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26-523: There are very few hard facts available regarding the rulers of the Gutian Dynasty, still fewer about the Gutian people; even their homeland is not known. We have a few royal inscriptions from one ruler, Erridu-pizir , an inscribed macehead from another, La-erabum , a handful of passing mentions from contemporary Mesopotamian rulers, and one long inscription by Uruk ruler Utu-hengal . And there are

52-640: Is from the Ur III period, well after some of the events described. Unlike the literary narratives, which have the Akkadian Empire falling to the Gutian hordes, the SKL has rulership passing from Akkad to Uruk, which then falls to the Gutians. It is also unknown if the dynasties listed in the SKL are all sequential or if there is overlap in rulership. Note that the order and dates vary in different recensions of

78-550: The British Museum , having been acquired via antiquities dealers from unknown excavations undertaken during the 19th century. Only three of the chronicles are provenanced . The Chronicles provide the "master narrative" for large blocks of current Babylonian history. The chronicles are thought to have been transferred to the British Museum after 19th century excavations in Babylon, and subsequently left undeciphered in

104-415: The SKL . The listed reign lengths throughout much of the Gutian period are comparatively short and uniform. The following list should not be considered complete: fl.   c.  2250  – c.  2150 BC ( SC ) fl.   c.  2150  – c.  2147 BC (SC) r.  c. 2147 – c. 2138 BC (SC) (9 years) "Then the reign of Uruk

130-599: The "king without a name" on the SKL . Imta then succeeded Erridupizir. After the Akkadian Empire fell to the Gutians , the Lullubians rebelled against Erridupizir, according to the latter's inscriptions: Ka-Nisba, king of Simurrum , instigated the people of Simurrum and Lullubi to revolt. Amnili, general of [the enemy Lullubi]... made the land [rebel]... Erridu-pizir, the mighty, king of Gutium and of

156-574: The Curse of Agade (known by Sumerians as "The Frown of Enlil"), this is a Sumerian literary composition, many sources and versions of which have been found, purporting to describe the fall of the Akkadian Empire because it had been cursed by the gods. On the Gutians it says: We know little about what deities the Gutian rulers worshiped though we do know that they did follow gods (both their own, and those of Mesopotamia based on inscriptions of their first known ruler, Erridu-pizir such as this one: and And on

182-702: The Gutian dynasty is not known. It is known that it lies roughly between two major empires of the late 3rd millennium BC, the Akkadian Empire and the later Ur III Empire. Towards the end of the reign of the last notable Akkadian ruler, Shar-Kali-Sharri ( c. 2153–2129 BC), the Akkadian Empire went on to a period of disarray under several weak rulers beginning a tumultuous time in Mesopotamia as Early Dynastic city-states such as Lagash and Uruk began to re-assert themselves. The Gutian newcomers in Adab also asserted their claim to rulership. This contentious time ended with

208-495: The Gutian rulers had a huge impact on late–3rd-millennium Mesopotamia, reflected in the vast array of literary compositions featuring them, continuing for almost two millennia. At one time it was believed that Gutium was known from the 24th century BC, well before the time of the Gutian Dynasty. This was based on a tablet purportedly from the Early Dynastic ruler of Adab Lugal-Anne-Mundu . The inscription included Gutium in

234-451: The Gutians destroyed the Akkadian Empire because Naram-Sin was mean to the city of Babylon. There are scholars who state that the description of the Gutian rule over parts of Mesopotamia was fiction or that it at least gave undue importance to the Guti horde. This is believed to be perpetuated by the chroniclers of Uruk to turn Utu-hegal's minor victory into an event of universal significance for

260-589: The Gutians then picking up the pieces afterward. An excerpt reads A tablet, thought to be from Uruk and from the period following the fall of the Akkadian Empire Islikun-Dagan, known from another tablet read: Originally thought to be an authentic inscription of the 24th century BC ruler it is now known to be a pseudoautobiographical literary composition. It is known from 3 Old Babylonian tablet copies. The fragmentary text lists areas that are tributary to Lugal-Ane-mundu. More commonly called

286-483: The Seventeen Kings against Naram-Sin". The narrative is that Gutian king Gula-AN, leading 17 other kings, attacks Akkad and is defeated, captured, and then paroled by Naram-Sin, only to attack again resulting in a huge battle the results of which are unknown. Another source of uncertain historicity or dating. It is known from a single tablet, findspot thought to be Qalat Sherqat, which was translated in 1925, in

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312-728: The archives for decades. The first chronicle to be published was BM 92502 (ABC1) in 1887 by Theophilus Pinches under the title "The Babylonian Chronicle." This was followed in 1923 by the publication of the Fall of Nineveh Chronicle (ABC 3), in 1924 by Sidney Smith 's publication of the Esarhaddon Chronicle (ABC 14), the Akitu Chronicle (ABC 16) and the Nabonidus Chronicle (ABC 7), and in 1956 by Donald Wiseman 's publication of four further tablets including

338-479: The area paying tribute to the ruler. This inscription is now understood to be an Old Babylonian period literary composition written many centuries after the time of Lugal-Anne-Mundu. The first attestation of Gutium came from early in the Sargonic period when the Gutians are mentioned in year names of Akkadian rulers and established a capital at the prominent Early Dynastic Sumerian city of Adab . The full history of

364-517: The army of Gutium was defeated and the kingship was taken to Uruk." Erridupizir Erridupizir (Erridu-pizir) ( fl. 2141–2138 BC (Short chronology)) was a Gutian ruler in Sumer . His reign was attested by a royal inscription at the archaeological site for the ancient city-state of Nippur where he called himself: " King of Guti, King of the Four Quarters " Thought to be

