Prostitution in the Ancient Near East

There has been much debate on the subject of prostitution in the Ancient Near East (or ANE for
short). There is particular interest on two subjects in particular. The first question is as
there such a thin! as a "#acred $rostitute" in %esopotamia& and in the nations of #umer and
'ab(lon in particular) The second question is hat is the connection between
prostitution& sacred or otherwise& and the !oddess *nanna + *shtar who was worshiped b( the
#umerians& A,,adians& and 'ab(lonians)
To understand this full( we need to ta,e it apart. e first need to understand prostitution in the
Ancient Near East. e need to loo, at instances of prostitution in m(th as well as anal(-in!
wisdom te.t and law codes.
Ne.t we need to loo, at *nanna. hat was her character) as she a !oddess of prostitutes and if
she was& was she li,ened to a prostitute herself) /ow is she associated with prostitution and
carnal acts. ere her followers t(pical in the ancient near east& or is her temple an anomal()
0inall( we need to address the concept of #acred prostitution. hat were the ancient concepts of
sacred prostitution) Are these reliable) hat connection did prostitutes ha1e with the temple)
The Nature of Ancient Prostitution
The Near East in modern times is not one we associate with prostitution and se.ualit(.
2on1ersel( 'ab(lon has become s(non(mous with se.ual promiscuit(. 3espite this howe1er the
subject has not been e.pounded upon much in modern thou!ht.
'efore we discuss what professionals of this sort were li,e in the ancient world we should la(
some !roundwor,. To pro1e that prostitution e.isted all we ha1e to do is loo, at the ancient
sources. hat did the( sa( about the subject)
4f course prostitution e.isted in ancient %esopotamia (where marria!e was an important
le!al contract)& and is often referred to. A famous prostitute in 'ab(lonian literature was #amhat&
who first seduces En,idu in the epic of 5il!amesh. 6ater& on his death bed& En,idu curses her in
a passa!e which implies that the normal places for prostitution would be in the ta1ern& b( the cit(
walls& at the crossroads and in the desert. ('lac, and 5reen& 7889& p. 7:7)
Accordin! to 3r ;erem( 'lac,& former head of the ET2#6 project (www<etcsl.orient.o..ac.u,)&
and 3r Anthon( 5reen& #hinji #humei,ai #enior Academic =esearch fellow in Near Eastern Art
and Archeolo!( at the 0reie >ni1ersitat 'erlin& there was in fact prostitution in the Ancient Near
East.
*n this section we see that En,idu is an!ered at the fact that the prostitute was not in the place
where the( were supposed to be. This seems to impl( that prostitution was le!al in 'ab(lon.
Adulter( was !enerall( considered to be a crime a!ainst the husband rather than a!ainst the wife&
so prostitution would not 1iolate this.
e can onl( sa( from this particular te.t that it was le!al in 'ab(lon rather than in the ANE in
!eneral because this passa!e is found in the 'ab(lonian 1ersion and not the #umerian 1ersion. *t
is reasonable to presume& howe1er& that it mi!ht ha1e been le!al in #umer as well as we ha1e no
e1idence to the contrar(.
The standard 1ersion of the Epic of 5il!amesh itself& from where this passa!e comes from&
comes from about 77?? '2E. *t is rou!hl( as far awa( from the life of the ph(sical 5il!amesh as
we are from the 2ouncil of Nicea. *t is rou!hl( as far awa( from the #umerian poems of
5il!amesh as we are from =ichard the 6ion hearted. *t tells us a decent amount about
'ab(lonian culture& but not so much about the actual time of 5il!amesh. That bein! said& it
wasn"t a definiti1e wor, on the subject of prostitution& nor was it meant to be.
* will curse (ou with a mi!ht( curse& %( curse shall afflict (ou now and forthwith@ A
household to deli!ht in (ou shall not acquire& ne1er to reside in the midst of a famil(@
*n the (oun! woman"s chamber (ou shall not sit@ Aour finest !arment the !round shall defile@
Aour finest !own the drun,ard shall stain in the dirt@ Thin!s of beaut( (ou shall ne1er acquire@

. . .
