 | |
| Location | Eastern Arabia |
|---|---|
| Region | Northern Governorate |
| Type | Ancient |
| Part of | Eastern Arabia |
| History | |
| Founded | c. late 4th millennium BC[1] |
| Abandoned | c. 538 BC[2] |
| Periods | Bronze Age |
Dilmun, orTelmun,[3] (Sumerian:.jpg)
,[4][5] later 𒉌𒌇(𒆠), NI.TUKki = dilmunki;Arabic:دلمون) was an ancientEast Semitic–speakingcivilization inEastern Arabia mentioned from the3rd millennium BC onwards, covering the transition fromPrehistoric Arabia into the historic period.[6][7] Based on contextual evidence, it was located in thePersian Gulf, on atrade route betweenMesopotamia and theIndus Valley Civilisation, close to the sea and toartesian springs.[1][8] Dilmun encompassedBahrain,[9]Kuwait,[10][11][12][13] and easternSaudi Arabia.[14]
The great commercial and trading connections between Mesopotamia and Dilmun were strong and profound to the point where Dilmun was a central figure to theSumerian creation myth.[15] Dilmun was described in the saga ofEnki andNinhursag as pre-existing in paradisiacal state, where predators do not kill, pain and diseases are absent, and people do not get old.[15]
Dilmun was an important trading centre. At the height of its power, it controlled the Persian Gulf trading routes.[1] According to some modern theories, theSumerians regarded Dilmun as a sacred place,[16] but that is never stated in any known ancient text. Dilmun was mentioned by the Mesopotamians as a trade partner, a source ofcopper, and a tradeentrepôt.
The Sumerian tale of the garden paradise of Dilmun may have been an inspiration for theGarden of Eden story.[17][18][19]
Dilmun was an important trading center from the late fourth millennium BC to 800 BC.[1] At the height of its power, Dilmun controlled thePersian Gulf trading routes.[1] It was very prosperous during the first 300 years of the second millennium BC.[25] Conquered by theMiddle Assyrian Empire (1365–1050 BC), its commercial power began to decline between 1000 BC and 800 BC becausepiracy flourished in the Persian Gulf. In the 8th and 7th centuries BC theNeo-Assyrian Empire (911–605 BC) conquered Dilmun, and in the 6th century BC theNeo-Babylonian Empire, and later theAchaemenid Empire, ruled.[citation needed]
The Dilmun civilization was the centre of commercial activities linking traditional agriculture of the land—then quite fertile due toartesian wells that have since dried, and due to a much wetter climate—with maritime trade between diverse regions such as theIndus Valley andMesopotamia in its early stage and later betweenChina and theMediterranean.[7] The Dilmun civilization is mentioned first inSumeriancuneiformclay tablets dated to the late third millennium BC, found in the temple of the goddessInanna, in the city ofUruk. The adjective Dilmun is used to describe a type ofaxe and one specific official; in addition there are lists of rations ofwool issued to people connected with Dilmun.[26]
One of the earliestinscriptions mentioning Dilmun is that of kingUr-Nanshe ofLagash (c. 2300 BC) found in a door-socket: "The ships of Dilmun brought him wood as tribute from foreign lands."[27]Some texts mention that Ur exported wool to Dilmun, and these texts indicate that merchants returned from Dilmun to Ur with abundant profits. Other texts mention commercial agreements and contracts between Dilmun and Ur, which shows that the connection between them was close. The merchants of Ur would send ships to Dilmun loaded with crops from Mesopotamia and foreign markets such as Persia, the Levant, and Asia Minor, and sell them to Dilmun merchants who, in turn, would export them to other places in India, Africa, or to the Arabian Peninsula. Among the things they would return with from Bahrain were metals such as copper, whose prices were high in Ur, wood, perfumes, and expensive things such as pearls, which were sold at high prices in the markets of Ur, so the merchants would reap a huge profit.[28]
From around 2050 BC onward, Dilmun seems to have been at its peak.Qal'at al-Bahrain was most likely the capital of Dilmun. From texts found atIsin, it is believed Dilmun became an independent kingdom, free from Mesopotamian rule; royal gifts to Dilmun are mentioned. Contacts with theAmorite state ofMari, in the northernLevant, are attested. Around this time, the largest royalburial mounds were erected.[29] From about 1780 BC came severalAkkadian-language inscriptions on stone vessels naming two kings of Dilmun, KingYagli-El (anAmoritic name) and his father,Rimum. The inscriptions were found in huge tumuli, evidently the burial places of these kings. Rimum was already known to archaeology from theDurand Stone, discovered in 1879.[30]
