შუხურმაშუს (თევზი-თხის) მოდელი შუამდინარულ ტექსტებსა და იკონოგრაფიაში

Abstract

While researching the semantic and phonetic correspondences of Sumerian hydronyms Abzu-Engur, we focused our attention on the water creature šuḫur-maš - fish recorded in Uruk literary texts of the 3rd millennium BC, which is related to Sumerian-Akkadian Laḫama-Laḫmu, Abzu-Engur. Šuḫurmaš-fish, as well as 50 laḫamas of Engur, is found in several Sumerian texts from the 3rd millennium and is usually associated with the deity Enki (Akk.Ea) and wisdom, Enguri-water. Our attempt to investigate the meanings of the cuneiform signs turned out as follows: the šuḫur-cuneiform sign- -independently denotes a type of fish, while maš -denotes goat.. Let's chronologically go over the cuneiform texts where šuḫurmašu is recorded. Sumerian text Ninurta's journey to Eridu, the city of Enki, where the šuḫur-maš -fish is found in the waters of Abzu-Engur. šuḫurmašu is encountered in the epilogue of Sumerian epic Lugalbanda and Enzud, where the goddess Inanna performs her final rites in Engur’s water. Sumerian text; Shulgi and Ninlil's barge, refers to šuḫur-maš -fish once again, in this case in the context of comparison. In Sumerian texts, the leaping fish appears as a metaphor of joy, happiness and wisdom. The Sumerian cosmogonic text, Enki and the World Order, which is an ancient example of Mesopotamian cosmogony, mentions šuḫur-maš -fish in the context of being a fighter for Enki. The name šuḫur-maš recorded in Sumerian cuneiform texts remains unexplained in all cases. Assyriologists do not offer an exact translation of šuḫur-maš -fish and only translate it as -_šuḫur-maš. The study of the existing cuneiform texts is deepened by the iconography of šuḫurmašu, which is depicted with fish and goat images in the I millennium BC. The idea of fish, even in IV-III millennia B.C , was associated with Eridu, the first city of the southern Mesopotamia, and it”s supreme deity Enki, the god of wisdom. The cuneiform texts of the later period and the combined study of the existing iconography further strengthen the existing tradition. Any image and form of a fish invariably carries the idea of wisdom and knowledge. The fish form represented the 7 Apkallu (7 sages), whose iconography we find in the New Assyrian period. In the article, we will also discuss the iconography of the Neo-Assyrian cylindrical seal, which depicts the sun god Shamash standing on the back of a horse, and in the edges of the scene there is a figure dressed in the form of a fish and the owner of the seal. The Bull-man (Kusarikku) depicted on the seal is also associated with the cult of the sun and appears as a pair to Laḫama, the guardian of Abzu-Engur, which is fixed both in Akkaadian art of 3rd millennium BC and in Neo-Assyrian spells. In this case, both models related to Engur-Abzu, which are interesting to us, can be found on one seal. It is also obvious that the Ancient Near Eastern religious ideas and their depiction remain unchanged even after millennia and completely cover the Ancient Near Eastern period (3rd-1st millennium B.C). We consider the models that are interesting to us on one of the samples still in the process of study, where the symbolism of šuḫur-maš (fish-goat) and Ea is presented, which from 2nd millennium B.C. used to be a model of kudurru and are found together on the existing sample. In the article we will discuss the famous Puzuzu frieze of the 1st millennium B.C, on which we see a fish-shaped figure. From the Neo-Babylonian period, the cast copper plate was supposed to protect against demons and evil spirits on the iconography of which we shall discuss models interesting for us. The material presented by us was revealed while working on Sumerian cuneiform texts, which are preserved even in the II-I millennia B,C, and cover the whole Ancient Near Eastern period. The foundation of the Southern Mesopotamian Pantheon originates from Eridu, which is based on the idea of Enki, the same Abzu-Engur of wisdom. The research of existing iconographic material still confirms the idea of cuneiform texts. On the basis of a complex study of cuneiform texts and images, we can conclude that the Abzu-Engur Laḫama, fish-goat, water vase models from the El-Ubaid period (V-IV millennium B.C) continue to exist both in the Mesopotamian region and in Ancient Near Eastern civilizations, of which the Caucasus is considered a cultural part. Hence, on the basis of the studies presented by us, we may look for Mesopotamian influences on the territory of the South Caucasus and Georgia.