The junction of hallwa(s shall be where (ou sit@ A field of ruins shall be where (ou sleep@
The shadow of the rampart shall be where (ou stand@ Thorn and briar shall s,in (our feet@
3run, and sober shall stri,e (our chee,@ . . . (5eor!e& 7888& p. :B)
/ere we see the archet(pical prostitute is a woman who has not been trained in the arts of a wife.
#he is accepted as part of societ(& but is not accepted in e1er( part of it. #he is connected with
drun,s and ta1erns. *n essence she is similar to a street wal,er who mi!ht sell her wares on a
street corner or be found in certain t(pes of bars.
#he li1es a permitted life& but not a comfortable one. /er clothin! is described here as bein! well
worn and dama!ed throu!h harsh use. #he is described as bein! struc, on the chee, b( e1en
sober people.
To better understand the place of prostitutes in the ANE world we should loo, at the laws of the
da(. The most famous law code of the re!ion is of course the 2ode of /ammurabi & but it
should be pointed out that this is a law code from about 7B?? '2E& and would ha1e been lon!
before the passa!e listed abo1e.
Thus far the discussion of prostitution has related to woman"s se.ual acti1ities. 'ut it would
be naCD1e to assume that the 'ab(lonian jud!es& parents& and others in1ol1ed in these cases
were concerned about re!ulatin! se.ual beha1ior or safe!uardin! an(thin! li,e the western
notion of the "sanctit( of marria!e." (0araone and %c2lure& pE9)
. . . 'ut neither prostitution itself nor commerciali-ed 1ice in an( form was penali-ed in the
2ode of /ammurabi. The prostitute was literall( an abandoned woman& i!nored b( the law.
(American *nstitute of 2riminal 6aw and 2riminolo!(& 787F& p9B)
$rostitution was therefore not onl( accepted in at least 'ab(lonian ci1ili-ation& but was le!al.
$rostitution was not so much a matter of le!al concern than of social concern. The( onl(
mattered in cases where the( infrin!ed on the li1es of respectable people.
'ab(lonian jud!es didn"t care if people were ha1in! se. for mone(. *t was not e.actl(
respectable wor,& but it didn"t reall( impin!e on the smooth runnin! of societ(. *f it didn"t cause a
problem then there would be no reason to ma,e a law outlawin! it.
*t !oes without sa(in! howe1er that if a culture had a concept of what prostitution was& then the(
were aware of the e.istence of prostitutes. *n other words prostitutes could be found in some
de!ree in the ANE. 2onsiderin! that the practice of prostitution was not ille!al we can suppose
that it mi!ht ha1e been found commonl(.
Thus far we ha1e concentrated mostl( on 'ab(lonian thou!hts on prostitution. The reason for
this is that the information is simpl( more a1ailable from 'ab(lonian sources. That is not
because there aren"t an( #umerian thou!hts on the subject.
4ne rather interestin! commentar( on the subject of prostitution can be found in the ad1ice of
#uruppa! to his son. This 1ersion of the te.t comes from 4.ford"s ET2#6 project. 4.ford"s
Ass(riolo!( department is well ,nown for their se.uall( conser1ati1e slant on man( te.ts as
compared to other translations. This translation of the te.t tal,s freel( on the subject of
prostitutes.
Aou should not bu( a prostituteG she is a mouth that bites. Aou should not bu( a house<born
sla1eG he is a herb that ma,es the stomach sic,. Aou should not bu( a free manG he will alwa(s
lean a!ainst the wall. Aou should not bu( a palace sla1e !irlG she will alwa(s be the bottom of the
barrel ()). Aou should rather brin! down a forei!n sla1e from the mountains& or (ou should brin!
somebod( from a place where he is an alienH m( son& then he will pour water for (ou where the
sun rises and he will wal, before (ou. (ET2#6 t.:.I.7& 9??E)
*t was le!al to bu( prostitutes. *t was simpl( not a !ood idea accordin! to this te.t. The( were not
considered to be trustworth(.
