find the famous Standard of Ur. [41] This interpretation is based on the fact that the wings are not outspread and that the background of the relief was originally painted black. Portions of the tablet are missing, but it is learned that the gods decide not to save the humans from a deluge; however, Enki did warn a king named Zi-ud-sura (who may be instructed to build ark). Kings often wanted to emulate the characteristics of Anu and his powerful role. Her toes are extended down, without perspective foreshortening; they do not appear to rest upon a ground line and thus give the figure an impression of being dissociated from the background, as if hovering.[5]. Enlil, Anu's son, becomes a primary focus of worship. Mesopotamian sky-god, one of the supreme deities; known as An in Sumerian and Anu in Akkadian. [2] From Burney, it passed to the collection of Norman Colville, after whose death it was acquired at auction by the Japanese collector Goro Sakamoto. 4.6 out of 5 stars 43 ratings. The owls shown are recognizable, but not sculpted naturalistically: the shape of the beak, the length of the legs, and details of plumage deviate from those of the owls that are indigenous to the region. Anu is mentioned here: "On the hill of Heaven-and-Earth, when Anu had created the Anuna gods there was no grain, no weaving, no sheep, no goat, no cloth; even the names of these things were unknown to the Anuna and the great gods ", Another clay tablet from similar time periods mentions Anu as being responsible for bringing grain out of heaven: "Men used to eat grass with their mouths like sheep. Der abgedeckte Zeitraum umfat das 4. bis 1. The contributions to this volume in her honor, By clicking accept or continuing to use the site, you agree to the terms outlined in our. The word 'mesopotamia' comes from the ancient words 'meso', which means 'middle', and 'potamos', which means 'river or stream'. She wears a single broad necklace, composed of squares that are structured with horizontal and vertical lines, possibly depicting beads, four to each square. Hammurabi and the Babylonian Empire For a while after the fall of the Akkadians, . Please enable JavaScript in your web browser to get the best experience. A stele of the Assyrian king ami-Adad V (c.815 BCE), making obeisance to the symbols of five deities, including (top) the horned crown of Anu (BM 118892, photo (c) The British Museum). Iraq's indigenous owls without ear-tufts include the. [19] Such a shrine might have been a dedicated space in a large private home or other house, but not the main focus of worship in one of the cities' temples, which would have contained representations of gods sculpted in the round. [5] Edith Porada, the first to propose this identification, associates hanging wings with demons and then states: "If the suggested provenience of the Burney Relief at Nippur proves to be correct, the imposing demonic figure depicted on it may have to be identified with the female ruler of the dead or with some other major figure of the Old Babylonian pantheon which was occasionally associated with death. Within the myths and legends of the Sumerians and other Mesopotamians, Anu rarely interacts with humans, but instead usually uses Enlil and Enki (his sons) as the intermediates between him and humans. After the insensate arcanist was overthrown, his killers searched for the Crown but despite powerful divinations, a thorough search of the city, and many parties of adventurers scouring the Eastern Forest over the next 150 years, they failed to find it. A static, frontal image is typical of religious images intended for worship. [20] According to Jacobsen: In contrast, the British Museum does acknowledge the possibility that the relief depicts either Lilith or Ishtar, but prefers a third identification: Ishtar's antagonist and sister Ereshkigal, the goddess of the underworld. Horned crown (213 words) During the early dynastic period (middle of the 3rd millennium BC) the horned crown (HC) is developed in Mesopotamia in order to enable recognition of the divine character in anthropomorphic representations of gods. Motifs of horned gods in antiquities are abundant in ancient civilizations, but most motifs of horned gods have been seen in Mesopotamian and Iranian antiquities, especially in the regions of Susa, Shahdad and Kerman. Ishtar approaches Uruk with the bull. However, no traces of yellow pigment now remain on the relief. The stylized treatment of her hair could represent a ceremonial wig. [9], In its dimensions, the unique plaque is larger than the mass-produced terracotta plaques popular art or devotional items of which many were excavated in house ruins of the Isin-Larsa and Old Babylonian periods. In Mesopotamian iconography the horned crown and the flounced robe are both attributes of divinity, but divine kings can only be depicted as wearing either one, never both together (Boehmer 1957-1971). Chris has a master's degree in history and teaches at the University of Northern Colorado. Wiki Le Monde des Royaumes Oublis (French). The logogram d60 is also a learned writing for Anu. In Laga [~/images/Lagash.jpg] a temple to An was established by Gudea (ca. Inana/Itar, set upon killing Gilgame, forcefully persuades her father to hand over the bull of heaven in the Old Babylonian poem Gilgame and the Bull of Heaven (ETCSL 1.8.1.2), as well as in the first-millennium Epic of Gilgame (Tablet VI, lines 92ff). Le riviste accademiche sono quattro e nelle prestigiose collane le tematiche riguardano La Bibbia, Diritto Canonico, Missiologia, Studi del Vicino Oriente Antico, Psicologia, Culture e Religioni, Spiritualit, Storia Ecclesiastica, Teologia. ), which could be filled with whatever the owner wished. The legs, feet and talons are red. Adapa is the king of Eridu. 