A decline is visible from around 1720 BC. Many settlements were no longer used, and the building of royal mounds ceased. TheBarbar Temple fell into ruins.[31] A 'recovering' period is noted from around 1650 BC. New royal burial mounds were built; at Qal'at al-Bahrain, there is evidence for increased building activity.[29] A seal from this period found atFailaka preserved a king's name. The short text reads,[La]'ù-la Panipa, daughter ofSumu-lěl, the servant ofInzak ofAkarum. Sumu-lěl was evidently another king of Dilmun (the third king whose name we know) from around this period.Servant of Inzak of Akarum was the king's title in Dilmun. The names of these later rulers areAmoritic.[32]
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From at least 1500 BC, Dilmun was likely under the rule of theAkkadian-speaking MesopotamianSealand dynasty. The Sealand dynasty KingEa-gamil is mentioned in a text found at Qal'at al-Bahrain. Ea-gamil was the last ruler of the Sealand dynasty. After his reign, Dilmun came under the rule ofthe BabylonianKassite dynasty, as they took over the land of the Sealand dynasty.[33] Dilmun was mentioned in two letters dated to the reign ofBurna-Buriash II (c. 1370 BC), recovered fromNippur during theKassite dynasty of Babylon. These letters were from a provincial official namedIlī-ippašra, in Dilmun, to his friend, Enlil-kidinni, the governor of Nippur. The names referred to areAkkadian. These letters, and other documents, suggest an administrative relationship between Dilmun and Babylon at that time. Following the collapse of the Kassite dynasty, in 1595 BC, Mesopotamian documents make no mention of Dilmun untilAssyrian inscriptions (dated from 1250 BC to 1050 BC) proclaimed Assyrian kings to be rulers of Dilmun andMeluhha, as well as Lower Sea and Upper Sea. Assyrian inscriptions recorded tribute from Dilmun.[citation needed]
There are other Assyrian inscriptions during the first millennium BC, indicating Assyrian sovereignty over Dilmun.[2] One of the early sites discovered in Bahrain suggests thatSennacherib, King of Assyria (707–681 BC), attacked northeast Arabia and captured the Bahraini islands.[34] The most recent reference to Dilmun came during theNeo-Babylonian Empire; Neo-Babylonian administrative records, dated 567 BC, stated that Dilmun was controlled by the King of Babylon. The name of Dilmun fell from use after thecollapse of Babylon, in 538 BC, with the area henceforth identified asTylos during theHellenistic period.[2]
The "Persian Gulf" types of circular, stamped (rather than rolled) seals known from Dilmun—that appear atLothal,Gujarat,India, andFailaka (as well as in Mesopotamia)—are evidence of long-distance sea trade. What the commerce consisted of is less known; timber and precious woods,ivory,lapis lazuli,gold, and luxury goods (such ascarnelian and glazed stone beads),pearls from the Persian Gulf, shell and bone inlays were among the goods sent to Mesopotamia, in-exchange forsilver,tin, woolentextiles,olive oil and grains.[citation needed]
Copper ingots fromOman andbitumen (which occurred naturally in Mesopotamia) may have been exchanged for cotton textiles and domesticfowl, major products of the Indus region that are not native to Mesopotamia. Instances of all of these trade goods have been found. The importance of this trade is shown by the fact that the weights and measures used at Dilmun were, identical to those used by the Indus, and were not those used in Southern Mesopotamia.[citation needed]
In regards tocopper mining andsmelting, theUmm al-Nar culture andDalma (United Arab Emirates) andIbri (Oman) were particularly important.[35]
SomeMeluhhan vessels may have sailed directly to Mesopotamian ports but, by theIsin-Larsa Period, Dilmun monopolized the trade. TheBahrain National Museum assesses that its "Golden Age" lastedc. 2200–1600 BC. Discoveries of ruins under the Persian Gulf may be of Dilmun.[36]
| Dilmunite | |
|---|---|