A te.t written in A,,adian& probabl( ori!inatin! from 4ld 'ab(lon also tal,s about professional
pur1e(ors of se.. This te.t echoes the thou!hts of #uruppa!& but !oes into much more detail on
the subject. This te.t& labeled 2ounsels of isdom& !oes into the reasons wh( prostitutes are not
!ood to marr(.
3on"t marr( a prostitute& whose husbands are le!ion&
Nor a temple harlot& who is dedicated to a !oddess&
Nor a courtesan& whose intimates are numerous.
#he will not sustain (ou in (our time of trouble&
#he will sni!!er at (ou when (ou are embroiled in contro1ers(
#he has neither respect nor obedience in her nature.
E1en if she has the run of (our house& !et rid of her&
#he has ears attuned for another"s footfall.
JariantG As to the household she enters& she will brea, it up.
The man who married her will not ha1e a stable home life. (0oster& 788:& p. EK8)
The translation of this te.t can be considered hi!hl( accurate. 'enjamin =. 0oster is a specialist
in A,,adian literature. (httpG++www.(ale.edu+nelc+bfoster9.html) /e is a Aale professor of
Ass(riolo!(& and 2urator of the Aale 'ab(lonian 2ollection. ith this in mind remember the line
about temple harlots when we !et to the section on sacred prostitution.
E1en thou!h prostitution and se.ual promiscuit( were not seen as a !ood thin! all of the time
the( were thou!ht of as somethin! that people should ha1e the ri!ht to do. %ore precisel( the(
thou!ht of it as somethin! that the !oddess indul!es in& so her ser1ants should be allowed to act
freel( when doin! thin!s that please the !oddess.
LE1in >ru,& the dwellin! of Anu and *shtar&
cit( of prostitutes & cortesans& and call !irls
whome *shtar epri1ed of husbands and ,ept in their power&
#utean men ans women hurl abuseH
the( rouse Eanna& the part(<bo(s and festi1al people who chan!ed masculinit(
and femininit( to ma,e the people of *shtar re1ere her.
The da!!er bearer& or bearers of ra-ors& prunin! ,ni1es and flint blades&
who frequentl( do abominable acts to please the heart of *shtarG
Aou set o1er them an insolent !o1ernor who will not treat them ,indl(&
who persecuted them and 1iolated their ri!hts.L
L*t is the oppression and persecution of *nanna"s people which calls for censure& not their
"abominable acts"& which belon! to the !oddess"s remit of protectin! all manifestations of desire
and libido& re!ardless of ci1ic norms.L (6eic,& 9??7& p:8)
The first section is a translation of a 'ab(lonian source& and the second is 6eic,"s commentar(
and anal(sis. /ere we see that there were elements in the culture that disappro1ed of the
beha1ior& but stood up for people"s ri!hts to do it.
*n the abo1e section it is probabl( referrin! to cultic prostitution. These concepts were definitel(
separate in the minds of the ancient #umerians& A,,adians& and 'ab(lonians& but the( were still
connected. *t is important to ,eep in mind the opinions presented in 1arious sources throu!hout
%esopotamia on all t(pes of prostitution.
L. . . *t is also possible that certain priestesses of *shtar functioned as sacred prostitutes& or
LhierodulesL as scholars sometimes call them. %esopotamian sources themsel1es are silent about
these matters e.cept for the fact that the( inform us of the e.istence of prostitutes in societ(
(witness the seduction of En,idu in the Epic of 5il!amesh and references to prostitution in law
codes . . . L ('ertman& 9??E& p798)
e will come bac, to the subject of *nanna and of sacred prostitution in the later sections. 0or
now howe1er it is enou!h to simpl( note that prostitution e.isted in the Ancient Near East. *t not
onl( e.isted& but it flourished.
Inanna and Prostitution
hat connection does the !oddess *nanna ha1e to prostitution) To fi!ure this out we will ha1e to
as, the root questionG 3oes *nanna ha1e a connection to prostitution) *s she a prostitute herself)
*f she is a prostitute& then is she also a !oddess of professional se. pur1e(ors) Not all !ods who
fou!ht were !ods of warriors& and not all !oddess who had children were mother !oddesses after
all.
