The Adoption of Nabû and Tašmētu into the Babylonian Pantheon

Abstract

Abstract Though Nabû is well known in Babylonian religion as the minister of its patron god Marduk, and Tašmētu as Nabû’s wife, this paper argues that they were not originally envisioned as such. Instead, both the god and goddess seem to have been introduced into Marduk’s circle over the course of the Old Babylonian period, having previously been venerated in independent cults. Unexpected appearances of Tašmētu within the ritual practices of Babylon also suggest that she was only recognized as Nabû’s wife after they were both integrated into the Babylonian pantheon. Evidence of their early independence and subsequent assimilation is drawn from a wide pool of contemporary sources, including god lists, onomastics, and seal inscriptions, as well as descriptions of traditional ritual arrangements from later periods.