236 lessons. Clicking Export to Refworks will open a new window, or an existing window if Refworks is open already. This story is similar to Yahweh's story in the book of Genesis of the Bible. First, there is no single Mesopotamian 'religion.'. Room 55 traces the history of Babylonia under the Kassites and the growth of the Babylonian state. Often kings are depicted in Mesopotamian art wearing Anu's crown. Around both wrists she wears bracelets which appear composed of three rings. Want to Read. This makes Anu one of the original Mesopotamian deities, and nearly as old as Mesopotamian civilization itself! ), the religious, legal, economic and social history of the Ancient Near East and Egypt, as well as the Near Eastern Archeology and art history. Joseph Comunale obtained a Bachelor's in Philosophy from UCF before becoming a high school science teacher for five years. This role seems to be able to be passed down. In the 1930s, scholars identified the voluptuous woman on this terracotta plaque (called the Burney Relief) as the Babylonian demoness Lilith. [nb 3] They surmise that the bracelets and rod-and-ring symbols might also have been painted yellow. On earth he confers kingship, and his decisions are regarded as unalterable. Similar images have been found on a number of plaques, on a vase from Larsa, and on at least one cylinder seal; they are all from approximately the same time period. Kathryn Stevens, 'An/Anu (god)', Ancient Mesopotamian Gods and Goddesses, Oracc and the UK Higher Education Academy, 2013 [http://oracc.museum.upenn.edu/amgg/listofdeities/an/], http://oracc.museum.upenn.edu/amgg/listofdeities/an/, ETCSL 2.4.4.5, an unfortunately fragmentary, The Electronic Text Corpus of Sumerian Literature, The Electronic Text Corpus of Sumerian Royal Inscriptions, The Corpus of Ancient Mesopotamian Scholarship, Creative Commons Attribution Share-Alike license 3.0. In fact, the relief is one of only two existing large, figurative representations from the Old Babylonian period. Ningishzida, a Mesopotamian deity of vegetation and the underworld, as well as the most likely son of goddess Ereshkigal, is sometimes depicted as a serpent with horns. [22] In this respect, the Burney Relief shows a clear departure from the schematic style of the worshiping men and women that were found in temples from periods about 500 years earlier. The god Aur always retained his pre-eminent position in the Assyrian pantheon, but later kings also sometimes invoked Anu as a source of support or legitimacy. Gilgamesh refuses. Mesopotamia is important because it witnessed crucial advancements in the development of human civilisation between 60001550 BC. An/Anu frequently receives the epithet "father of the gods," and many deities are described as his children in one context or another. Depicting an anthropomorphic god as a naturalistic human is an innovative artistic idea that may well have diffused from Egypt to Mesopotamia, just like a number of concepts of religious rites, architecture, the "banquet plaques", and other artistic innovations previously. Sammelwerke und Festschriften werden kurz besprochen, This item is part of a JSTOR Collection. Shadelorn was working on a project to succeed where Ioulaum had failed in creating an improved mythallar. Daily: 10.0017.00 (Fridays: 20.30) This role is passed down as anutu or "Anu-power". [32] This ki-sikil-lil is an antagonist of Inanna (Ishtar) in a brief episode of the epic of Gilgamesh, which is cited by both Kraeling and Frankfort as further evidence for the identification as Lilith, though this appendix too is now disputed. Her eyes, beneath distinct, joined eyebrows, are hollow, presumably to accept some inlaying material a feature common in stone, alabaster, and bronze sculptures of the time,[nb 4] but not seen in other Mesopotamian clay sculptures. Additionally, this power is described as being passed down to humans, specifically to the kings in Mesopotamia. At that time, because of preserving the animals and the seed of mankind, they settled Zi-ud-sura the king in an overseas country, in the land Dilmun, where the sun rises. Like all societies, those of Mesopotamia changed over time, so it's important to understand where Anu falls in this history. Temples and shrines to An/Anu existed in various cities throughout Mesopotamian history. He is described in myths and legends as being responsible for the creation of humanity, either by himself, or with the assistance of Enki and Enlil, his sons. The cities of Der, Lagas and Ur also had important temples, shrines or gardens dedicated to Anu. This is a map of Ancient Sumer. From the second millennium onwards An/Anu is mentioned regularly in literary texts, inscriptions and personal names, although rarely as the central figure he seems to have always been regarded as rather remote from human affairs.