Legends of Babylonia and Egypt

Masonic, Occult and Esoteric Online Library


Legends of Babylonia and Egypt

By Leonard W. King

APPENDIX I - APPENDIX II

 COMPARATIVE TABLE OF THE SUMERIAN, SEMITIC-BABYLONIAN,
            HELLENISTIC, AND HEBREW VERSIONS OF CREATION,
                 ANTEDILUVIAN HISTORY, AND THE DELUGE

   N.B.--Parallels with the new Sumerian Version are in upper-case.

Sumerian Version.       Seven Tablets           Gilgamesh Epic, XI      Berossus['Damscius]     Earlier Heb. (J)        Later Heb. (P)
[No heaven or earth     No heaven or earth                              Darkness and water      Creation of earth       Earth without form
First Creation from     Primaeval water-                                  [Primaeval water-        and heaven              and void; darkness
 primaeval water         gods: Apsu-Tiamat,                              gods: {'Apason-        No plant or herb         on face of /tehom/,
 without conflict;       Mummu                                           Tauthe}, {Moumis}      Ground watered by        the primaeval water
 cf. Later Sum. Ver.    Generation of:                                    Generation of:           mist (or flood)        Divine spirit moving
                         Lakhmu-Lakhamu                                  {Lakhos-Lakhe}          [cf. Sumerian           (hovering, brooding)
                         Anshar-Kishar                                   {'Assoros-Kissare}      irrigation myth of      upon face of waters
                                                                                                   Creation]

The great gods:         Birth of great gods:                            Birth of great gods:
  ANU, ENLIL, ENKI,      ANU, Nudimmud (=EA)                             {'Anos, 'Illinos,
  and Ninkharsagga,     Apsu and Tiamat                                  'Aos, 'Aois-Lauke,
  creating deities       revolt                                          Belos]
                        Conquest of Tiamat                              Conquest of {'Omorka},                          Creation of light
                         by Marduk as Sun-                               or {Thamte}, by
                         god                                             {Belos}
                        Creation of covering                            Creation of heaven and                          Creation of firmament,
                         for heaven from                                 earth from two halves                           or heaven, to divide
                         half of Tiamat's                                of body of Thamte                               waters; followed by
                         body, to keep her                                                                               emergence of land
                         waters in place                                                                                Creation of vegetation
                        Creation of luminaries                          Creation of luminaries                          Creation of luminaries
                        [Creation of                                     (probable order)                               Creation of animals
                         vegetation]

REASON FOR MAN'S        REASON FOR MAN'S
 CREATION: worship of    CREATION: worship of
 gods                    gods
Creation of MAN         Creation of MAN from                            Creation of MAN from    Creation of MAN from    Creation of MAN in
                         Creator's blood and                             Creator's blood and     dust and Creator's      image of Creator, to
                         from bone                                       from earth              breath of life          have dominion
Creation of ANIMALS     [Creation of animals]                           Creation of ANIMALS     Creation of vegetation
                        Hymn on Seventh Tablet                           able to bear the air    ANIMALS, and woman     Rest on Seventh Day

Creation of KINGDOM                                                     10 Antediluvian KINGS   The line of Cain        Antediluvian
5 ANTEDILUVIAN CITIES:                          Antediluvian city:      3 ANTEDILUVIAN CITIES:  The Nephilim [cf.        patriarchs [cf.
 Eridu, Bad.., LARAK,                            SHURUPPAK               Babylon, SIPPAR,        Sumerian Dynastic       Sumerian Dynastic
 SIPPAR, SHURUPPAK                                                       LARANKHA                List]                   List]

Gods decree MANKIND'S                           Gods decree flood,                              Destruction of MAN      Destruction of all
 destruction by flood,                           goddess ISHTAR                                  decreed, because of     flesh decreed, because
 NINTU protesting                                protesting                                      his wickedness          of its corruption

ZIUSUDU, hero of                                UT-NAPISHTIM, hero      {Xisouthros}            Noah, hero of Deluge    Noah, hero of Deluge
 Deluge, KING and                                of Deluge               (=Khasisatra), hero
 priest                                                                  of Deluge, KING

Ziusudu's PIETY                                                                                 Noah's FAVOUR           Noah's RIGHTEOUSNESS

WARNING of Ziusudu by                           WARNING of Ut-nap-      WARNING of Xisuthros                            WARNING of Noah, and
 Enki in DREAM                                   ishtim by Ea in DREAM   by Kronos in DREAM                              instructions for ark

