http://SaturnianCosmology.Org/ mirrored file For complete access to all the files of this collection see http://SaturnianCosmology.org/search.php ========================================================== Introduction Mankind has long been fascinated by the most prominent celestial bodies. Early artworks from the Neolithic period include petroglyphs showing sun or star-like objects. Although these so-called "sun-images" occur in a wide variety of artistic contexts, it is not uncommon to find them associated with scenes of apparent worship and ritual. For example, engravings depict people with upraised arms "offering salutations" to the sun god. Of the artwork depicted in Camonica Valley--arguably the richest and most thoroughly excavated petroglyph site in the world--Anati observed: "The carvings of the first period are limited to the depiction of one person praying, facing the sun--which is drawn as a disc with a dot in its center."1 Such scenes have led scholars to assume that the solar images served some sort of religious purpose for the Stone Age artists and their communities.2 Suns and stars also figure prominently in the earliest religions of the ancient Near East. The same was true of the religions of Egypt, Mesoamerica, and Australia. Significantly, there is much about the early astral religions that reveals an obsessive quality. It is as if the ancients felt compelled to watch the planets for signs of divine angst and impending cataclysm. Yet wherever we look, especially in the oldest artworks and written texts, the sun, moon, and planets are described in a fashion that is difficult to reconcile with their current appearance and familiar behavior. How are we to understand this remarkable anomaly? It is usually assumed that anomalous descriptions of the sun and planets are to be explained as the product of religious symbolism or poetic metaphor. Yet this hypothesis fails to explain why the most prominent celestial bodies are described in a similarly anomalous fashion around the globe. A possibility hitherto ignored is that the ancient artworks and literature represent relatively realistic descriptions of the primeval solar system, albeit a solar system radically different in order and appearance than that familiar to modern astronomers. It is our opinion that a comprehensive review of the world's earliest literary texts will show that ancient skywatchers viewed a fundamentally different sky. In the present monograph we intend to examine the literature and art from ancient Mesopotamia in an attempt to learn how that particular culture conceptualized the heavens. In addition to being the birthplace of writing, Mesopotamia was the first culture to practice systematic observation of heavenly phenomena, first as a method of divination and later as a means for tracking the movements of the seven planets. The antiquity of the culture, coupled with its role as the inventor of the science of astronomy, makes Mesopotamia a logical testing ground for someone attempting to reconstruct mankind's earliest memories of the solar system. Shamash It is well known that the various peoples of Mesopotamia, like ancient peoples everywhere, worshipped a sun-like form in the sky. The Sumerian sun-god was known as Utu. The hymn "Enki and the World Order" presents the sun-god as a powerful bull: "The valiant Utu, the bull who stands secure, who proudly displays his power, the father of the great city, the place where the sun rises."3 In early incantations Utu is celebrated as an all-knowing "judge" of the Netherworld.4 A temple hymn describes him as pronouncing "judgment at the place where the sun rises."5 The Akkadian sun-god was known as Shamash. Like his Sumerian counterpart, the Semitic Shamash was venerated as a great judge. A serrated saw served as his most prominent symbol and by means of it the ancient sun-god was said to "cut" his decisions. As the Epic of Gilgamesh attests, Shamash was also regarded as a regent of the Underworld. In order to reconstruct the Mesopotamians' conception of the ancient sun-god it is instructive to consider the countless artworks representing Utu/Shamash. Among the most enduring types of art from the ancient Near East are the so-called cylinder seals, engravings cut into various types of stone that originally served as signs of property ownership. Deriving from earlier stamp seals, cylinder seals first appeared in the fourth millennium BCE and remained popular for some three thousand years.6 Early cylinder seals show images thought to represent the solar orb (see figure one).7 It remains an open question why the ancient artists would select this particular image to represent the Sun, as the current solar disc does not display a central dot. That said, the very same image is ubiquitous around the globe, occurring in both historic and prehistoric contexts.8 In the earliest pictographic scripts in Egypt and China, moreover, this very sign served to signify the ancient sun-god. Figure One Similar questions arise with regard to the image depicted in figure two, which shows a solar disc with a star inscribed in its center. This particular image is well-attested in cylinder seals dating from the Old Akkadian period. Figure Two Other seals, equally common, depict the solar disc as a wheel-like form (see figure three). Numerous examples show eight "spokes" or volutes emanating from the central "axle." This image can also be found in prehistoric contexts.9 A variation on the latter form would come to dominate in later times, the solar "wheel" comprising a familiar symbol on Babylonian kudurru. Like the sun-disc with central dot, this symbol could also be mounted on a pole as a sort of standard identifying the ancient sun-god.10 Figure three The renowned art historian Elizabeth van Buren offered the following commentary on the latter symbol, which she called the "sun disk on post": "Most of the examples of a disk on a post occur on cylinder seals of the Early Babylonian period and in seal impressions on `Cappadocian' tablets. Rare examples depict a disk upon a post held by a divinity or standing free `in the air', in which case it is hard to be sure to what divinity the standard may belong. Otherwise, it may be considered almost certain that it is the sun-standard of Íamaß which is reproduced, especially as the post is often surmounted by a crescent above which the sun-disc rests. Usually one or a pair of bull-men hold the standard."11 The ancient sun-god was also represented in anthropomorphic form. A common motif on Akkadian cylinder seals shows Shamash "rising" from a twin-peaked mountain (see figure four).12 Such artworks form a perfect complement to early Sumerian hymns, which likewise invokes the sun-god in conjunction with a towering mountain. The following passage is typical in this regard: "Íamaß, when you appear from the great mountain, from the great mountain, the mountain of the springs...there, where heaven and earth meet, from the ground of heaven you appear."13 Figure four Why the Akkadian artists would depict their beloved sun-god in conjunction with a twin peaked mountain is not obvious, as mountains are not prominent in Mesopotamia-proper, which occupies the alluvial plains around the rivers Euphrates and Tigris (there are mountains to the North and East).14 Nor, for that matter, is it known why this particular motif would be "limited exclusively to the Akkadian period."15 That said, Henri Frankfort noted that the mountain-setting was customary despite the relatively flat Mesopotamian geography: "[The mountain] is in Mesopotamia the `religious landscape' par excellence, as the reed marsh is of Egypt and the mound of Golgotha in Christianity, and therefore the normal setting for the epiphany of the god."16 In addition to the testimony to be found in the plastic arts and sacred iconography, there is an abundance of early literature celebrating the ancient sun-god. The hymns extolling the sun's daily epiphany are particularly interesting here. From the conventional uniformitarian perspective, one which takes it for granted that the ancient skywatchers viewed the same peaceful celestial landscape as at present, it would naturally be expected that the Sun's familiar behavior would be a favorite subject for ancient poets in general. It is also to be expected that the language and imagery involved in descriptions of the Sun's daily cycle would follow a natural logic. Thus one would expect to find references to a brilliant orange orb first appearing from the eastern horizon, then rising to the ecliptic as it crosses the sky, only to sink and disappear beneath the western horizon. Yet such descriptions are nowhere to be found in the early Sumerian literature. Rather, we read that the ancient sun-god comes forth from the "midst" of heaven, in striking contradiction to the Sun's current behavior. The following hymn is representative in this regard: "Íamaß, when you come forth from heaven, Íamaß, when you come forth from the midst of heaven..."17 The same observation is recorded in various other ancient texts as well. Witness the following passage: "Íamaß, when you make your appearance in the midst of heaven, the bolt of the shining heaven gives you greetings; the door-wings of heaven swear homage to you."18 The phrase translated as "midst" of heaven is Sumerian an.ßà, literally "heart of heaven." According to Wayne Horowitz, author of the standard treatment of Mesopotamian Cosmic Geography, the phrase has reference to the center of heaven, roughly corresponding to the modern concept of the celestial apex.19 Yet in the solar system as currently configured, the apex of heaven has nothing to do with the Sun's daily epiphany. Hence the anomaly presented by the Sumerian testimony that the ancient sun-god was wont to rise from the "midst" of heaven. Far from being an isolated literary device, similar conceptions are met with in Mesopotamian ritual. Thus, a Sumerian incantation designed to be recited at sunrise included the following line: "Great Lord, when you rise from clear `Heaven's Interior,' hero, youth, Shamash, when you rise from clear `Heaven's Interior.'"20 The phrase translated as "Heaven's Interior" is the aforementioned an.ßà, the "midst" of heaven. Once again, it is painfully obvious that no sober-minded skywatcher would ever describe the current Sun as "rising" from the "midst" of heaven. Equally extraordinary are statements to the effect that the sun-god grew dim or "set" in the very same place--the "midst" of heaven. Thus, in an incantation typically recited at sunset Shamash is addressed as follows: "O Sun-god, when you enter `Heaven's Interior,' may the bolt of the clear heavens say `hello.'"21 Now here is an interesting puzzle: How is it possible for the sun to both "rise" and "set" from the same place in the sky, however the "midst of heaven" is to be understood from an astronomical standpoint? A satisfactory answer to this question will likely precipitate a revolution in our understanding of the solar system's recent history. The Mesopotamian texts describing the sun-god's daily behavior have never been subjected to a careful analysis from a comparative standpoint. Usually the anomalous descriptions are simply passed by in silence, with no commentary at all. Certainly the imagery in question has yet to be adequately explained from an astronomical standpoint. Wayne Horowitz, one of the few scholars to subject these texts to any sort of rigorous analysis, confessed his inability to explain the literary descriptions of the Sun's daily behavior: "Thus, according to one Sumerian tradition, the Sun-god apparently spent the night in an.ßà instead of passing under the earth's surface through the Apsu or underworld. It is not clear, though, how the Sun-god might have passed from the western to eastern horizon at night through an.