impression of the cylinder seal of Ḫašḫamer, patesi (high priest) of
Sin at
Iškun-Sin, ca. 2100 BC. The seated figure is probably
Ur-Nammu, bestowing
the governorship on Ḫašḫamer who is led before him by a
lamma. Sin himself is present in
the form of a crescent.
Nanna (also called Suen) is a Sumerian god in Mesopotamian mythology. He is the
god of the moon and the son of Enlil and Ninlil. His sacred city was Ur. The name Nanna is Sumerian for "illuminator."
Background
Sin's chief sanctuary at Ur was named E-gish-shir-gal ("house of the great light.") His sanctuary at Harran was named
E-khul-khul ("house of joys.") On cylinder seals, he is represented as an old man
with a flowing beard and the crescent as his symbol. In the astral-theological system he is
represented by the number 30 and the planet Venus. 30 probably refers to the average
number of days (correctly around 29.53) in a lunar month, as measured between successive
new moons.
The "wisdom" personified by the moon-god is likewise an expression of the science of astrology in which the observation of the moon's phases is so important a factor. The tendency to centralize
the powers of the universe leads to the establishment of the doctrine of a triad consisting of Sin, Shamash, and Ishtar, personifying the moon, the
sun, and the earth as the life-force.
He was named Sin in Babylonia and Assyria and was also
worshipped in Harran. Sin had a beard made of lapis lazuli
and he rode on a winged bull. His wife was Ningal ("Great Lady")
who bore him Utu ("Sun") and Inanna, and in some texts,
Ishkur. His symbols are the crescent moon, the bull, and the tripod (which may be a lamp-stand.) An
important Sumerian text ("Enlil and Ninlil") [1] tells of the descent of Enlil and Ninlil (pregnant with Nanna - Suen) into the
underworld. There, three "substitutions" are given to allow the ascent of Nanna - Suen. The story shows some similarities to the
text known as "The Descent of Inanna".
Seats of Sin's worship
The two chief seats of Sin's worship were Ur in the south, and Harran to the north. The cult of Sin spread to other centers,
and temples of the moon-god are found in all the large cities of Babylonia and Assyria.
He is commonly designated as En-zu, or "lord of wisdom." During the period (c.2600-2400 BC) that Ur exercised a large
measure of supremacy over the Euphrates valley, Sin was naturally regarded as the head of the
pantheon. It is to this period that we must trace such designations of Sin as "father of the gods", "chief of the gods", "creator
of all things", and the like.
References
See also
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