390-459: The early days of cuneiform studies. Gutium is listed among the area in Sargon's domain. The Weidner Chronicle is a literary composition, known from 7 mostly fragmentary Neo-Assyrian and Neo-Babylonian (1st Millennium BC) recensions purportedly a copy of a damaged Old Babylonian Period (1894 - 1595 BC) original which described events of centuries earlier. In the case of the Gutians the premise is that

416-469: The empire began to unravel) reflect of interaction with Gutium. One year name of Ur ruler Ur-Nammu mentions Gutium. It is uncertain if the year name was from the time when he was only governor at Ur, leaving the possibility it was a reflected year name of Utu-hengal, or was later after he had assumed rulership over Mesopotamia. The tablet marks the building of a temple, E-gidru, in Umma. In passing it mentions

442-606: The first steps in the development of ancient historiography . The Babylonian Chronicles are written in Babylonian cuneiform and date from the reign of Nabonassar until the Parthian Period . The tablets were composed by Babylonian astronomers ("Chaldaeans") who probably used the Astronomical Diaries as their source. Almost all of the tablets were identified as chronicles once in the collection of

468-524: The four quarters hastened [to confront] him... In a single day he captured the pass of Urbillum at Mount Mummum. Further, he captured Nirishuha. In another inscription he said "the goddess Aštar had stationed troops in Agade". Babylonian Chronicles The Babylonian Chronicles are a loosely-defined series of about 45 tablets recording major events in Babylonian history. They represent one of

494-488: The mace head of a later Gutian ruler La-erabum One possible god of Gutium has been proposed, Abublab, identified with Ninurta. Aside from a few inscriptions, mostly from a single ruler, Erridupizir, most of what is known about the names and reigns of Gutian rulers comes from the Sumerian King List (SKL) . There are about two dozen sources, most fragments, for the SKL which often conflict. The earliest source

520-530: The many conflicting recensions of the Sumerian King List (SKL) and the various literary compositions that were produced in the following centuries and millennia. Neither are historically reliable sources but can be mined for insights into the events of the Gutian period. In the period before the Gutian Dynasty gained rulership over Mesopotamia the Akkadian Empire controlled the region. Two year names of Akkadian ruler Shar-kali-sharri (the last before

546-575: The many versions of the Sumerian King List , most recensions of which were written long after the time of the Gutian Dynasty and give different, sometimes conflicting versions of history. The earliest version of the Sumerian King List, written in the Ur III period, not long afterward in time, does not mention the Gutians and lists a Gutian ruler, Tirigan , as a king of Adab. Yet the SKL remains our only source for most Gutian kings. Still, clearly

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572-516: The name of a Gutian ruler. The Umma ruler Nammahni, marking the construction of a temple to the goddess Ninura , mentioned in passing the name of a Gutian ruler. A tablet from Umma, dating to the waning days of the Akkadian empire, mentions a Gutian governor. An inscription of the Uruk ruler Utu-hengal, known from 3 Old Babylonian copies, commemorated the defeat of Gutian (and its king Tirigan) and

598-502: The purpose of solidifying support for his emergent regime. This view is based on the varying accounts of the surviving manuscripts, with many of them in total disagreement as to the length of the king's reign and even the identities of the Guti kings. The Weidner Chronicle accounts for the Gutian period as follows: In this text, the Gutians are "scattered" by an unknown horde, the Umman Manda on their way to attacking Naram-Sin with

624-520: The return of rulership to Sumer. Note the Mesopotamian names of Tirigan's generals. This source lives on the borderline between history and literary composition. Some elements of it are from Old Babylonian copies of Naram-Sin royal inscriptions. That core was transformed into a wide variety of literary efforts with names like "Naram-Sin and the Enemy Hordes". A relevant one is "Gula-AN and

650-403: The rise of Ur III under Ur-Nammu ( c. 2048–2030 BC). The end point of the Gutian dynasty is felt to be certain based on a long inscription of Utu-hengal ( c. 2055 – 2048 BC) who was ruler of Uruk (and thought to be the brother of the first Ur II ruler Ur-Nammu) which described the destruction of the Gutians under their king Tirigan . For what happened up to then our only sources are

676-1950: Was abolished and the kingship was taken to the land of Gutium . In the land of Gutium, at first no king was famous; they ruled themselves for 5 years." fl.   c.  2138  – c.  2135 BC (SC) (3 years) fl.   c.  2135  – c.  2129 BC (SC) (6 or 7 years) fl.   c.  2129  – c.  2126 BC (SC) (6 years) fl.   c.  2126  – c.  2120 BC (SC) (6 years) fl.   c.  2120  – c.  2114 BC (SC) (6 or 7 years) fl.   c.  2114  – c.  2109 BC (SC) (5 or 6 years) fl.   c.  2109  – c.  2103 BC (SC) (3 or 6 years) fl.   c.  2103  – c.  2088 BC (SC) (5 or 15 years) fl.   c.  2088  – c.  2085 BC (SC) (3 years) fl.   c.  2085  – c.  2082 BC (SC) (3 years) fl.   c.  2082  – c.  2081 BC (SC) (1 or 3 years) fl.   c.  2081  – c.  2078 BC (SC) (3 years) fl.   c.  2078  – c.  2076 BC (SC) (2 years) fl.   c.  2076  – c.  2074 BC (SC) (2 years) fl.   c.  2074  – c.  2073 BC (SC) (1 year) fl.   c.  2073  – c.  2071 BC (SC) (2 years) fl.   c.  2071  – c.  2064 BC (SC) (7 years) fl.   c.  2064  – c.  2057 BC (SC) (7 years) fl.   c.  2057  – c.  2050 BC (SC) (7 years) fl.   c.  2055, c. 2050 BC (SC) (40 days) "23 kings; they ruled for 125 years and 40 days. Then

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