ßà."22 Note that Horowitz simply assumes that the ancient sun-god "passed from the western to eastern horizon at night." That he would make this assumption is entirely reasonable, needless to say. Yet it is also entirely unwarranted, as the ancient Sumerian texts nowhere make this claim. Indeed, as we will document in a later chapter, the earliest texts are quite explicit that the sun did not move at all during his daily cycle. It simply "flared up" and "dimmed" in the "midst" of heaven. Horowitz goes on to note that such passages caused "severe problems" for ancient scribes attempting to understand the Sumerian language. How could it be otherwise, since they are impossible to reconcile with the familiar behavior of the current Sun? Not even a schoolchild would report that the sun "rose" and "set" in the same quarter of the sky, much less in the sky's "midst." Horowitz states the obvious when he remarks that ancient references to the "midst of heaven" are problematic: "The use of terms for the `middle of heaven' as a part of the sky are problematic...Although it may be assumed that the "Middle of Heaven' included the center of the sky around the apex of the celestial dome, it is not possible to determine how far the `Middle of Heaven' extended downward."23 Properly understood, the references to the sun-god's "rising" and "setting" in the "midst" of heaven form a perfect complement to the aforementioned references to the sun-god "rising" over a towering mountain. Thus it is that various texts place the mountain of sunrise in the "midst" of heaven. The following hymn celebrating Shamash's daily epiphany attests to this idea: "You are mighty over the mountain, you gaze upon the earth, you are suspended in the midst of heaven to the ends of the world."24 An old Babylonian hymn to Utu is of similar import: "Utu, when you come forth from the midst of heaven, when you ascend the mountain of the chaschur-cedars."25 On the Nature of Sin Few sights are more familiar than the waxing and waning of the Moon. To our nomadic forebears traveling by its reflected light or camped out under the stars, the circumambulating satellite must have been a very impressive sight indeed, the brilliance of the full Moon far exceeding that of the brightest star or planet. In the historical period, at least, observation of the Moon and its phases has long played an important role in the measurement of time and in the development of calendarical systems. The Sumerian calendar was lunar in nature, counting twelve (sometimes thirteen) "months" of 29-30 days, a year of some 354 days. The month itself was directly tied to the appearance of the lunar orb, beginning "at the moment when, following the period of invisibility due to nearness of the sun, the lunar crescent appears again briefly on the western horizon just after sunset."26 Even the Sumerian "day" was related to the lunar epiphany, being timed to coincide with the first appearance of the lunar crescent after the setting of the Sun.27 It remains an open question just how far back in time such lunar calendars can be traced. Early testimony attesting to the Moon's role in setting the calendar, perhaps, was offered by Rim-Sin, the last ruler of the Larsa Dynasty (c. 1800 BCE): "[Nanna], fixing the month and the new moon, [setting] the year in its place."28 There is some evidence for lunar calendars from the Ur III period (c. 2000 BCE). Despite extravagant claims on behalf of Neolithic calendars, there is no credible evidence that our prehistoric ancestors paid much attention to the phases of the Moon. The Moon's importance in ancient consciousness, so the conventional story goes, is also reflected in Sumerian religion, where the god Nanna/Sin features prominently.29 Yet in ancient myth and cult Sin generally occupies a subordinate role compared to other astral deities. Here Wolfram von Soden offered the following observation: "[Sin] is invoked in prayers much less frequently than the Sun-god Shamash and Ishtar, nor does he play a very important role in myth."30 In early hymns Sin was alternately described as a god of light, as a boat voyaging across the heavens, and as a bull with luminous horns. The most comprehensive survey of Sin's role in ancient Mesopotamian religion is that offered by Mark Hall.31 As Hall points out, it is the crescent form that provides the common denominator behind early conceptions of the god: "All of the textual sources from the very earliest periods on speak of Nanna/Suen as a threefold character identified at one and the same time with the moon as god of light, with the bull and calf as the protector and procreative power of the herds, and as the offspring of the sky-god An, or the air-god, Enlil. The crescent moon is the symbol both in literature and in art which unifies these three facets of the moon-god's character: it identifies the god with the moon, connects him with the bull and the calf through the frequently-attested association of the shape of the crescent moon with the shape of the bull's horns, and places him in direct relation to the sky and air. All of Nanna/Suen's epithets revolve around this basic conception of his character."32 Given the crescent's prominence in the cult of Sin, it is instructive to trace its role in ancient art. Crescents are attested from Early Dynastic times onwards.33 Sin's crescent forms a recurring motif on countless cylinder seals, for example. It may be depicted standing alone or enclosing the disc of Shamash, as in figure five (see also figures two and three).34 This image is so common on Mesopotamian cylinder seals that it is easy to overlook the fact that the celestial scenario depicted is quite impossible in the current solar system--the solar disc can never appear to rest within the horns of the lunar crescent. This is because the lunar orb is nearer to the Earth than the Sun and only "shines" because of the reflected light of the latter. Thus it follows that the Moon could never present the form of a crescent when in inferior conjunction with the Sun (in fact, it is invisible at this time). Figure five The Planet Venus If anomalies abound in Sumerian descriptions of the appearance and behavior of Utu and Sin, the situation is no more straightforward with respect to the planet Venus. Veneration of the planet Venus is already prominent in the earliest historical period. The city of Uruk, the most ancient city yet excavated in Mesopotamia, betrays a wealth of evidence attesting to the planet's importance in Sumerian consciousness.35 Religious literature celebrating the planet Venus was much in vogue during the reign of Sargon (c. 2300 BCE), thanks in no small part to Enheduanna's patronage of the planet goddess Inanna, the latter being a daughter of the great king and one of the great poets in all antiquity. As scholars have pointed out, it is probable that this literature reflects still more ancient conceptions including those from "archaic Sumerian tradition."36 An early Neo-Sumerian text celebrating the planetary aspect of Inanna is the royal hymn of Iddin-Dagan, the third king of the First Dynasty of Isin (c. 1974-1954 BCE). This hymn describes the sacred marriage rite, performed by the king during the New Year's celebrations in order to insure the fertility of the land.37 On this occasion the king, impersonating Dumuzi, engaged in a hieros gamos with the human representative of the goddess Inanna. The hymn opens by introducing the great goddess as a planetary power: "To her who appears in the sky, to her who appears in the sky, I want to address my greeting, to the Hierodule who appears in the sky, I want to address my greeting, to the great Queen of Heaven, Inanna, I want to address my greeting, to her who fills the sky with her pure blaze, to the luminous one, to Inanna, as bright as the Sun, to the great Queen of Heaven, Inanna, I want to address my greeting, to the Hierodule, the Queen of the Anunna, decked in splendor, to the princess, who fills heaven and earth with her great radiance, to the oldest daughter of Suen, to Inanna, I want to address my greeting! In her magnificence, her greatness, her immense nobility, when she shines in the sky, at dusk, and when with her pure blaze she fills the sky, where she stands, similar to Suen and to Utu, she whom people know from one end to the other (of the world), in her greatness as a heavenly hierodule, I want, in a song, to address her, the mistress!"38 Several phrases are of interest here. Venus is described as a radiant fire filling the sky. It is tempting to attribute this imagery to poetic metaphor as no modern skywatcher would ever claim that our Sister planet "fills the sky." The same observation applies to the statement that Venus shines "as bright as the Sun," a phrase that appears elsewhere in the hymn as well. Given the relatively puny appearance of Venus in comparison to the Sun, such a simile seems most unlikely to occur to any poet, ancient or modern. Yet it is anomalous descriptions like these that warrant our attention and provide the key to discovery. The fact that the Sumerian testimony surrounding Shamash, Sin, and Venus is so contrary to modern experience cries out for explanation. If it can be established that the Sumerian testimony is complemented and supplemented by testimony from other ancient cultures--and we have elsewhere presented evidence to this effect39--then the mystery not only deepens it assumes a fundamental importance in the history of science. In the hymn in question the planet-goddess is more than once described as occupying the "midst" or "heart" of heaven. This was the very position assigned to the ancient sun-god, as we documented earlier. Yet under the current arrangement of the solar system, Venus never moves more than 47 degrees from the ecliptic, so it is quite impossible for that planet to occupy the "midst" or apex of heaven. This astronomical discrepancy has led scholars to interpret such language as figurative in nature. Witness the following disclaimer offered by Erica Reiner, a leading expert on ancient Babylonian astronomical texts: "Since astronomically such a position for Venus is excluded `midst' must be taken figuratively."40 If Reiner is right, it is certainly curious to find that Inanna/Venus is described as standing in the midst of heaven in other ancient texts as well.41 In the late-Babylonian version of "The Exaltation of Inanna," for example, the planet-goddess is celebrated as radiating forth in torch-like fashion from the midst of heaven.42 Early temple names for Inanna/Ishtar preserve the same basic idea: Ishtar's temple at Mari, for example, was known as é.ßà.ba.an.na, "House of the Heart of Heaven."43 It is also significant to note that Babylonian astronomical texts from a period roughly a thousand years after Iddin-Dagan link the planet Venus to the "midst" of heaven. Thus, in an omen from the Enûma Anu Enlil series the planet is described as occupying the "middle of the sky." Reiner and Pingree dismiss this expression as the product of scribal error: "In omen 15, Venus appears ina MURUB4 AN-e, `in the middle of the sky'; this expression, since the omen affects the king of all four quarters, must be intended to refer to midheaven. Venus, of course, can never be seen so high above the horizon at night. It seems that the phenomenon attested in the Jupiter omens was blindly copied from there."44 In other astronomical texts Venus is described as standing in the ziqpu, the latter term conventionally translated as "zenith." Here, too, scholars have offered various interpretations in order to explain away this "impossible" station assigned Venus. Witness the following disclaimer offered by Reiner and Pingree: "Neither should the omen `Venus ascends to the ziqpu' be taken to mean that Venus reaches the zenith--even more an impossibility for Venus. This omen occurs in several texts from Group F...as well as in one of Group B...It must mean that Venus appears above the point along the horizon that a ziqpu-star rises above."45 Inanna and Sin Numerous texts liken Inanna/Venus to Sin or speak of an intimate relationship pertaining between the two celestial bodies. In Iddin-Dagan's marriage hymn, for example, Venus is said to come forth like Sin: "During the night she appears like the Moon."46 In the early hymn Ninegal the planet is described as shining forth from the heart of heaven together with Sin: "Oh Inanna, like your father Sin you stand in the heart of the sky."47 This last passage is of particular