Bara-irnun

Bara-irnun (๐’ˆ๐’…•๐’‰ฃ bara-ir-nun) was queen of the Sumerian city-state of Umma and wife of king Gishakidu, circa 2400 BCE.[1] She is particularly known from a gold votive plate, in which she describes her genealogy in great detail.[1] The inscription on the plate reads:

For (the god) Shara, lord of the E-mah: when Bara-irnun - wife of Gishakidu, king of Umma, daughter of Ur-Lumma, king of Umma, grand-daughter of Enakalle, king of Umma, daughter-in-law of Il, king of Umma - had made Shara resplendent and had built him a holy throne, for her life, to Shara, in the E-Mah, she offered (this ornament)."

โ€”โ€ŠInscription of Bara-Irnum[4][5]
Bara-irnun
๐’ˆ๐’…•๐’‰ฃ
Queen of Umma
Votive plate of Queen Bara-Irnun of Umma, "wife of Gishakidu, king of Umma, daughter of Ur-Lumma, king of Umma, grand-daughter of Enakalle, king of Umma, daughter-in-law of Il, king of Umma", to God Shara, in gratitude for sparing her life.[1][2] Louvre Museum.[3]
Reignc. 2500  BC โ€“ 2400  BC
Dynasty1st Dynasty of Umma
Il was king of Umma, circa 2400 BCE.

The original royal line of Umma consisted in the filiation of Enakalle (possibly son of Ush) and his own son Ur-Lumma.[6][3] When Ur-Lumma died, presumably without a son but certainly with a daughter named Bara-irnum, the throne was handed over to Il, son of Eanandu (who had no regnal title) and grandson (or nephew) of Enakalle.[3][6] King Il was then succeeded by his own son Gishakidu.[3] Bara-irnum married her cousin Gishakidu, thus re-uniting both strands of the royal family by a marital alliance.[3][6]

The plaque is the first known mention of Shara, tutelary god of Umma.[1]

  • Name of Bar-irnun on the plaque, and standard Sumero-Akkadian cuneiform (๐’ˆ๐’…•๐’‰ฃ bara-ir-nun)
    Name of Bar-irnun on the plaque, and standard Sumero-Akkadian cuneiform (๐’ˆ๐’…•๐’‰ฃ bara-ir-nun)
  • King Enakalle, grandfather of Bara-irnum, on the plate of queen Bara-irnun.
    King Enakalle, grandfather of Bara-irnum, on the plate of queen Bara-irnun.
  • King Gishakidu, husband of Bara-irnum
    King Gishakidu, husband of Bara-irnum
  • "King Il" (๐’…๐’ˆ—, Il lugal), father-in-law of Bara-irnum
    "King Il" (๐’…๐’ˆ—, Il lugal), father-in-law of Bara-irnum
  • King Ur-Lumma, father of Bara-irnum
    King Ur-Lumma, father of Bara-irnum

References
  1. Art of the First Cities: The Third Millennium B.C. from the Mediterranean to the Indus. Metropolitan Museum of Art. 2003. p. 78. ISBN 978-1-58839-043-1.
  2. Thomas, Ariane; Potts, Timothy (2020). Mesopotamia: Civilization Begins. Getty Publications. p. 108. ISBN 978-1-60606-649-2.
  3. Thureau-Dangin, F. (1937). "Une tablette en or provenant d'Umma". Revue d'Assyriologie et d'archรฉologie orientale. 34 (4): 177โ€“182. ISSN 0373-6032. JSTOR 23284119.
  4. Art of the First Cities: The Third Millennium B.C. from the Mediterranean to the Indus. Metropolitan Museum of Art. 2003. p. 78. ISBN 978-1-58839-043-1.
  5. Thomas, Ariane; Potts, Timothy (2020). Mesopotamia: Civilization Begins. Getty Publications. p. 108. ISBN 978-1-60606-649-2.
  6. Glassner, Jean-Jacques; Foster, Benjamin Benjamin Read (2005). Mesopotamian Chronicles. BRILL. pp. 104โ€“105. ISBN 978-90-04-13084-5.
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