메소포타미아의 여신 인안나/이슈타르 도상과 정체성의 변화

Abstract

This study focuses on the iconography and identity evolution of Inanna, the Mesopotamian goddess. During the Sumerian city-state era, Inanna was revered as a goddess of fertility, associated with both earth and sky. However, during the imperial era of Akkad, she became intertwined with Ishtar, the goddess of war and destruction. This fusion of attributes led to significant changes in Inanna’s iconography. Initially depicted as a goddess of the earth, often symbolized by barley, a staple crop in Uruk, Inanna later transformed into a formidable war deity, depicted with arms emerging from her shoulders and overpowering a lion. The amalgamation of Inanna with Ishtar played a crucial role in the reign of King Sargon of Akkad and his daughter Enheduanna. Through the standardization of religious rituals and the integration of religious concepts, the attributes of Inanna from Sumer and Ishtar from Semitic traditions merged and assimilated completely. In Babylonian art, Inanna/Ishtar is depicted with a focus on attributes such as love, sexuality, and Venus symbolism. The sacred union between the goddess of fertility and Dumuzi, the god of herding, was ritually reenacted during the Akitu festival, where the king and a priest would symbolically marry at the Inanna temple. Since the sacred marriage and sexual activity are associated with fertility, the representation of the goddess Ishtar gradually emphasized femininity, highlighting features such as the chest, buttocks, and shins. Furthermore, during the later Babylonian period, with the advancement of astrology, the deities associated with the moon, Venus, and the sun were revered as supreme gods. Consequently, artistic expressions began to focus solely on the symbolism of these celestial bodies. Inanna, the Sumerian goddess, underwent constant transformation while retaining her essential characteristics. These changes in her identity were reflected in Inanna's iconography as she intersected with the history and culture of the ancient Near East. Inanna possessed a vitality stronger than that of any other goddess, rooted in absorption and inclusion. She spread her influence by assimilating the cultures and myths of other regions, profoundly shaping the identities of local goddesses to the extent that she became the progenitor of West Asian goddesses.