interest in that it suggests that Inanna and Sin both occupy the "heart" or "midst" of heaven, however the latter term is to be understood from an astronomical standpoint. Certainly that's what a literal reading of the language would imply. Yet why should this be? In the current skies, Venus stands in no particular relation to the lunar orb. Indeed, the two bodies can only be seen together at the end of the month around the time of the Moon's conjunction with the Sun and for a short time thereafter.48 Why, then, are Inanna/Venus and Sin invoked as if they occupy the same region of the sky? Babylonian astronomical texts from a much later period also speak of Venus standing together with the Moon. How these statements are to be understood remains unknown. Reiner and Pingree offered the following interpretation: "In omen 110 (omen 39) is the statement that Venus stands in the position of the Moon; if our interpretation is correct, it simply means that Venus and the Moon appear, at different times of the night, above the same point on the horizon."49 Reiner and Pingree's suggestion that these omens have reference to a non-simultaneous "meeting" of Venus and Sin is hardly convincing. Certainly such an interpretation will never explain the explicit statement from the Ninegal hymn, wherein Venus and Sin are described as "standing in the heart of the sky." In the current solar system, needless to say, it is not possible for Venus and the Moon to stand together in the "heart" of heaven. Other omens speak of Venus "entering into" the Moon. Witness the following omen: "If Venus enters into the Moon and stops: flood will come, the sluice channels will be cut through."50 Reiner and Pingree offer a slightly different interpretation of this conjunction of planets: "Omens 42-44 are three omens with the same protasis, `Venus enters into the Moon,' except that omen 42 adds: `and stands,' but different apodoses. All three omens presumably mean only that the Moon has covered Venus."51 Here, as in their other interpretations of Venus' description in Babylonian astronomical texts, Reiner and Pingree make the assumption that the texts do not mean what they say--rather something entirely different. This is not a sound methodology. The approach favored here strives to understand the astronomical omens in as literal fashion as possible, particularly when similar reports are attested in more than one culture. Ancient art, moreover, suggests that something more than an occasional and wholly mundane "covering" of Venus by the Moon lies behind literary descriptions of Inanna and Sin "standing together." Thus, a common motif on ancient cylinder seals finds the Venus-star being set within the crescentine horns of Sin (see figure six).52 Yet such a "conjunction" of Venus and the Moon is not possible given the current arrangement of the solar system. Figure six Venus adorned by Sin A number of Sumerian hymns compare the light of Inanna/Venus to that of Sin. Witness the following passage from the Ninegal hymn, a portion of which was cited previously: "Oh Inanna, like your father Sin you stand in the heart of the sky, queen of the Egal, in truth you are brilliant on top of your Ibgal shrine like the moonlight!"53 A similar passage is the following: "Your divine nature shines in the pure sky like Nanna [Sin] and Utu."54 Other texts describe the planet Venus as adorned with the radiance of Sin. "The Exaltation of Inanna" contains the following passage: "Garment of heroes, the brilliant radiance of Suen wraps her stature, a sublime ornament, sign of a divine nature, makes her appear like the day."55 What does it mean that the planet Venus, as Inanna, is clothed with the radiance of Sin? Once again we appear to be met with a statement implying some kind of conjunction or close interaction of Venus and Sin. Yet what sort of celestial event could conceivably inspire the notion that Venus was attired with Sin's "garment" or radiance? Equally puzzling is the statement that Sin's brilliant radiance makes Venus "appear like the day." What possible connection could ancient skywatchers have seen between the planet Venus, Sin, and the day? Are we to understand such passages as figurative descriptions of the "brightness" associated with a typical summer's day? When pondering the possibility of a relationship between Venus's epiphany and Sin, it is relevant to note that one of the most common terms used to describe Venus's luminosity is si, literally "horn."56 Thus, Inanna is described as follows in one early hymn: "Even during the time that Suen and Utu are awake, may you spread your rays (si) in profusion"57 Iddin-Dagan's marriage hymn also makes mention of the planet's horns: "The holy one, the awesome queen of the Anunnaki, revered in heaven and earth, crowned with great horns...of her brilliant coming forth in the evening sky of her flaring in the sky--a pure torch--of her standing in the sky like the sun and the moon..."58 The references to Venus's horns are commonly understood as a metaphorical reference to light, the language supposedly being patterned after the brilliance of the lunar crescent.59 It is our opinion, however, that the literary references to Venus's luminous "horns" have nothing whatsoever to do with poetic metaphor. Rather, it is more likely that such references--like the cylinder seals depicting Venus set within a crescent--imply that Venus formerly appeared in conjunction with a crescent. The fact that Inanna/Venus is often described as a horned bovine of some sort points in the same direction. One of Inanna's many epithets was sún, literally "wild cow."60 In "The Exaltation of Inanna," for example, the planet-goddess is invoked as follows: "In heaven she surely stands, the good wild cow of An."61 Another hymn puts the following words in Inanna's mouth: "I am the bison of the kur filled with luminous rays."62 Significantly, Babylonian astronomers continued to refer to the "horns" of Venus many centuries later. Such references inspired a lively controversy in the early decades of the 20th century, some scholars viewing them as evidence that the phases of Venus were known to the ancient Babylonian astronomers. Although the latter possibility is generally discounted by modern astronomers--and rightfully so, in our opinion--the Babylonian references to Venus's "horns" remain unexplained. On this matter Reiner and Pingree fail to offer a satisfactory explanation, stating simply: "What is meant by Venus' horns is not certain."63 Venus, Sin, and Utu "The Exaltation of Inanna," as previously quoted, describes Venus as shining brilliantly "even during the time that Suen and Utu are awake." This is a curious phrase, as one would not ordinarily describe our Sister planet as shining at the same time as the Sun and Moon. Astronomical reality notwithstanding, it remains the case that Venus and Sin are more than once described as shining together in the immediate vicinity of the ancient sun god. The full context of the previous passage supports this interpretation: "Oh divine mistress, may you be the one that shines over them, that they call you `divine source of all life', at their sides (that of the Sun and of the Moon), in your dominant position, may you gloriously accomplish your (celestial) crossing, even during the time that Suen and Utu are awake, may you spread your rays in profusion, may your torch with its brilliant radiance illuminate in truth as far as far as the heart of the sky, may you be admired among the gods, you who has no equal (literally has no counterweight)!"64 Here Venus is described as shining forth in heaven at the sides of Sin and Utu even during the time that the latter two celestial bodies are awake (in Sumerian literature the sun-god is said to be "awake" during the day and "asleep" at night). Were it not for the obvious astronomical impossibilities involved, a literal reading of this passage would understand it as a patent reference to Venus standing in the same quarter of heaven together with Sin and Utu. Note further that, even were such a conjunction of the three planets possible in the current skies, it could hardly be said of Venus that it is the dominant body of the three or that it sends forth rays in profusion while the sun is visible or "awake." Mesopotamian art likewise offers compelling evidence that Venus, Sin, and Utu/Shamash were thought to occupy the same region of heaven. As we have documented elsewhere65, early cylinder seals depict the Venus-star as superimposed on the "sun"-disc, both celestial bodies being set within the crescent (see figure seven).66 Dominique Collon--a leading authority on Mesopotamian cylinder seals--offered the following commentary on this extraordinary motif: "From Ur III times onwards, however, the crescent is also often combined with a disc inscribed with a star which is placed within it (star-disc and crescent...). This could either be explained as different phases of the moon or, more likely, is a shorthand for the principal celestial bodies, sun (and star?) and moon."67 Figure seven At this point the open-minded researcher must consider certain fundamental questions of logic and common sense: Why would the ancient artists have insisted upon depicting the most prominent celestial bodies in astronomically impossible positions? Was it sheer perversity alone that inspired the ancient artists to produce these particular images? The fact that similar artworks will be found around the globe suggests that we have to do here with relatively accurate depictions of the ancient sky and not with any artistic "metaphor" or "shorthand" peculiar to the Mesopotamian mindset. That such seals might faithfully describe the order and appearance of the ancient solar system is a possibility never considered by Collon and other historians of ancient Mesopotamian art. As we intend to document, however, there is good reason to believe that this is the explanation most consistent with the evidence. Mons Veneris Ancient hymns celebrating the planet Venus--or the goddess identified with that planet, Inanna/Ishtar--describe it as residing in close proximity to the ancient sun-god. Thus, in the hymn known as Inanna's Descent to the Underworld the goddess is introduced as follows: "I am Inanna of the place where the sun makes his rising."68 The phrase translated as "the place where the sun makes his rising" is ki-dutu-è. Modern scholars, quite naturally, have sought to interpret such language in terms of Venus's current role as a morning star.69 According to this view, the phrase ki-dutu-è has reference to the "East" or eastern horizon.70 Upon closer examination, however, it can be shown that this phrase has reference to a specific site in heaven--the aforementioned mountain of sunrise. Thus, Sjöberg points out that ki-dutu-è-a marks a semantic parallel to kur-dutu-è-a, "the mountain where the sun rises."71 The particular site in question was brimming with cosmic significance, being regarded as the birthplace of the gods and sacred residence of the ancient sun-god. Recall again the passage quoted earlier: "The valiant Utu, the bull who stands secure, who proudly displays his power, the father of the great city, the place where the sun rises."72 If Sjöberg is right about an inherent connection between "the place where the sun rises" and the mountain of sunrise, as there is every reason to believe, one would expect to find the Venus-goddess described as a resident of the latter mountain. That Venus/Inanna was intimately associated with a celestial mountain is well attested. Texts from archaic Uruk invoke Inanna-kur, "Inanna of (or from) the kur," the latter word signifying the mountain of sunrise.73 The epic Enmerkar and the Lord of Aratta describes Inanna as the "great lady of heaven" who "dwells on the top of the mountain."74 The Exaltation of Inanna reports that the goddess "resides in the mountain."75 Isme-Dagan's hymn to the planet goddess reports that it "dominates" or "fills" the kur.76 Such passages suggest that the planet Venus didn't just have an occasional relationship to the celestial mountain; rather, it "dwelled" there. Early hymns to the planet-goddess