Sheep and Goat Husbandry at the Eanna Temple in Uruk During the Long Sixth Century

During the first millennium BCE, sheep and goat husbandry was a mainstay of the Babylonian economy. Temples were in charge of providing offerings to the gods. The Eanna temple in Uruk in southern Iraq was one of the most important and largest Babylonian temples, dedicated to the worship of Uruk’s patron goddess, Ishtar. Male sheep were the most important animals to be sacrificed at Eanna. The temple produced a large number of documents relating to the administration of these sacrifices, which are referred to as the “livestock dossier” by modern scholars. This dossier dates back to the Neo-Babylonian and early Achaemenid periods (654-520 BCE) and comprises more than 1,000 documents.

The primary aim of this study is to offer a comprehensive and detailed re-assessment of the documentation, organisation and economy of sheep and goat husbandry at the Eanna temple. This includes an analysis of diachronic changes in the administration and organisation of sheep and goat husbandry, which only become clear through a prosopographical study of the responsibilities of individual agents in this sector.

The findings show that a series of administrative and organisational changes were introduced during the reign of Nebuchadnezzar II (605-562 BCE), which had the goal of streamlining animal husbandry and increasing administrative centralisation. Furthermore, this study demonstrates that the livestock sector grew exponentially, which in turn led to the appointment of more administrative and herding personnel and an increased number of offerings. This growth had the unintended consequence that an increasing number of herdsmen became indebted to the temple. The reinterpretation of a key administrative term (rēḫu “outstanding remainders”) suggests that, by the end of Nabonidus’ reign (ca. 539 BCE), livestock debt had amassed to such an extent that the palace was forced to intervene in Eanna’s administration. The effort devoted to collecting this debt intensified during the early Achaemenid period (538-520 BCE), exemplified by the direct involvement of the Persian satrap Gobryas and the career of the infamous “tax-collector” Gimillu.

Kreaturhold og i særdeleshed hold af får og geder udgjorde en af hovedsøjlerne i den babylonske økonomi i det første årtusinde f.v.t. Templer stod for at frembringe offergaver til guderne. Eanna-templet i Uruk i det sydlige Irak var et af de mest betydningsfulde og største templer i Babylonien; det var dedikeret til tilbedelsen af Uruks skytsgud, Ishtar. Vædderlam var det vigtigste dyr, der blev ofret i Eanna. Templet producerede et stort antal dokumenter i forbindelse med administrationen af disse offergaver, som refereres til som “kreaturdossieret” i den moderne videnskab. Dette dossier daterer til den nybabylonske og tidlige achæmenidiske periode (654-520 BCE) og udgør mere end 1.000 dokumenter.

Denne afhandlings hovedformål er at præsentere en omfattende og detaljeret revurdering af dokumentationen, organiseringen og økonomien i forbindelse med får- og gedehold i Eanna-templet. Dette inkluderer også en analyse af diakroniske forandringer i administrationen og organiseringen af får- og gedehold, hvilket kun var muligt efter udførelsen af et prosopografisk studie af de ansvarsområder som de individuelle aktører i denne sektor havde.

Afhandlingens resultater viser, at en række administrative og organisatoriske forandringer blev introduceret i løbet af Nebukadnesar II’s regeringstid (605-562 BCE). Disse forandringer havde til formål at strømline kreaturhold og forøge administrativ centralisering. Derudover påviser afhandlingen, at kreatursektoren voksede eksponentielt, hviket som følge deraf ledte til ansættelsen af mere administrativt og hyrdemæssigt personale samt forøgede antallet af ofringer i templet. Denne vækst havde også den utilsigtede konsekvens, at et voksende antal hyrdemænd kom til at stå i gæld til templet. Nyfortolkningen af et administrativt nøglebegreb (rēḫu “ubetalt resterende”) antyder, at kreaturrelateret gæld var så omfattende et problem i slutningen af Nabonids regeringsperiode (ca. 539 BCE), at paladset var nødsaget til at gribe ind i Eannas måde at forvalte dets kreaturer. Indsatsen for at inddrive denne voksende gæld intensiverede i løbet af den tidlige achæmenidiske periode (538-520 BCE), eksemplificeret ved den direkte indblanding af den persiske satrap Gobryas og den berygtede “inkassator” Gimillus karriere.