Note 12 — Chapter VI

One of these statues was set up in E-gishshirgal, a name which corresponds to that of the old Moon-temple at Ur; and on this evidence Poebel has assumed that Abi-eshu' succeeded in getting control of Southern Babylonia (cf. "Legal and Business Documents," p. 120). But a fuller form of the date has since been recovered, showing that this E-gishshirgal, and doubtless the temple of Enlil coupled with it, were in Babylon. It would seem therefore that after Samsu-iluna had lost his hold upon the great centre of the Moon-cult in the south, a local temple for the Moon-god's worship was established at Babylon, under the ancient name, in which the old cult-practices were reproduced as far as possible. Similarly, having lost Nippur, a new shrine to Enlil was built at Babylon, or an old one enlarged and beautified. By such means it was doubtless hoped to secure a continuance of the gods' favour, and an ultimate recovery of their cities; and the continual dedication of royal images, though doubtless a sign of royal deification, must also have been intended to bring the king's claims to the divine notice.