localize her various adventures on or about this mountain, alternately described as kur or kur-ßuba, "the pure shining mountain." In the hymn Inanna and Ebih, the mountain is described as "the pure place of your [Inanna's] birth."77 In The Exaltation of Inanna, the planet-goddess is compared to a "flood descending from its mountain [kur]."78 The epithet kur-ra diri-ga signifies "she who dominates the kur."79 Venus's intimate association with the mountain of sunrise is also reflected in ancient art. In the cylinder seal illustrated in figure eight the planet-goddess appears atop the mountain from which Shamash is about to emerge. The scene depicted here drew the following commentary from Amiet: "The wings which she wears on rare occasions and the stars which sometimes top the weapons emerging from her shoulders confirm her celestial character...The image of the new goddess corresponds exactly to what is known of the Ishtar of the Semites, personification of the planet Venus."80 Figure eight The wealth of testimony linking Inanna/Venus to the kur prompts the following question: How are we to understand such traditions? Why would the planet Venus be described as residing atop the mountain of sunrise, however the latter is to be understood? This mystery has yet to be resolved, as Szarzynska acknowledged: "The problem of what the kur means in the above mentioned name [Inanna-kur], remains, for the time being, unsolved. It seems that kur `mountain' in connection with the goddess indicates the mythological mountain, the place of her birth and her appearance."81 Confronted with the apparent anomaly whereby both the ancient sun-god and Venus co habit atop a mythical mountain, conventional scholars have little recourse but to fall back upon the seemingly all-purpose explanation of the Sun and Venus appearing in the East over some ill-defined mountain range. Szarzynska's opinion may be taken as typical in this regard: "This meaning of the kur is connected in all probability with the mountains in the East of the Sumer-country, upon which the sun rises and the planet Venus appears."82 Most scholars would identify the mountains in question with the Zagros mountains.83 It can be shown, however, that the kur has nothing whatsoever to do with the relatively diminutive Zagros mountain range, the latter of which, in any case, does not present a twin-peaked appearance. Nor, for that matter, does the kur have reference to any other terrestrial "mountains in the East of the Sumer-country." The Mountain of Heaven and Earth Another name for the mountain of sunrise in Sumerian cosmology was ursag, invoked in early hymns as "the mountain of heaven and earth" ( ur-sag-an-ki-bi-da).84 In various Sumerian texts the ursag is interchangeable with the kur and thus it is no surprise to find that Inanna/Venus is brought into an intimate relation with this sacred mountain as well. One text describes Inanna as seated upon the ursag: "(Inanna) who takes a seat on the highlands of the bright mountain, who adorns the dais of the bright mountain."85 In another hymn, Inanna is invoked as the lion (pirig) of the ursag-mountain.86 If the placement of Venus atop the mountain of the sunrise represents something of a mystery, more puzzling still are those passages that describe the planet Mars (as Nergal) as occupying the same celestial mount! Thus, a Sumerian hymn relates that Nergal was given the ursag-mountain as his special province.87 Nergal also features prominently in the sacred traditions surrounding the kur. Thus, an Ur III literary text describes the war-god as "filling" the kur.88 An epithet of the Sumerian war-god characterizes him as en.kur.gal, "lord of the great mountain."89 Nergal is elsewhere said to "rise in the mountain where the sun rises [kur-u4-è]."90 Such traditions confirm that Nergal/Mars was intimately connected with the mountain of sunrise. Yet how are we to explain this particular feature of Sumerian cosmology from an astronomical standpoint? The planet Mars does not presently rise in the East with the Sun. Indeed, the Sun and Mars are never visible together in the sky during those relatively rare occasions when Mars moves in close proximity to the Sun, the red planet only coming into view after the Sun has gone down. Moreover, when Mars does appear in the East, it is always faint and typically invisible, being then on the other side of the Sun and thus hundreds of millions of miles away from terrestrial viewers.91 Equally baffling from an astronomical standpoint are those passages in which Nergal/Mars is associated with the site of the sun's waning. Witness the epithet Lugal ki-dù-ßú-a: "King of the site of the Sun-set."92 A closely related epithet is epithet Lugal dù-ßú-a: "King who effects the Sunset."93 Once again we are presented with a glaring anomaly: What does the planet Mars have to do with the West--the current site of the sunset? Finding themselves between a rock and a hard place, leading scholars have sought to question the literal meaning of these epithets in order to synchronize the Sumerian testimony with astronomical reality.94 Yet the Sumerian testimony involving the planet Mars, like that surrounding Venus and Utu, is unequivocal in nature and cannot be explained away simply by wishing it were otherwise. The World Mountain In order to gain a proper understanding of Sumerian Cosmic Geography it is necessary to resolve the original nature of the mountain of sunrise associated with the ancient sun-god and Venus. At the turn of the previous century, scholars such as Jensen and Jeremias were united in the opinion that the mountain in question had reference to the concept of a World Mountain.95 Samuel Kramer, van Dijk, and Bruschweiler among others, have sun, it is faint and is never visible until about half an hour after sunset." As these scholars note, an exception to this statement would be a total eclipse of the sun, during which Mars might appear prominent. It is Mircea Eliade, perhaps, who has done the most to clarify the symbolic importance of the World Mountain in ancient cosmology and religion. Eliade offered the following summary of the symbol: "The symbolism of the World Tree is complementary to that of the Central Mountain. Sometimes the two symbols coincide; usually they complement each other. But both are merely more developed mythical formulations of the Cosmic Axis (World Pillar, etc.)."97 Although it can be shown that the beliefs surrounding the World Mountain are remarkably consistent across cultures, Sumerologists have been reluctant to take the ancient testimony at face value and would seek instead to understand the literary descriptions by reference to figurative language.98 The writings of Thorkild Jacobsen have been particularly influential in this regard. Jacobsen, in keeping with his marked tendency to localize sacred symbols and mythological themes, would interpret the ursag as a range of mountains on the eastern border of Mesopotamia: "As seen on the eastern horizon, its shining peaks towering from earth up into heaven, the ursag appears indeed to belong equally to both of these cosmic entities, and the epithet here applied to it, `of both heaven and earth,' is therefore as forceful as it is apt."99 In a recent summary of Sumerian cosmology, W. Lambert attempted to offer a compromise between the diametrically opposed positions of Jensen and Jacobsen. While admitting that the World Mountain concept can be found in Sumerian lore, he nevertheless sided with Jacobsen in understanding it as figurative in nature: "There are, it is true, some allusions to the concept of a cosmic mountain [in Sumerian Cosmology], but these occur in literary and poetic contexts and it is not possible to reconstruct a precise image from them. The most explicit ones speak of a mountain in the East from which the sun-god rises every morning, and since the phenomenon was seen on the horizon the term `mountain' cannot be taken too literally."100 It would be difficult to find a statement more at odds with the evidence than Lambert's (unless it be that of Jacobsen). Contrary to Lambert's assertion, it is possible to reconstruct a fairly precise image of the mountain of sunrise from the literary allusions. For example, it is certain that the World Mountain was twin-peaked in nature exactly as depicted on the early Akkadian cylinder seals showing Shamash and the mountain of sunrise (in figure four, for example).101 Thus it is that very same form characterized the World Mountain in Egyptian lore: There the mountain of sunrise was known as the at, the hieroglyph for which depicts a twin-peaked form with an orb between its peaks.102 In addition to the literary passages and artworks describing the World Mountain in terms that find precise parallels around the globe, it can be shown that the various cultures of Mesopotamia sought to recreate the kur in their sacred structures. In this engineering strategy they were subscribing to the age-old belief "as above, so below." In Mesopotamia, as in cultures around the globe, temples were frequently patterned after the World Mountain, as the names é-kur and é- ursag attest.103 Of Ningirsu's temple, the early king Gudea claimed that it was " a great mountain, reaches heaven...fills heaven's interior (Gudea Cyl. B I 6f)."104 Other early temples were named after the mountain of sunrise (ki-u4-è-a and kur-dutu-è-a).105 Identical conceptions prevailed in ancient Egypt, where temples were believed to represent the a t mountain.106 The symbolism of the mountain of sunrise was also attached to ziggurats, the towering pyramid-like structures that formed a prominent component of Mesopotamian cities, including Babylon, Nippur, Ashur, and Borsippa. Henri Frankfort acknowledged that ziggurats were intended to form a terrestrial model or reproduction of the mountain associated with the ancient sun-god: "ziggurat, the massive temple tower, which stood for the `mountain,' as a symbol of the earth, the Netherworld, or the place of sunrise."107 Insofar as terrestrial temples and ziggurats were purposefully modeled upon the celestial prototype, important clues as to the visual appearance of the mountain of sunrise can be deduced from various architectural details. For example, in an apparent attempt to emulate the twin-peaks of the mountain of sunrise architects placed a set of luminous crescentine horns atop ziggurats.108 If we are to interpret the widespread traditions of a World Mountain as originally having reference to a celestial prototype, how are we to understand it from an astronomical or physical standpoint? A decisive clue is provided by a well-known passage from The Gilgamesh Epic. There it is stated that the Mashu mountain presides over the "rising" and "setting" of the ancient sun-god: "The name of the mountain is Mashu...Which every day keeps watch over the rising and setting of the sun, Whose peaks reach as high as the `banks of heaven', And whose breast reaches down to the underworld."109 Under the current arrangement of the solar system, needless to say, it is not possible for the Sun to rise and set over the same terrestrial mountain. As a result of the striking discordance between literary descriptions of Mt. Mashu and astronomical reality, some scholars have sought to find fault with Heidel's literal translation of the passage in question: "That the Mashu mountain(s) does so [keeps watch over the rising and setting of the sun] `every day,' as translated by Heidel, Speiser, and others, is obviously wrong. Even if we stipulate, for the sake of peace, the idea of a terrestrial mountain, the Sun is not in the habit of rising on the same spot every day, and it needs no profound astronomical knowledge to become aware of this fact."110 Were this the only such report to be found in ancient literature one could perhaps dismiss it as the product of figurative language and/or creative imagination. Yet, as we have documented elsewhere, analogous traditions can be found throughout the ancient world.111 The World Mountains of Egyptian and Hindu lore--also twin-peaked- likewise presided over the "rising" and "setting" of the ancient sun-god.112 Indeed, it is the very prevalence of this theme that should alert scholars to the possibility that the ancients were describing a "Sun" and solar system radically different from that familiar to modern astronomers. The Polar Configuration Strange as it must seem at first sight, it is possible to explain the scenario described in "The Gilgamesh Epic" from an astronomical standpoint. The solution is that the ancient sun-god formerly occupied a polar station with respect to the Earth. As David Talbott first deduced in the seminal work The Saturn Myth, a polar "sun" would not actually move during the daily cycle associated with the Earth's revolution about its axis; rather, it would remain motionless in the "midst of heaven" exactly as reported by the Sumerian scribes, alternately "flaring up" and dimming as the Earth revolved about its axis. Were there a twin-peaked mountain in the vicinity of the ancient sun-god, it would naturally preside over the latter's "rising" and "setting." As it turns out, cultures everywhere remember a primeval period when the sun did not move. Rather, the primeval "sun" stood fixed in the middle of the sky. A classic example of this theme is reported in the Mayan "Popol Vuh": "Like a man was the sun when it first presented itself...It showed itself when it was born and remained fixed in the sky like a mirror. Certainly it was not the same sun which we see, it is said in their old tales."113 The Australian Aborigines tell of a previous World Age wherein the sun remained fixed in the sky: "The sun sits (or, is permanent), but rests or sleeps at night."114 Analogous traditions were preserved by other tribes from the same continent. The Wiimbaio, for example, claim that "at one time the sun never moved." 