*n the ANE prostitutes were associated with the e1enin! star. The( came out at the same time as
Jenus to pl( their trade. e saw earlier that prostitutes were associated with ta1erns and places
of hi!h traffic. Meep this in mind when readin! the followin! sections from the eminent scholar
Thor,ild ;acobsen.
e1enin!& after wor, but before rest& is the time for pla( and dancin!. The h(mn touches on
this in passin! as people !o to sleepG
The dancer of the countr(&
the celebrant of the festi1al&
The (oun! hero& opens his heart in bed
to his spouse.
This dancin! in the e1enin! is stressed more as somethin! in which the !oddess has a bene1olent
interest in a passa!e in the 6u!albanda Epic that tells how *nanna& risin! as the e1enin! star&
sends her ra(s into the ca1e where (oun! 6u!albanda lies ill. The poet introduces her and her
,ind offices sa(in!G
#o as to set the poor fol, !oin! at their dances&
ha1in! with her li!ht
made the dancin! !reen more pleasant&
and to ma,e the spots to bed down in
more pleasant for the harlot
settin! out for the alehouse&
did *nanna& the dau!hter of #uen&
proudl( raise her head
o1er the land. (;acobsen& 78KI& p 7E8<F?)
*n the abo1e selection we see *nanna associated both with prostitution and with the e1enin! star.
This is an important connection. *t shows that it is in *nanna"s nature to be connected with
prostitution. #he is depicted in this te.t as a !oddess who concentrates on enjo(ment.
*nanna was the !oddess of passion and passionate emotions. #he was also a !oddess of warfare.
#he wasn"t the !oddess of cool tactical maneu1ers li,e the 5ree, Athena& but rather the hot blood
that flows o1er an arm( and ,eeps the soldiers !oin!. *nanna is shown in m(th to ha1e her own
ra!e and boilin! passion. #he is not shown to lead a militar( force.
*n battle forces mo1e bac, and forth& and stri,e at one another. This was called *nanna"s dance. *t
wasn"t a romantic e1ent. *t was howe1er an e1ent that e1o,ed ima!es of passion. 3ancin! isn"t
alwa(s a jo(ous e1ent when found in reference to *nanna. 'ecause of this we should consider her
connection to the e1enin! star as more important to her connection with prostitution.
ith *nanna"s connection to soldiers in mind we do not see *nanna as a !oddess of womens
ri!hts. e see her as a !oddess of women tendin! to the carnal needs of men& particularl(
soldiers. This isn"t all that there is to the !oddess& but it is certainl( a stron! component.
To !et a better idea of what the ancients thou!ht of *nanna as a !oddess we should loo, at a m(th
where she interacts stron!l( with other !ods.
Aou ha1e brou!ht with (ou the standard& (ou ha1e brou!ht with (ou the qui1er& (ou ha1e
brou!ht with (ou se.ual intercourse& (ou ha1e brou!ht with (ou ,issin!& (ou ha1e brou!ht with
(ou prostitution& (ou ha1e brou!ht with (ou NN runnin! ()).L
Aou ha1e brou!ht with (ou forthri!ht speech& (ou ha1e brou!ht with (ou deceitful speech&
(ou ha1e brou!ht with (ou !randiloquent speech& (ou ha1e brou!ht with (ou NN& (ou ha1e
brou!ht with (ou the cultic prostitute& (ou ha1e brou!ht with (ou the hol( ta1ern.L (ET2#6
t.7.E.7& 9??E)
*n this m(th we see *nanna comin! out ahead of En,i. #he has !ained man( of the societal
me . These are what we mi!ht commonl( thin, of as spheres of influence. These are the
thin!s that *nanna is the !oddess of from the point when she has !otten them onwards.
*n the abo1e section we see her as !oddess of prostitution and cultic prostitution as separate
thin!s. Note that the( are both associated with *nanna& but are different from one another at least
in this one te.t. Meep this in mind in the ne.t section when we discuss the subject of sacred
prostitution.
