Analysis Of The Self-Deification Of King Naram-Sin

It has long been discussed whether or not the Akkadian king Naram-Sin was deified.The cuneiform determinative “DINGIR” was added before his name,and on the “Victory Stele of Naram-Sin” he even wore a “horned crown”,which was a privilege reserved for deities in the Mesopotamian tradition.Evidence also appears in the inscription on the Bassetki Statue,which records that after the ruler's triumph in the “nine battles,” the citizens of Agade requested the gods for his apotheosis and built him a temple.This thesis studies the inscription in detail and correlates its content with other cuneiform texts to investigate the ruler's self-deification.Furthermore,this thesis draws upon studies in anthropology,archaeology and art history.It concludes Naram-Sin's self-deification was probably related to his ambition of challenging the old Sumerian religion to rule the new territorial state.Influences from other sources may also have played a role.