115 Similar reports are to be found in South America. Thus the Orinoco of the Amazonian rain forest recall a Golden Age associated with a "fixed" sun named Wanadi: "In the highest sky was Wanadi...There was no separation between Sky and Earth. Wanadi is like a sun that never sets."116 The Modocs of the Pacific Northwest tell of a time when the ancient sun-god resided in the middle of the sky. Witness the following tradition: "When Kumush had done all that he could for mankind he went to the place where the sun rises. He traveled on Sun's road till he came to the middle of the sky, and there he built his house."117 In this Modoc tradition, as was the case in ancient Mesopotamia, "the place where the sun rises" is explicitly identified as the "middle" of the sky, in striking contradiction to astronomical reality. The concept of a polar sun was particularly prominent in ancient Egypt. In the Pyramid Texts, the oldest body of religious texts in the world, the ancient sun-god is described as surrounded by the circumpolar stars.118 Far from being confined to ancient Egypt, the idea that the Sun once resided at the Pole is also well attested in India. Thus E.A.S. Butterworth cautions that the ancient sun-god must be distinguished from the current Sun: "[The primeval sun] is not the natural sun of heaven, for it neither rises nor sets, but is, as it seems, ever in the zenith above the navel of the world. There are signs of an ambiguity between the pole star and the sun."119 In support of this conclusion, Butterworth emphasized the following passage from the "Chandogya Upanishad": "Henceforth, after having risen in the zenith, he (the Sun) will no more rise or set. He will stand alone in the middle."120 In the Rig Veda, an obscure passage describes the Sun as "a gay-hued stone set in the midst of heaven."121 Ananda Coomaraswamy, a leading scholar of Hindu symbolism, emphasized the relationship between the ancient Sun and the Pole in Vedic sources. With apparent disregard for the astronomical difficulties posed by this finding, Coomaraswamy remarked: "It must not be overlooked that the polar and solar symbolisms are almost inseparably combined in the Vedic tradition."122 Talbott's theory also provides a ready answer to the mystery of the celestial referent for the mountain of sunrise. According to the reconstruction offered by Talbott, the World Mountain has reference to a spectacular apparition associated with the polar Sun- specifically, a column of luminous material extending downward from the Sun towards the Earth, as in figure nine. (This particular image, it will be noted, could easily be paralleled by artworks from around the world.) Figure nine A fundamental feature of Talbott's model holds that a crescent once adorned the ancient sun-god.123 The countless cylinder seals that depict a sun-disc set within the horns of an upturned crescent, according to this view, accurately reflect the appearance of the polar heavens in prehistoric times. Equally important for a proper understanding of the multifaceted symbolism involving the ancient sun-god's relationship to the mountain of sunrise is the fact that the "solar" crescent was identified with the god Sin. It was Sin's crescent at the top of the polar column that formed the twin-peaks of the mountain of sunrise. A prominent symbol of Sin, attested already on pictographic clay tablets recovered from Uruk IV (see figure ten)124, shows a crescent set atop a pillar-like standard. This symbol is best understood as a stylized version of the mountain of sunrise. Thus it is that the sun disc is frequently set within the "horns" of such standards on early cylinder seals. Figure ten An investigation of the crescent's unique role in the daily cycle of the ancient sun-god provides compelling support for Talbott's model. Given the polar alignment of the various planetary bodies, with the daily rotation of the Earth about its axis the crescent appeared to revolve around the sun-god. It was the revolution of Sin's crescent that provided the visual imagery for the daily cycle during this period. The most prominent phase saw the crescent grow brilliant when reaching an upturned position beneath the Sun (figure 11:2). This was the "day" of the ancient Sumerians. "Night" was signaled when the crescent reached its uppermost position, as in figure 11:4. At this time the crescent dimmed substantially together with the rest of the polar configuration, presumably because of the brilliance of the current Sun. Figure eleven Talbott's reconstruction of the daily cycle associated with the ancient sun-god was developed by analyzing the earliest Egyptian imagery of the solar cycle. At this point it is most relevant to see how Talbott's model accords with the evidence from ancient Mesopotamia. In the earliest Sumerian script the concept "day" or "sun" was determined by the pictograph depicted in figure twelve, transcribed UD. Given the fact that most early pictographs are known to have had an objective reference in the natural world, it is usually a fairly easy matter to determine the natural object in question. Curiously enough, however, with regard to this particular sign scholars are divided over whether it originally had reference to the rising sun or the waxing moon! Karl Jaritz, in his dictionary of Sumerian pictographs, offered the following commentary: "The pictograph doubtless has reference to the sun rising--between hills (?)--hardly, however, the waxing crescent [as proposed by Deimel in SL II: 722] (because of the meanings), hence also the root meaning `sun, day, bright light, white'. The semasiological way to the storm is not recognizable."125 Figure twelve Talbott's model allows us to resolve the controversy over the original celestial referent of the UD-sign. The apparently contradictory interpretations offered by Jaritz and Deimel can both be viewed as essentially valid. The upturned form beneath the orb does indeed represent the twin-peaked mountain of sunrise, as per Jaritz. That said, the same form also represents the waxing "Moon," as per Deimel, for it was the crescent of Sin that formed the mountain's two upturned peaks! Additional support for Talbott's model is provided by the Sumerian pictograph for "night"--transcribed sig (see figure thirteen). The pictograph in question shows an orb set within an inverted crescent, much as we would expect if the polar configuration was the original source for the image. Figure thirteen The intimate association between the ancient sun-god and Sin's crescent also allows us to understand the otherwise peculiar fact that the UD-sign figures prominently in the spelling of Sin's name: UD.SAR. A leading scholar offered the following commentary on this strange state of affairs: "Typical for the moon is its crescent form, both in iconography and in the texts. The latter can be shown by studying the various meanings of the sign combination UD.SAR, weiS'. Der semasiologische Weg zu Sturm ist nicht erkennbar." Translation courtesy of Rens van der often transliterated as U4.SAR, or u4.s/akar. The meaning of these signs can be explained as `(day)-light' and `growing', perhaps an apt way of describing the crescent of the moon."126 Leaving aside the implausible suggestion that "growing (day)-light" is an apt way of describing the lunar crescent, one must wonder why the Sumerians chose to use the same pictographic sign--UD--to designate two supposedly distinct celestial bodies, the "sun" and the "moon." After all, one could just as easily translate Sin's name as "growing (sun)-light" since "day" and "sun" are equally valid readings of the UD sign. The logical basis for the curious overlap in terminology, according to the theory defended here, is the fact that the very crescent that comprised Sin's most fundamental attribute actually adorned the ancient sun-god, the illumination of which signaled the beginning of the Sumerian "day."127 A similar rationale dictated the terminology denoting Sin's sacred temples. How else are we to explain the temple-names u4-è-zu and u4-gim-zal-le, both translatable as "shining as the bright Daylight"?128 The prominent role of Sin's crescent in the daily cycle of Utu is abundantly attested in the earliest Sumerian literature, as we will demonstrate in the chapters to follow. The fact that the behavior of this "solar" crescent differs dramatically from the stereotypical behavior of the current lunar crescent further undermines our faith in the conventional theory of the familiar solar system. The Gates of Heaven If scholars have been sorely vexed in their attempt to make sense of the mountain which presided over the sunrise and sunset, they have fared little better when it comes to understanding the "gates" of heaven. Thus, a familiar scene on Akkadian cylinder seals depicts the sun-god as appearing between celestial gates or doors (see figure fourteen). 