Ziusudu's vessel a                              SHIP: 120x120x120       Size of SHIP: 5x2       Instructions to enter   Size of ARK: 300x50x30
 HUGE SHIP                                       cubits; 7 stories; 9    stadia                  ark                     cubits; 3 stories
                                                 divisions

                                                All kinds of animals    All kinds of animals    7(x2) clean, 2 unclean  2 of all animals

Flood and STORM for 7                           FLOOD from heavy rain   FLOOD                   FLOOD from rain for 40  FLOOD; founts. of deep
 days                                            and STORM for 6 days                            days                    and rain, 150 days

                                                Ship on Mt. Nisir                                                        Ark on Ararat

                                                Abatement of waters     Abatement of waters     Abatement of waters     Abatement of waters
                                                 tested by birds         tested by birds         tested by birds         through drying wind

SACRIFICE to Sun-god                            SACRIFICE with sweet    SACRIFICE to gods,      SACRIFICE with sweet    Landing from ark [after
  in ship                                        savour on mountain      after landing and       savour after landing    year (+10 days)]
                                                                         paying adoration to
                                                                         EARTH

Anu and Enlil appeased                          Ea's protest to ENLIL   APOTHEOSIS of X.,       Divine promise to Noah  Divine covenant not
 [by "Heaven and Earth"]                         IMMORTALITY of Ut-nap-   wife, daughter, and     not again to curse      again to destroy EARTH
IMMORTALITY of Ziusudu                           ishtim and his wife     pilot                   the GROUND              by flood; bow as sign

                             APPENDIX II

                THE ANTEDILUVIAN KINGS OF BEROSSUS AND
                      THE SUMERIAN DYNASTIC LIST

It may be of assistance to the reader to repeat in tabular form the
equivalents to the mythical kings of Berossus which are briefly
discussed in Lecture I. In the following table the two new equations,
obtained from the earliest section of the Sumerian Dynastic List, are
in upper-case.[1] The established equations to other names are in
normal case, while those for which we should possibly seek other
equivalents are enclosed within brackets.[2] Aruru has not been
included as a possible equivalent for {'Aloros}.[3]

 1. {'Aloros}
 2. {'Alaparos [? 'Adaparos]}, /Alaporus/, /Alapaurus/      [Adapa]
 3. {'Amelon, 'Amillaros}, /Almelon/                        [Amzlu]
 4. {'Ammenon}                                              ENMENUNNA
 5. {Megalaros, Megalanos}, /Amegalarus/
 6. {Daonos, Daos}                                          ETANA
 7. {Euedorakhos, Euedoreskhos}, /Edoranchus/               Enmeduranki
 8. {'Amemphinos}, /Amemphsinus/                            [Amzl-Sin]
 9. {'Otiartes [? 'Opartes]}                                [Ubar-Tutu]
10. {Xisouthros, Sisouthros, Sisithros}                     Khasisatra, Atrakhasis[4]

[1] For the royal names of Berossus, see /Euseb. chron. lib. pri./,
    ed. Schoene, cols. 7 f., 31 ff. The latinized variants correspond
    to forms in the Armenian translation of Eusebius.

[2] For the principal discussions of equivalents, see Hommel, /Proc.
    Soc. Bibl. Arch./, Vol. XV (1893), pp. 243 ff., and /Die
    altorientalischen Denkmäler und das Alte Testament/ (1902), pp. 23
    ff.; Zimmern, /Die Keilinschriften und das Alte Testament/, 3rd
    ed. (1902), pp. 531 ff.; and cf. Lenormant, /Les origines de
    l'histoire/, I (1880), pp. 214 ff. See also Driver, /Genesis/,
    10th ed. (1916), p. 80 f.; Skinner, /Genesis/, p. 137 f.; Ball,
    /Genesis/, p. 50; and Gordon, /Early Traditions of Genesis/, pp.
    46 ff.

[3] There is a suggested equation of Lal-ur-alimma with {'Aloros}.

[4] The hundred and twenty "sars", or 432,000 years assigned by
    Berossus for the duration of the Antediluvian dynasty, are
    distributed as follows among the ten kings; the numbers are given
    below first in "sars", followed by their equivalents in years
    within brackets: 1. Ten "sars" (36,000); 2. Three (10,800); 3.
    Thirteen (46,800); 4. Twelve (43,200); 5. Eighteen (64,800); 6.
    Ten (36,000); 7. Eighteen (64,800); 8. Ten (36,000); 9. Eight
    (28,800); 10. Eighteen (64,800).