2onnected with the mention of cultic prostitution we see *nanna has also !ained the hol( ta1ern.
=emember from earlier that prostitutes were associated with ta1ern. As a prostitute !oddess as
well as a !oddess of prostitutes *nanna"s temple would be li,ened to the home of prostitute.
here else would a prostitute !oddess be most at home than in a hol( ta1ern)
*t is clear that *nanna is li,ened to a prostitute in the m(ths& but how was she seen b( her
followers) 3id the( see her as a prostitute) 0or this we will need to loo, at praise poetr(. A
con1enient place to find praise poems is ET2#6& but ,eep in mind the( tend to water down
se.ualit(.
The( cannot compete with (ou& *nana. As a prostitute (ou !o down to the ta1ern and& li,e ())
a !host who slips in throu!h the window& (ou enter there. (ET2#6 t.F.?K.F& 9??E)
>p to this point in this section we ha1e loo,ed mostl( at what ancient sources ha1e to sa( about
*nanna. e should also loo, at what prominent Ass(riolo!ists ha1e said on the nature of the
!oddess. *t is eas( to !et side trac,ed on minutia when loo,in! at ancient te.ts.
Ass(riolo!ists ha1e loo,ed at a wide selection of ancient material and ha1e a broader perspecti1e
than can be found b( simpl( readin! isolated sections of ancient te.ts. Additionall(
Ass(riolo!ists ha1e the ad1anta!e of readin! se1eral translations of the same te.ts and
translatin! it themsel1es in order to !et a loo, at the te.t from multiple point of 1iew.
The personalit( of *nanna can be di1ided into three quite separate strains. 4ne aspect is that
of a !oddess of lo1e and se.ual beha1ior& but especiall( connected with e.tramarital se. and (in
a wa( which has not (et been carefull( researched& notwithstandin! the remar,s of /erodotus on
the subject) with prostitution. *nanna is not a !oddess of marria!e& nor is she a mother !oddess.
The so called #acred %arria!e in which she participates carries no o1ertones of moral
implication for human marria!es. ('lac, and 5reen& 7889& p. 7?8)
'lac, and 5reen ma,e note of /erodotus in this passa!e. *n this the( are ma,in! reference to the
fact that /erodotus is not precisel( a trustworth( source. /e was not tal,in! from a position of
authorit(& but was rather tr(in! to entertain listeners. /e was a sensationalist. e will tal, more
about him later.
The most popular deit( of ancient %esopotamia& *nanna + *shtar represented the power of
se.ual attraction and the carnal pleasure that proceeds from it. 0ocused on the immediate
!ratification of her own sensual needs& she was neither a !oddess of marria!e nor of childbirth.
/er se.ual appetite was ine.haustible and her relationships with men short term. 6e!ion were
her lo1ers& but cruel the price the( all paid& 3umu-i in particular& whom she consi!ned to
hell. ('ertman& 9??E& p79?)
*n the abo1e passa!e #tephen 'ertman used the word hell . This is a common form in
archeolo!(. *t doesn"t specificall( mean the 2hristian hell an( more than does the Norse word
/el from which the word /ell is deri1ed. hat it means is the underworld where the dead !o. *n
#umer the realm Mur was the underworld. *t was a 1ast realm with !ood points as well as bad
ones.
e can also see that *nanna is not considered b( this te.t and the one abo1e to be at all
connected with marria!e. 'oth boo,s !o out of their wa( to paint *nanna as a !oddess of
se.ualit( that is& if an(thin!& incon!ruous with the idea of marria!e.
=emember in the earlier section the part about not marr(in! a prostitute) 3umu-i wooed *nanna
who was the prostitute !oddess. #he was not faithful to him and he died throu!h her actions. The
m(th and the !eneral opinion of prostitutes mi!ht ha1e actuall( been connected in some wa(.