129 That there are no landmarks in the immediate vicinity of the current Sun that would provide an objective reference for "gates/doors" is apparent to one and all. As a result of this discrepancy, scholars have been inclined to view the solar "gates" as imaginary in nature. Witness the following disclaimer offered by Ward: "No class of cylinders better illustrates the poetic imagination of a primitive people than those which give us the representation of the Sun-god Shamash emerging from the gates of morning and rising over the Eastern mountains."130 Figure fourteen A famous passage in "The Gilgamesh Epic" places the solar gates in the immediate vicinity of the twin-peaked mountain of sunrise: "The name of the mountain, Maß[u is its name]. When he (Gilgamesh) arri[ved] at Mt. Maßu, which daily observes the risi[ng sun and setting sun], whose tops, the firmament, r[eaches], whose foundations below reach the underworld. Scorpion-men guard its gate, whose awesomeness is magnificent, gaze is death. Their fearsome sheen covers the mountain-range. At sunrise and sunset they observe the Sun."131 A. Leo Oppenheim, in his commentary on this passage, emphasized the incongruity occasioned by the gate's association with both sunrise and sunset: "The most elaborate description of the sun's gate comes from the ninth tablet (ii 1-8) of the Gilgameß Epic. There the sun is said to enter and leave heaven every day through a mountain called Maßu that reaches up to ßupuk ßame and down to the netherworld...The use of the same gate for the rising and setting of the sun is difficult to understand, especially because the gate is said to be at the head of a long tunnel."132 The Saturn theory provides a ready answer to this age-old mystery: The two "gates/doors" of the sun-god are simply the two peaks of the mountain of sunrise, understood here as the crescent of Sin. Thus, as the ancient sun-god customarily appeared between the two peaks of the mountain of sunrise so, too, was it wont to appear between two gates. The cylinder seal depicted in figure fifteen captures this situation exactly: It shows the gates of the sun-god resting immediately atop the two peaks of the mountain, as if the gates were merely extensions of the latter. Indeed, it is safe to say that from whichever vantage point one approaches the multifaceted symbolism surrounding the solar gates the present solar system proves to be a poor guide. Consider the following hymn relating the opening of the doors to the illumination of Sin: "Sin, as you become visible you open the doors of heaven."133 Now here is a passage that will never find a rational explanation in the familiar solar system. That said, it offers a perfectly coherent description of the crescent's functional role in the polar configuration: As Sin's crescent descended to a recumbent position beneath the ancient sun it grew brilliant, thereby signaling the opening of the doors/gates of heaven and the onset of "day." The fact that Sin's crescentine "gate" is elsewhere likened to a mountain is also relevant here. Witness the following proverb: "The gate of Suen is a mountain great."134 While this proverb has no obvious logical rationale given the Moon's current appearance or behavior, it describes perfectly the structural and functional relationship that formerly prevailed between Sin's crescent, the twin-peaked mountain of sunrise, and the gate(s) of the ancient sun-god. On Bulls and Crescents In The Saturn Myth, Talbott presented evidence that the spectacular apparition presented by the crescent set upon the World Pillar provided the celestial prototype for the "Bull of Heaven."135 The archaic Mesopotamian traditions offer a wealth of data from which to test this particular claim. The placement of Sin's crescent atop a pillar-like standard is archaic in nature, being attested already on pictographic clay tablets recovered from Uruk IV strata (see figure ten).136 And Sin was invoked as the "bull of heaven" very early on as was documented in an earlier chapter.137 Sin was not the only celestial body to be represented as a bull. The ancient sun-god was also assigned a bovine form. Recall the passage quoted earlier: "The valiant Utu, the bull who stands secure, who proudly displays his power, the father of the great city, the place where the sun rises."138 Another Sumerian text describes the sun-god as a "bright bull" in conjunction with his daily appearance from the base of heaven: "Bright bull, emerging from heaven's base, bull, you...over the Ôasur (trees)."139 According to the reconstruction offered here, the sun-god was described as a "bright bull" precisely because it displayed luminous "horns" as it flared up each day. The fact that the sun-god's horns are expressly linked to the daily cycle offers further support for the model defended here. Thus, one text makes reference to the "splendid horns like the sun coming forth from his sleeping chamber."140 Now here is a remarkable statement. The first anomaly to be noted is the obvious fact that the current sun does not typically display "horns" during its daily epiphany. The second anomaly is the explicit comparison drawn between the sun's "horns" and the onset of "day." Although this statement is meaningless with regard to the current Sun, it is perfectly descriptive of the daily cycle during the period dominated by the polar configuration. When Sin's crescent descended to a position below the ancient sun-god it formed Utu's "horns," the illumination of which signaled the onset of "day." Figure Fifteen Equally telling is the fact that the horns of a bull (or bulls) occasionally substituted for the twin-peaked mountain as the site of the sun-god's epiphany, much as would be expected given Talbott's polar model (see figure fifteen).141 Of such scenes in Mesopotamian art, Van Buren writes: "The Sun-god with rays stands as in the earlier representations, pressing down with a hand on each side, but here it is not upon mountains but on the heads of two recumbent bulls whose bodies merge into the other, for they are supposed to be lying back to back to support the rising Sun-god...Here the bulls were substituted for the mountains for they were themselves the embodiment of the mountains."142 But why on earth would bulls form the "embodiment of the mountains"? While this juxtaposition of imagery is absurd in the natural world, it makes perfect sense given the visual appearance of the polar configuration, wherein the crescentine horns of the mountain of sunrise are identical with the luminous horns of the "Bull of Heaven." It is for this reason that the "Bull of Heaven" is intimately linked to the mountain (or place) of sunrise. Witness the following hymn: "The Bull of Heaven would have no food, at the horizon is its food! O maiden Inanna, it grazes where the sun rises."143 The interpretation of Sin's crescent as a pair of bovine horns will explain much that is mysterious about ancient symbolism. Hence we would understand why so-called "bull men" support the sun-disc in ancient Mesopotamian art much as Sin's standard does elsewhere (see figure ten). On Cosmography and Confusion With this brief outline of the polar configuration model before us, it is possible to elucidate certain anomalous features of Sumerian cosmography that have hitherto proved intractable. A. Leo Oppenheim offered the following description of the heavenly realm in ancient Mesopotamia: "It is conceived of as a vault of which the top is called elât ßamê (`top/crown of heaven'), and its lower part ißid ßamê (`base/root of heaven'), a term that in astronomical contexts refers to the horizon. Heaven and earth come together at a cosmic structure called ßupuk ßamê (Sumerian UL.GAN), probably conceived of as a dikelike structure upon which the base of heaven rests. This zone is important for the astral deities, because through it they enter and leave the sky to manifest themselves to mankind. This is clearly stated in a bilingual incantation (CT 16 19:54:ff.): `Enlil considered the matter and took counsel with Ea and they assigned the ßupuk ßamê to Sin, Íamaß, and Ißtar to organize [it].' It was assumed that these luminaries had to pass through this structure. This is well attested for the sun god, for whom Marduk installed two gates...but it is not attested for the moon. Of Ißtar it is said that she rises heliacally from the ßupuk ßamê after opening the `bars of heaven.'"144 An illustration might help the reader to visualize the various components of the Sumerian cosmos. In figure sixteen, the circle represents the totality of "heaven," known as An. The lower part of An/heaven was known as an.úr (Akk. ißid ßamê), while the upper part was known as an.pa (Akk. elât ßamê). The middle or "heart" of heaven, as we have seen, was an. ßa. As Horowitz notes, the limits of the Sumerian cosmos are strictly defined by reference to this circle of An: "In many contexts, an.pa= elât ßamê is paired with an.ur= ißid ßamê, indicating that these two parts of the sky together comprise the visible heavens."145 Now that we have before us a set of workable definitions--those generally agreed upon by most leading scholars--it should be a relatively simple matter to test the conventional theory of the unchanging solar system against the Saturn theory. We have already documented the fact that Sumerian descriptions of the ancient sun-god's epiphany do not accord with astronomical reality insofar as they make the god come forth and set in the "midst" of heaven. But the fact is that virtually everything the Sumerian poets said about the sun's daily cycle contradicts the Sun's current behavior. Witness the following passage from the Sumerian hymn "Inanna and Íukaletuda": "He raised his eyes to the lower land. He sees the high gods of the land where the sun rises. He raised his eyes to the upper land. He sees the high gods of the land where the sun sets."146 The phrase translated as "lower land" is sig-ßè, while the phrase translated as "upper land" is nim-ßè. Yet in what sense can the familiar Sun be said to "set" in the uppermost portion of heaven? The Saturn theory offers a ready solution to this problem. During the period dominated by the polar configuration the "height of heaven" was the region associated with the setting or "dimming" of the sun. Although the sun-god himself didn't move from the "midst of heaven," the "setting" of the sun or "night" was signaled by the crescent reaching the uppermost position (an.pa) on its circumambulation around the ancient sun god. A similar anomaly surrounds the use of the terms an.úr and an. pa. Sumerian hymns, as we have seen, often describe the ancient sun-god as "rising" from the an.úr or "base of heaven." Modern scholars, in their attempt to assimilate the Sumerian language to astronomical reality, routinely render an.úr as "East" and an.pa as "West," thereby distorting their original meaning and astronomical context. In this they are simply following the practice of the ancient scribes themselves. Thus, Oppenheim notes: "The Sumerian words corresponding, respectively, to elât and ißid ßamê are used in certain Assyrian and Neo-Babylonian royal inscriptions to refer to East and West: `from sunrise [AN.ÚR] to sunset [AN.PA] wherever the sun shines."147 But there is a glaring contradiction here, overlooked entirely by Oppenheim and other commentators on Sumerian cosmography--namely, the fact that it is quite impossible for an.úr and an.pa to have originally signified the eastern or western horizons. Remember Oppenheim's definitions, quoted above: the former phrase (an.úr) has reference to the lower portion or "base" of heaven while the latter phrase has reference to the heaven's uppermost portion. In the modern solar system, needless to say, the sun does not "set" or dim in the uppermost portion of heaven. So in what sense could an.pa possibly have reference to the West or place of "sunset?" Here, as elsewhere, the ancient Assyrian and Neo-Babylonian scribes were struggling to assimilate the archaic Sumerian terminology relating to the sun-god's daily cycle to their own experience, completely oblivious to the fact that the sky and sun had changed radically in the meantime. Thus it is hardly surprising that the Sumerian texts were subject to faulty translations through the centuries as the archaic terminology was erroneously applied to new situations diametrically opposed to its original context and meaning. The changing skies and resulting mistranslations of the Sumerian texts not only confused the ancient scribes--they continue to confuse scholars to this very day. Utu and Inanna The reconstruction offered here will clarify countless aspects of Sumerian cosmic geography. In keeping with their polar station atop the World Mountain, the awe inspiring epiphanies of Utu and Inanna are typically described with specific reference to sacred cosmography as outlined in figure sixteen. Thus, although Utu is described as coming forth from the "midst" of heaven he is also said to illuminate the region from the an.úr to the an.pa: "Who lightens the horizon [an.úr], who brightens the sky's height [an.pa]."148 Shamash is described in like manner. Thus, an incantation celebrates Shamash as shining forth from the "base of heaven" to the "zenith."149 The planet Venus is described as dominating the region between the an.úr and an.pa. In the passage that follows, W. Hallo and J. van Dijk translate an.