For comparison with Berossus it may be useful to abstract from the
Sumerian Dynastic List the royal names occurring in the earliest
extant dynasties. They are given below with variant forms from
duplicate copies of the list, and against each is added the number of
years its owner is recorded to have ruled. The figures giving the
total duration of each dynasty, either in the summaries or under the
separate reigns, are sometimes not completely preserved; in such cases
an x is added to the total of the figures still legible. Except in
those cases referred to in the foot-notes, all the names are written
in the Sumerian lists without the determinative for "god".

                           KINGDOM OF KISH
            (23 kings; 18,000 + x years, 3 months, 3 days)

. . .[1]
 8. [. . .]                             900(?) years
 9. Galumum, Kalumum                    900      "
10. Zugagib, Zugakib                    830      "
11. Arpi, Arpiu, Arbum                  720      "
12. Etana[2]                            635 (or 625) years
13. Pili . . .[3]                       410 years
14. Enmenunna, Enmennunna[4]            611   "
15. Melamkish                           900   "
16. Barsalnunna                       1,200   "
17. Mesza[. . .]                     [. . .]  "
. . .[5]
22. . . .                               900 years
23. . . .                               625   "

                     KINGDOM OF EANNA (ERECH)[6]
                 (About 10-12 kings; 2,171 + x years)

 1. Meskingasher                        325 years
 2. Enmerkar                            420   "
 3. Lugalbanda[7]                     1,200   "
 4. Dumuzi[8] (i.e. Tammuz)             100   "
 5. Gishbilgames[9] (i.e. Gilgamesh)    126 (or 186) years
 6. [. . .]lugal                     [. . .] years
. . .[10]

                            KINGDOM OF UR
                         (4 kings; 171 years)

 1. Mesannipada                          80 years
 2. Meskiagnunna                         30   "
 3. Elu[. . .]                           25   "
 4. Balu[. . .]                          36   "

                           KINGDOM OF AWAN
                         (3 kings; 356 years)
. . .[11]


[1] Gap of seven, or possibly eight, names.

[2] The name Etana is written in the lists with and without the
    determinative for "god".

[3] The reading of the last sign in the name is unknown. A variant
    form of the name possibly begins with Bali.

[4] This form is given on a fragment of a late Assyrian copy of the
    list; cf. /Studies in Eastern History/, Vol. III, p. 143.

[5] Gap of four, or possibly three, names.

[6] Eanna was the great temple of Erech. In the Second Column of the
    list "the kingdom" is recorded to have passed from Kish to Eanna,
    but the latter name does not occur in the summary.

[7] The name Lugalbanda is written in the lists with and without the
    determinative for "god".

[8] The name Dumuzi is written in the list with the determinative for
    "god".

[9] The name Gishbilgames is written in the list with the
    determinative for "god".

[10] Gap of about four, five, or six kings.

[11] Wanting.

At this point a great gap occurs in our principal list. The names of
some of the missing "kingdoms" may be inferred from the summaries, but
their relative order is uncertain. Of two of them we know the
duration, a second Kingdom of Ur containing four kings and lasting for
a hundred and eight years, and another kingdom, the name of which is
not preserved, consisting of only one king who ruled for seven years.
The dynastic succession only again becomes assured with the opening of
the Dynastic chronicle published by Pcre Scheil and recently acquired
by the British Museum. It will be noted that with the Kingdom of Ur
the separate reigns last for decades and not hundreds of years each,
so that we here seem to approach genuine tradition, though the Kingdom
of Awan makes a partial reversion to myth so far as its duration is
concerned. The two suggested equations with Antediluvian kings of
Berossus both occur in the earliest Kingdom of Kish and lie well
within the Sumerian mythical period. The second of the rulers
concerned, Enmenunna (Ammenon), is placed in Sumerian tradition
several thousand years before the reputed succession of the gods
Lugalbanda and Tammuz and of the national hero Gilgamesh to the throne
of Erech. In the first lecture some remarkable points of general
resemblance have already been pointed out between Hebrew and Sumerian
traditions of these early ages of the world.
End of the Project Gutenberg Etext of LEGENDS OF BABYLON AND EGYPT

 

 

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