| Native to | Dilmun |
| Region | Bahrain,Kuwait and easternSaudi Arabia |
| Era | First half of the second millennium BC[37] |
Afro-Asiatic
| |
| Cuneiform | |
| Language codes | |
| ISO 639-3 | None (mis) |
| Glottolog | None |
The population usedcuneiform to write in the Akkadian language,[38] and, like theAkkadians,Assyrians,Babylonians andEblaites ofMesopotamia, are thought to have spoken an East Semitic language that was either an Akkadian dialect or one close to it, rather than aCentral Semitic language, and most of its known rulers had East Semitic names.[39][40] Dilmun's main deity was namedInzak and his spouse was Panipa.[41] However, there is no indication of population replacement having happened in the region.[42]
In the early epicEnmerkar and the Lord of Aratta, the main events, which center onEnmerkar's construction of theziggurats inUruk andEridu, are described as taking place at a time "before Dilmun had yet been settled".[citation needed]
Dilmun, sometimes described as "the place where the sun rises" and "the Land of the Living", is the scene of some versions of theEridu Genesis, and the place where the deified Sumerian hero of the flood,Utnapishtim (Ziusudra), was taken by the gods to live forever.Thorkild Jacobsen's translation of the Eridu Genesis calls it "Mount Dilmun" which he locates as a "faraway, half-mythical place".[43]
Dilmun is also described in theepic story ofEnki andNinhursag as the site at which theCreation occurred.[18][44] The laterBabylonianEnuma Elish, speaks of the creation site as the place where the mixture of salt water, personified asTiamat met and mingled with the fresh water ofAbzu. Bahrain in Arabic means "the twin waters", where the fresh water of theArabian aquifer mingles with the salt waters of thePersian Gulf. The promise of Enki to Ninhursag, the Earth Mother:
For Dilmun, the land of my lady's heart, I will create long waterways, rivers and canals, whereby water will flow to quench the thirst of all beings and bring abundance to all that lives.
Ninlil, the Sumerian goddess of air and south wind had her home in Dilmun.[citation needed]
However, it is also speculated thatGilgamesh had to pass through MountMashu to reach Dilmun in theEpic of Gilgamesh, which is usually identified with the whole of the parallelLebanon andAnti-Lebanon ranges, with the narrow gap between these mountains constituting the tunnel.[45]
_burial_chambers_at_Saar%2c_Bahrain.JPG)
In 1987,archaeologistTheresa Howard-Carter proposed that Dilmun of this era might be a still unidentified tell near the Arvand Rud (Shatt al-Arab in Arabic) between modern-day Qurnah andBasra in modern-dayIraq.[46] In favor of Howard-Carter's proposal, it has been noted that this area does lie to the east of Sumer ("where the sun rises"), and the riverbank where Dilmun's maidens would have been accosted aligns with the Shatt al-Arab which is in the midst of marshes. The "mouth of the rivers" where Dilmun was said to lie is for her the union of theTigris andEuphrates rivers atal-Qurnah. A number of scholars have suggested that Dilmun originally designated the eastern province of modernSaudi Arabia, notably linked with the major Dilmunite settlements of Umm an-Nussi and Umm ar-Ramadh in the interior andTarout on the coast.[47]
ScholarJuris Zarins believes that the Garden of Eden was situated in Dilmun at the head of the Persian Gulf (present-dayKuwait), where the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers run into the sea, from his research on this area using information from many different sources, includingLandsat images from space. In this theory, the Bible'sGihon would correspond with theKarun in Iran, and thePishon River would correspond to theWadi al-Batin river system that once drained the now dry, but once quite fertile central part of theArabian Peninsula.[48]
Only a few rulers of the Dilmun kingdom are known:[49]
.jpg)
{{cite book}}:ISBN / Date incompatibility (help)In fact, there is some reason to believe that the very idea of a paradise, a garden of the gods, originated with the Sumerians.
{{cite book}}:ISBN / Date incompatibility (help)In short, the anthroponyms and the remnants of the language show that at the beginning of the second millennium the people of Dilmun was a Semitic one.
{{cite book}}:ISBN / Date incompatibility (help)