úr and an.pa as "heavenly foundations" and "zenith" respectively: "You are the senior queen of the heavenly foundations and zenith."150 Although Venus's association with the "heavenly foundations" or "horizon" could be explained by reference to the current skies, it is extremely difficult to explain the planet's connection to the zenith or "height" of heaven. Venus is not the only celestial body described in anomalous fashion with respect to the "zenith." Sin is also said to reach the an.pa or "height of heaven." Witness the following passage: "Nanna, (god) who comes forth at the zenith."151 Yet it is not possible for the Moon to attain the zenith in the skies over Mesopotamia and thus scholars look to poetic license to explain the language.152 Also interesting in this context is an epithet of Sin's: si-un3-na, a phrase that is glossed in Akkadian as elât ßamê, the very name for "zenith." Mark Hall admitted his puzzlement over the meaning of this epithet: "si-un3-na is somewhat problematic. It appears to have some connection with the other epithets of the moon-god which contain the component si `horn.' However, it is equated with Akkadian elât ßamê `heights of heaven, zenith' in lexical and bilingual texts...One would expect the epithet to define some aspect of the moon's cusps as the other epithets with si do. But according to the Akkadian equivalent it refers to a location in the heavens, i.e. `the heights' or `zenith.' ...Since un3-na by itself is known to correspond to Akkadian elu `high,' the literal meaning of si-un3-na appears to be `high-horned' or `long-horned' as in the Íulgi reference just cited. As applied to the moon `high-horned' perhaps referred to the moon when the cusps of its crescent had reached the highest point of the moon's circuit in the heavens."153 The Saturn theory provides a perfectly logical and straightforward explanation of Sin's epithet: It has reference to the crescent while at the apex of its revolution about the ancient sun-god, as in the fourth phase depicted in figure eleven. It was at this time that Sin's "horns" reached the elât ßamê and presented a downturned or "high-horned" form. With this brief overview of Mesopotamian cosmography in mind we can better understand the literary descriptions of Venus. When Sumerian hymns describe Venus as shining from the place of sun-rise to the place of sun-set modern scholars see figurative language. Yet such language will never be understood from the perspective of modern astronomy--i.e., as some sort of figurative reference to the planet's light spanning the entire space of heaven from east to west. Rather, the language has specific reference to Venus's unique role in the polar configuration, wherein the awe-inspiring planet's rays spanned the sacred region between the an.úr and an.pa as reconstructed in figure sixteen. A more literal reading is also required in order to make sense of the various passages wherein Venus's radiance is said to "fill heaven" and resemble that of Utu. Recall again the passage from Iddin-Dagan's marriage hymn, quoted in an earlier chapter: "To her who fills the sky with her pure blaze, to the luminous one, to Inanna, as bright as the Sun."154 Iddin-Dagan's hymn is not describing Inanna/Venus in figurative fashion, as if the bright planet merely shines "like" the Sun. Rather, the reference is to a spectacular apparition in the sky wherein the radiance of Venus actually filled heaven--understood here quite literally as the circle of An. During the period in question, Venus's light was as "bright" as that of Utu. The key to understanding such language is the conjunction of planets involved in the polar configuration. In addition to shining from the same sector of the sky as the "sun"- the "midst" of heaven--Venus shared much the same "light" as Utu. As the ancient sun god flared up during its daily cycle so, too, did Venus. Hence we would explain Venus's intimate but otherwise inexplicable association with "day" and "daylight" attested in various Sumerian hymns.155 Indeed, on more than one occasion Venus's light is described by the epithet U4, the very sign elsewhere transcribed as UD and signifying "sun" or "day." This is the case in the Ninegal hymn, for example, wherein the expression U4-gal is translated "great brightness" by Bruschweiler.156 Iddin-Dagan's marriage hymn employs the same epithet to describe the planet-goddess as she "fills" the sky: "In the sky at dusk the brilliant star, great brightness which fills the transparent sky."157 Properly understood, such language has nothing to do with metaphor or poetic license. It accurately describes the star-like Venus, a planet the likes of which have not been seen for millennia and are almost impossible to imagine nowadays. As a primary component of the polar configuration, the planet Venus played a fundamental role in the spectacular fireworks associated with the ancient "day." As the recumbent crescent adorning the disc of Utu flared up so, too, did the heaven-spanning rays of the star-planet Venus. The Great Below In Sumerian cosmology the mountain of sunrise was known as kur-gal, literally the "great mountain." A wealth of evidence indicates that the kur also served as a sort of netherworld. Thus, the phrase kur-gal is synonymous with ki-gal, literally the "great earth," the latter signifying the netherworld in Sumerian cosmology. Samuel Kramer long ago observed that the concept of the kur as World Mountain also embraced the idea of a netherworld or "great below": "One of the most difficult groups of concepts to identify and interpret is that represented by the Sumerian word kur. That one of its primary meanings is `mountain' is attested by the fact that the sign used for it is actually a pictograph representing a mountain. From the meaning `mountain' developed that of `foreign land,' since the mountainous countries bordering Sumer were a constant menace to its people. Kur also came to mean `land' in general; Sumer itself is described as kur-gal, `great land.' But in addition the Sumerian word kur represented a cosmic concept. Thus it seems to be identical to a certain extent with the Sumerian ki-gal, `great below.' Like ki-gal, therefore, it has the meaning `nether world'; indeed, in such poems as `Inanna's Descent to the Nether World,' and `Gilgamesh, Enkidu, and the Nether World,' the word regularly used for `nether world' is kur. Kur thus cosmically conceived is the empty space between the earth's crust and primeval sea."158 If the kur-gal is to be identified with the twin-peaked mountain of sunrise, as argued here, the same should hold true with respect to the ki-gal. The fact that the phrase kur-dutu-è-a as a designation for the mountain of sunrise finds a semantic parallel in ki-dutu- è-a, the latter signifying the place (literally "earth") of the sunrise, supports this interpretation. That the "earth" of Sumerian cosmology was described as a twin-peaked mountain is also consistent with this interpretation.159 Why the "earth" would be understood as a twin peaked mountain from the conventional standpoint remains unclear. According to the reconstruction offered here, the ki--like the kur--has reference to the crescent of Sin when in an upturned position, as in figure 11:2. Support for this interpretation comes from an ancient gloss wherein the ki is distinguished as the "under" in contrast to an ("heaven") as the "above."160 Thus, in various Sumerian texts one reads that the ki-gal, "the great below," forms a cosmic counterpart to the an-gal, or "great above." The an-gal, it follows, corresponds to the crescent when at the apex of its orbit (see figure 11:4). A variant tradition describes the "earth" as a wide gate. Sumerian hymns celebrating the ancient sun-god's epiphany make him appear from within this gate. Witness the following passage: "You open the gateway of the wide earth. You bring light to the Anunakku."161 According to the theory defended here, the "earth" was described as a "wide gate" precisely because both cosmic entities had reference to the upturned crescent of Sin as the mountain of sunrise. Hence the proverb "The gate of Suen is a mountain great."162 Scholars who would seek to interpret the Sumerian hymns to Utu and Sin by reference to the current solar system, not surprisingly, must find such passages incongruous if not entirely meaningless and illogical.163 Heaven and Earth It follows from the previous discussion that the ki.gal or "great below" of Sumerian cosmology must be understood as a celestial "earth." This interpretation will resolve a number of anomalies in the Sumerian literary descriptions of the most prominent celestial bodies. A recurring epithet of Utu/Shamash describes him as "King of heaven and earth."164 Utu is elsewhere said to "fill" heaven and earth.165 In addition to his role as "King of heaven and earth," Shamash is also invoked as "Overseer of the Above and Below."166 The following hymn is typical in this regard: "Íamaß, King of Heaven and Earth, Director (muß-te-ßir) of Above and Below."167 Here, as elsewhere, it is obvious that the two phrases serve as complementary couplets, heaven and earth being placed in opposition to above and below (ellati and ßaplati respectively). But what does it mean that Shamash inhabits or rules heaven and earth? The answer to this question is surprisingly simple: The ancient sun-god shone forth from the "midst" of heaven, as defined in figure sixteen. Yet the radiant splendor of the sun god extended to the very limits of the Sumerian cosmos, including both the "heaven" above (an.gal) and the "earth" below (ki.gal). The following hymn describes this situation exactly: "Utu, great lord, wild bull...great king of heaven (above) and earth below...(who) illumine with splendor heaven and earth, Utu, beacon showing forth out of the inner land (var. in the heart of)."168 Figure seventeen If Utu is the "King of heaven and earth," Venus is invoked as the "great Queen of heaven and earth" (un-gal-an-ki-a).169 Like the ancient sun-god, Venus is also described as dominating heaven and earth. Thus, the marriage hymn of Iddin-Dagan reports that Venus fills heaven and earth.170 Another text reports that Venus's radiance covers heaven and earth: "Inanna of Zabalam, Queen whose luminous halo covers heaven and earth!"171 Yet another hymn states that the light of Inanna/Venus "extends forth over the whole of heaven and earth."172 How, apart from the theory defended here, is it possible to understand such language? "The Exaltation of Inanna" invokes the planet-goddess as follows: "Lady Inanna-Ißtar, as heaven has been given to you, also earth..."173 The same hymn describes the planet goddess as follows: "that you are as big as heaven, the wise man knows, that you are as wide as the earth, the wise man knows."174 Is this mere hyperbole, or a literal description of an awe-inspiring planet spanning the cosmos, as depicted in figure seventeen? An old Babylonian hymn from the time of King Lipit places the following words in Inanna's mouth: "Heaven has he [Enlil] set on my head as a crown, Earth has he placed on my feet as sandals."175 Such imagery makes perfect sense by reference to figure seventeen, where Venus occupies the "heart" of heaven with an.gal overhead and ki.gal below. Most important, perhaps, is a passage from the hymn "Inanna and Ebih" that describes Venus as standing on heaven and earth, seemingly at the same time: "When like Utu you appear and you stretch out your arms far in the round, when you hold yourself in the sky decked with terrifying splendor and on earth decked with radiant brightness."176 Not one of these passages makes any sense with respect to the current appearance of the planet Venus. Yet each and every one accurately describes Venus's extraordinary appearance during the historical period dominated by the polar configuration. Kur-sig At night the sun-god was said to retire to his chamber in the midst of heaven and "sleep" until the next morning, whereupon he would once again flare up from the base of heaven. The following hymn captures the essence of this symbolism: "With the flowing light, with heaven's foot brightening, with the birds giving voice at the flowing light, Utu emerged from the chamber."177 Although descriptions of the sun-god's nocturnal behavior and resting place are much less common than accounts of his brilliant epiphany from the mountain of sunrise, they are nonetheless sufficient to provide additional problems for the conventional