How Would You Define the Mesopotamian Ideal of Kingship?

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How would you define the Mesopotamian ideal of kingship? They believed in kingship, and it was an honor for a man by the gods. In contrast with other civilizations such as ancient Egypt, Mesopotamians consider a king to be a great man that was selected by the gods to represent them on earth and not divine. A king was expected to keep the gods informed of events in his land and could ask them for advice through the act of worship. This belief was reinforced through the wearing of the divine symbols of kingship, the rod and the ring. Once Mesopotamians had interpreted the gods' selection of a king, they make a careful examination of the person or animal's to sacrificed on a favorable day, which becomes a strict regime which means a government system of education and training was put into practice. This including training in mathematics, theology and foreign languages. According to Mesopotamian ideas about kingship, success in education was a way for a king to prove his great courage and worth to both the god and his subjects. He could then take the oath of kingship, be presented with the royal crown and inhabit the royal palace ahead of his coronation. To represent the belief that a king was the representative of the gods, the coronation ceremony was both a religious and civil affair. The king was first carried on men's shoulders to the temple of Assur. The king then entered the temple, kissed the ground and was anointed by a priest with holy oil. The priest then crowned the king and presented him with the scepter of royal justice and the prayers would follow and then a procession would head to the royal palace. On arrival, notable would pay homage to the new king and present him with gifts and their insignia of office. The cor... ... middle of paper ... ...him away, assuring him that he cannot escape death. A humbled Gilgamesh returns to Uruk and orders his story to be inscribed in stone. Visual Sources visual sources 2.2 man from mohenjo What specific features of the statue can you point out? By looking at the statue you can tell that this mohenjo man was wealthy. They had to wear clothing made from animal skin with hair to make warm and plants. probably wears a lot of gold with his outfit. maybe the 3 leaf may mean his rank. What possible indication of elite status can you identify? He was probably a upper class person like a ruler or a royal person. kingship or royal people don't work on the farm so they wear heavy cloths. What overall impression does the statue convey? The statue shows that the great wealthy people ruler over the others. the way you dress is how others view you in the class.

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