Do you happen to know if there was a Ancient Semitic/Mesopotamian deity or figure that matched the Master of Animals archetype? I'm trying to do personal research on the character in the Indo-Iranian field and I was hoping to find some decent comparisons.

Anonymous

The main figure that comes to mind is Enkidu, the beast-man who accompanied Gilgamesh on his journeys — or perhaps Gilgamesh himself.  (Dalley says that Enkidu was “assimilated partly with Shakkan as master of animals,” though unfortunately she doesn’t elaborate much; Shakkan himself is a deity of cattle, not of animal-conquering.)  Both of them are mighty men known for conquering animals, and I believe that many of the Mesopotamian “master of animals” seals have been identified as one or the other.

I found the following references, in case they help:

  • Calmeyer, P. “Herr der Tiere." RIA IV (1972): 334-335.
  • Counts, D.B. and Arnold, B. (eds.) 2010: The Master of Animals in Old World Iconography (Budapest).
  • reza Taheri, Ali. "The "Man-Bull” and the “Master of Animals” in Mesopotamia and in Iran.“ Intl. J 20.1 (2013): 13-28.
  • This essay (check out its footnotes/references).

(Incidentally, it’s been argued that Anat and/or Qudshu was a “Mistress of Animals,” but I assume that’s beyond your scope of interest?)

Best of luck with your research!

Enjoy this wordier sequel to my last Tumblr slideshow!  This is basically my way of arguing that Gilgamesh/Enkidu is the ancient equivalent of Victor/Yuri: not just subtext but actual text.  As always, I’m happy to take questions, comments, or requests for clarification.

(Disclaimer: all translations and any errors are mine; none of the art is mine.)

Gilgamesh’s Lament for Enkidu (SB VIII.42-64, X.212-248)

image

Illustration: An Old Babylonian seal, BM 86267, whose central figures are probably Gilgamesh and Enkidu wrestling nude. Enkidu is depicted as a half-bull. To the right, Gilgamesh wrestles a lion; to the left is the goddess Ishtar and (possibly) the courtesan Shamhat.

This translation begins in the eighth tablet of the Standard Babylonian Gilgamesh Epic, when Gilgamesh is mourning the death of his lover Enkidu. The first 41 lines of this tablet list the people, places, and objects whom Gilgamesh exhorts to mourn Enkidu: “may ___ weep over you!”  He lists them in order of increasing intimacy: first strangers, then friends, then parents, and finally Gilgamesh himself.



“Listen, young men.  Listen to me.
       Listen, elders of great Uruk.  Listen to me.
I weep for my friend Enkidu;
       like a grief-stricken woman, I howl in despair. [1]
The shaft at my side, the bedrock of my strength, [2]
       the sword at my belt, the shield before me,
       the clothing for my festivals, the sash on my pleasure: [3]
A fiendish force sprang up to snatch him from me.

“My friend, stubborn as a mule, nimble as a donkey, swift as a panther —
       oh Enkidu, my friend, stubborn as a mule, nimble as a donkey, swift as a panther —
We were the ones who joined together to scale mountains,
       who captured and killed the Sacred Bull,
       who vanquished Humbaba, king of the Cedar Forest.

“So what kind of sleep steals you away now?
       Darkness cloaks you; you cannot hear me.”

Yet still [Enkidu] did not lift his head.
       He felt for his pulse: utterly still.

He veiled his friend’s face like a bride;
       like an eagle, he circled over him.
Like a lioness robbed of her cubs,
       he circled back and forth, back and forth.
He tore at his curly hair until it piled up around him;
       he stripped off his finery and cast it away as anathema.

Read more

Gilgamesh, Tablet I (SB, George edition), part 3

image

This is the third and final part of Gilgamesh Tablet I.  Part 1 is here; part 2 is here.

In the last part, Enkidu was created as a match for Gilgamesh’s wildness.  His animalistic appearance terrified a hunter, who responded by fetching Shamhat, a courtesan.  Shamhat stripped for the non-verbal Enkidu, and they began to have sex.

Read more

Gilgamesh, Tablet I (SB, George edition), part 1

image

This is the first part of Gilgamesh Tablet I; due to the tablet’s length, I’ll be posting it in three installments.

There’s a lot of scholarship out there about Gilgamesh.  Since my current academic focus is on learning the language, not researching its text history and social/cultural connections, I would not consider myself an expert in Gilgamesh scholarship.  Thus, although I’m doing my best to convey the translation of each line, my interpretations of their meaning should be considered tentative.

Put differently: there are still people out there who think that Gilgamesh and Enkidu weren’t gay lovers with a sexual and romantic relationship.  From my study, I think those people are wrong … but don’t take my word for it.

Read more