position. We have already noted the extraordinarily incongruous statements to the effect that the sun-god "dimmed" in the "midst" of heaven. This has caused commentators to perform all manner of theoretical summersaults in an attempt to explain the astronomical context. Wolfgang Heimpel, for example, deduced that the sun-god's nocturnal chamber must be in some invisible location beneath the horizon: "`Heaven's interior' is also found beneath the horizons."178 But this interpretation will never do. How, given Heimpel's hypothesis, are we to understand the numerous passages that describe the sun-god or Venus as shining forth from the interior or "midst" of heaven? Are we to imagine two different "midsts" of heaven, a visible one for the "sunrise" and an invisible one for the "sunset"? On the contrary, if we are to be consistent--and faithful to the ancient textual references--we must interpret the "midst" of heaven in such a fashion that it can accommodate the sun's flaring up as well as its dimming. Also difficult to reconcile with Heimpel's hypothesis is the fact that Utu's nightly dwelling-place was known as E-babbar, often translated as "white palace" but literally signifying the house of brilliant light (babbar is elsewhere employed to denote the sun or "daylight"). Certainly "house of brilliant light" is a most peculiar name if the reference is to an "invisible" portion of heaven beneath the horizon. A telling clue to the imagery in question is provided by a Sumerian temple hymn wherein the sun-god's nightly resting place is named kur-sig, conventionally translated as "deep mountain" or some such. Sjöberg and Bergmann translated the hymn in question as follows: "Eternal place, `deep mountain', founded in an artful fashion, Dark cella, awe-inspiring place, lying on a field, (Full of) awe, (its) `way' no one can fathom...Your interior is the place where the sun rises."179 As we documented in a previous chapter, the word sig signifies "night" as well as "deep." The pictograph for sig shows a crescent placed over the sun-disc. Thus, a perfectly logical explanation of the kur-sig would view it as the mountain of night or sunset. According to the interpretation offered here, the kur-sig has direct reference to the crescent when in an inverted position atop the sun-god, as in figure 11:4. During the period associated with the polar configuration, the sun itself did not move during the daily cycle. Rather, it was the crescentine mountain that moved, its revolution about the sun-god providing the visual imagery for the daily cycle. The sun-god himself remains stationary in the "midst" of heaven, alternately flaring up as the crescent assumed a recumbent position as the "mountain of sunrise" and dimming when the crescent appeared in inverted form as the "mountain of sunset" or kur-sig. Heimpel himself came close to deducing the right explanation in his discussion of Mt. Mashu. There he asked whether it was possible that the Sumerians imagined that mountain as upside down: "The other problem is the orientation of Twin Mountain. This mountain guards sunset and sunrise; it was thus imagined as stretching from the eastern to the western horizon, presumably underneath, on the invisible side of the earth. The mountain has `upper sides' which reach `zenith,' and a `breast,' presumably its lower sides, which reach Arallu, the netherworld. Did it occur to the Babylonians that this mountain, the `road of Íamaß,' and Gilgameß walking on it, should have been upside down?"180 In fact, the mountain did assume an inverted position when serving as the kur-sig or mountain of sunset. It was at this time that the twin-peaked mountain--in the form of Sin's crescent--reached the "height" or "zenith" of heaven. As the twin-peaked mountain reached the base of heaven, thereby forming the kur-gal, it could be said that it embraced the netherworld (ki-gal or Arallu). Since the interior of the kur-sig was the "midst" of heaven, it was only natural that Sumerian poets could proclaim of Utu's dark cella that "your interior is the place where the sun rises." Recall again the passage from "Inanna and Íukaletuda," quoted earlier: "He raised his eyes to the lower land. He sees the high gods of the land where the sun rises. He raised his eyes to the upper land. He sees the high gods of the land where the sun sets."181 Here the phrase for "land where the sun rises" is kur.utu.è. The phrase for "where the sun sets" is kur.utu.ßú. In complete accordance with the polar configuration model, but in striking contradiction to astronomical reality, the mountain of sunrise is located at the base of heaven while the mountain of sunset is located in the upper heavens. The Sumerian terms describing the "rising" and "setting" of the sun-god merit further analysis. According to Heimpel, the word for sunset--ßú--literally signifies the "covering" of the sun: "`The sun rose' is expressed in Akkadian by the phrase Íamaß ippuh. The verb napahu means `to blow' and is applied to the act of blowing on glowing embers to produce a flaming fire. In this case, the verb is also used ingressively with the meaning to `flare up.' Blowing on embers must have been a daily occurrence in ancient Mesopotamian households. One did not produce fire, which was a difficult and tedious process. Instead, one must have relied on keeping fires going even if fuel was precious. The application of the term napahu to rising heavenly bodies and perhaps ßú, `to cover,' to the setting sun suggests that at some point in the development of Babylonian thinking the sun was conceived as a fire that was covered by the earth as it sank beneath the horizon and thus reduced from flaming to glowing. When it rose from the horizon it was fanned by the moving air, the `morning breeze' perhaps, into the flaming stage again."182 Rather than being a reference to the sun's being "covered by the earth as it sank beneath the horizon," the word ßú likely commemorated the inverted crescent "covering" the sun god like a giant pan or gate. Support for this interpretation comes from the pictograph for ßú, which depicts an inverted crescent (see figure X). Venus and the Four Corners A prominent concept in Sumerian cosmology, as in cosmologies elsewhere, was that of the four quarters of heaven. Sargon, for example, described himself as "he who rules the Four Quarters."183 His son Naramsin employed the title "King of the Four Quarters."184 In this practice the Akkadian kings were simply following the old adage "as above, so below," the original Four Quarters being located in the skies overhead. Proof of this point comes from early hymns in which Utu is described in conjunction with the four quarters. The planet Venus is also mentioned in connection with the four corners of heaven. Witness the following Sumerian hymn: "Queen whose grandeur dominates the kur, who bears herself like An, is decked with splendor like Enlil, who, like her father, adorns the day and the night. Like Utu she leads in front with her glorious nature, who is unique because of her majesty in the four corners of the universe."185 The phrase translated as four corners is ub-an-na. The reference is clearly to some specific region of heaven. Here, as elsewhere, it would appear that the region was specially associated with the planet Venus. In the hymn in-nin ßà-gur4-ra Inanna's torch is said to shine from the ub-an-na: "Your torch flames heaven's four quarters spreads splendid light in the dark."186 The planet Venus is also associated with the "corner" of heaven in The Duties and Powers of the Gods. There the planet is described as follows: "to make her (Venus) burn from `Heaven's Corner' through the entire atmosphere (?)."187 How, then, are we to understand the phrase "four corners" of the universe from an astronomical standpoint? What does it mean that Inanna's "torch" illuminates the four quarters? In the modern skies, the phrase has no obvious reference and thus it must be explained away as yet another example of the Sumerians' preference for figurative language. From the vantage point of the polar configuration, however, the phrase receives an obvious and perfectly logical explanation. Consider the image in figure eighteen: Here the disc of Utu/Shamash is divided into four sections by radiating streamers emanating from a central orb. The central orb, according to the reconstruction offered here, is to be identified with the planet Venus. It is our opinion that this cylinder seal accurately depicts a particular phase in the polar configuration's history. Terrestrial skywatchers interpreted the four radiating forms emanating from Venus as the "four corners" of heaven, among other things. Statements to the effect that Venus's torch "flamed heaven's four quarters" therefore testify to that planet's intimate association with the "midst" of heaven, for it was from there that the four streamers radiated outward, illuminating and quartering the Sumerian cosmos (to be understood literally as the circle of An). Figure eighteen That Utu/Shamash is likewise associated with the four corners of heaven stands to reason from the theory developed here.188 This is but one of many attributes the ancient sun-god shares with Venus because they once occupied the same station in the sky--the so-called "heart" or midst of heaven. To stand in the "midst of heaven" was to stand in the midst or central meeting point of the four corners. As Perry pointed out in Lord of the Four Quarters, the phrase has a cosmological significance: "That the king ruled the Four Quarters points to the cosmological setting of his potency, at the center."189 Conclusion In the present monograph, we have documented numerous anomalies in Sumerian literary descriptions of the most prominent celestial bodies. That leading scholars themselves confess their inability to understand the astronomical imagery involved has also been documented. There is a simple reason for the current confusion attending the study of Sumerian cosmic geography: The primeval sky was radically different in order and appearance and therefore it follows that all attempts to interpret the ancient literary imagery by reference to the familiar sky are doomed to fail. The theory developed here offers a perfectly straightforward interpretation of the Sumerian literary descriptions of Utu, Sin, and Inanna/Venus. This position stands in dramatic contrast to that of mainstream scholarship, the latter of which must resort to "metaphor" and other literary devices in an attempt to explain the ancient literature. In reality, most modern "translations" of the Sumerian hymns describing the astral gods represent a futile attempt to explain away the unequivocal testimony of the ancient skywatchers. In their attempt to force-fit the ancient language to the modern skies, modern scholars have made a mishmash of the Sumerian texts with the result that the true order of the solar system at the dawn of history has been obscured and suppressed. Like all good theories, the Saturn theory offers a wealth of decisive tests. For example, if our interpretation of the mountain of sunrise is correct it must follow that, during the daily cycle, the "mountain" revolved around the ancient sun-god while alternately growing bright and dimming. Likewise, if our interpretation of Venus imagery is correct it must follow that other cultures--vastly removed from Mesopotamia in time and space--will offer equally unequivocal testimony to a radically different sky in prehistoric times. Although such tests will take many years to properly perform and evaluate, I am confident they will support the theory defended here. Our interpretation of the Sumerian literature has the additional advantage that it is supplemented and complemented at virtually every step by the testimony of ancient art. Thus, we have seen that literary references to Venus standing within Sin or standing together with Sin and Utu find exact parallels in scenes depicted on ancient cylinder seals, this despite the fact that Venus can never attain such positions in the current skies. This striking correspondence between Mesopotamian literature and art cannot be mere coincidence.