Ērišum I.

Ērišum I. ( Erischum, Erisum ), son of Ilu-šūma , son of Šalim-aḫum, son of Puzur-Aššur was an ancient Assyrian king. He ruled for forty years (1910 to 1871 BC and 1974 to 1935 BC). He is known from the Assyrian king list (33rd king) and numerous inscriptions. During his reign, several Karū (Assyrian trading posts ) were set up in Anatolia . Including probably the most famous settlement in Kaniš , today the Turkish archaeological site Kültepe . Some of his inscriptions were also found there.

title

At a time when the so-called Old Assyrian Empire was only one city-state among many and its politics were probably determined to a large extent by the influential trading families, he referred to himself relatively modestly only as governor or viceroy. Like his predecessors since Puzur-Aššur I , he uses the title Išši'ak Aššur or describes his position as "Aššur is the king, Ērišum is vice-regent".

buildings

The most important event of his reign seems to have been the construction of the Aššur temple (Temple of the Wild Bull) in Assur . He built the temple for his life and the life of his city, erected a divine throne adorned with precious stones, and also installed the gates. He had a clay cylinder with the charter built into its foundations and ordered that no one or king who was renovating the temple could remove it. Clarified butter and honey were mixed into the mortar of the temple walls. Ērišum confiscated land within the city in order to build or expand the step gate (“The wall was higher than it was in my father's time ...”). One of his inscriptions even gives the names of the judges who worked at the step gate and the curses that should fall on those who lie at the step gate (presumably during a court hearing).

A thousand years later by Salmānu-ašarēd III. Ērišum mentions the building inscription attached to the Assur temple Éḫursagkurra: "When the Éḫursagkurra, the temple of Aššur, my lord, which Ušpia , my ancestor, priest of Aššur, had built before times, became dilapidated, my ancestor Ērišum restored it" . In addition to him, the inscription also refers to Šamši-Adad I , who again carried out extensive construction work on the temple about 150 years after Ērišum.

government

The construction of two brewing kettles was also worth mentioning. They were crowned with images of pigeons. However, the gods Aššur, Adad and Bēl are supposed to destroy the seeds of everyone who grinds grain in the brewing kettle. Perhaps it was a purely sacred institution.

Following the example of his father, he had tax breaks. At least there was an appropriately interpreted inscription on a block of alabaster , presumably a door base. Accordingly, Ērišum I. announced a waiver of payments to be made in gold, silver, copper, tin, wool and barley.

He was succeeded by his son Ikūnum .

literature

• Albert Kirk Grayson : Assyrian Royal inscriptions. Wiesbaden 1972.

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Barbara Cifola: Analysis of variants in the Assyrian royal titulary from the origins to Tiglath-Pileser III . Dissertation at the Istituto universitario orientale (1995), p. 8.
2. ^ Collection of the British Museum , Museum no .: BM 115689, Excavation no .: Ass 16850

predecessor	Office	successor
Ilu-šūma	Assyrian king	Ikūnum