EP 38 - The Descent of Ishtar cover art

EP 38 - The Descent of Ishtar

EP 38 - The Descent of Ishtar

Listen for free

View show details

About this listen

In this episode, I tell an Akkadian myth called "The Descent of Ishtar". The story is a reinterpretation of a longer Sumerian work written approximately 500-900 years prior called "The Descent of Inanna". The version of the myth that I will be telling was unearthed at the great library of Nineveh. The author of the stone cuneiform tablet remains unknown, though this myth was ubiquitous across Mesopotamia. The tale makes use of repetition to parallel an ancient, recorded ritual glorifying the change of seasons in which a statue of Ishtar/Inanna was undressed and clothed again. 

We'll discuss the transition from matriarchy to patriarchy and this historical conflict's relation to the written word. We'll also seek to understand the characterization of these deities, their perceived effect on the Mesopotamian world, and how these themes were exported to other surrounding cultures.

(I am currently writing a screenplay reinterpreting this myth, so my analysis will be sparse on this episode to reflect the bias I have towards this story).

Thank you for listening!

You can find all of my work through the following links:

https://linktr.ee/echocain

www.echocain.com

No reviews yet
In the spirit of reconciliation, Audible acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of country throughout Australia and their connections to land, sea and community. We pay our respect to their elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples today.