Sacred Prostitution
#acred $rostitution and prostitution connected with the temple are not perhaps identical
concepts. *n e1er( #umerian cit( the temple was the lar!est financial entit(. The temple
controlled farms& charitable or!ani-ations& and man( other businesses. *f the temple of *nanna
were to !ain control of a prostitution business would this then be sacred prostitution) 4r would it
be somethin! else entirel()
Meep in mind that the idea of ritual se.ual acti1ities can be found throu!hout the %iddle East.
That is not at issue here. hat we are concerned with is simpl( the practice of sacred
prostitution. To be sacred prostitution it has to ha1e both elements of sacred se. and elements of
prostitution. *f it"s connected to the temple and mone( is e.chan!ed& but there is no concept that
se. is a reli!ious dut( it probabl( doesn"t count. 6i,ewise if a sacred se. act is ta,in! place& but
that act is not paid for then it also does not count.
To loo, at this subject completel( we should loo, at 5ree, sources. h( 5ree, sources)
'ecause the( ha1e an e.ternal point of 1iew. %ore than that thou!h the( are the ones who
populari-ed %esopotamian se.ualit(.
/erodotus is of course the most famous of the lot. /e li1ed in the fifth centur( and wrote an
entertainment piece called the /istories. *n it he describes a practice that we ha1e come to thin,
of as sacred prostitution.
The fifth centur( '2E 5ree, historian /erodotus was the first to report this custom to a
European audience. As /erodotus (/istor(7G 788) tells itG
The 'ab(lonians ha1e one most shameful custom. E1er( woman born in the countr( must once
in her life !o and sit down in the precinct of Aphrodite OP*shtatQ& and there consort with a
stran!er. %an( of the wealthier sort& who are too proud to mi. with others& dri1e co1ered
carria!es to the precinct& followed b( a !oodl( train of attendants& and there ta,e their station.
'ut the lar!er number seat themsel1es within the hol( enclosure with wreaths of strin! about
their heads& <and here there is alwa(s a !reat crowd& some comin! and others !oin!H lines of cord
mar, out paths in all directions amon! the women& and stran!ers pass alon! them to ma,e their
choice. A woman who has once ta,en her seat is not allowed to return home till one of the
stran!ers throws a sil1er coin into her lap& and ta,es her with him be(ond hol( !round. hen he
throws the coin he sa(s these wordsG The !oddess %(litta prosper thee. (Aphrodite is
called %(litta OPan A,,adian title of *shtar meanin! she who brin!s about birth Q b( the
Ass(rians.) The sil1er coin ma( be of an( si-eH it cannot be refused& for that is forbidden b( the
law& since once thrown it is sacred. The woman !oes with the first man who throws her mone(&
and rejects no one. hen she has !one with him& and so satisfied the !oddess& she returns home&
and from that time forth no !ift howe1er !reat will pre1ail with her. #uch of the women are as
tall and beautiful are soon released& but others who are u!l( ha1e to sta( a lon! time before the(
can fulfill the law. #ome ha1e waited three or four (ears in the precinct. A custom 1er( much li,e
this is found also in certain parts of the island of 2(prus. (/erodotus& 78F9 O7BI9QG 7?K<B& trans.
5eor!e =awlinson)
The 5ree, !eo!rapher #trabo repeated the tail some four centuries later and the !ree, satirist
6ucian described a similar practice in a second centur( 2E temple of Astarte in 6ebanon.
('ertman& 9??E& p798)
The passa!e b( /erodotus was !otten out of 6ife in Ancient %esopotamia b( #tephen
'ertman and was not cut for len!th. The parenthetical citation was ,ept intact in case someone
wanted to chec, 'ertman for accurac(. * also wanted it ,nown that his cop( of /erodotus was
somethin! of an old translation.
*n the abo1e section /erodotus describes a practice in a sensationalist fashion from a 5ree, point
of 1iew. e ,now enou!h about 5ree, culture and %esopotamian culture to sa( what !ods he
would ha1e been tal,in! about. The trouble is that he composed this piece for entertainment
purposes& and as such he was free to embellish to his hearts content.
A few hundred (ears after /erodotus& #trabo wrote about a similar practice. This howe1er is not
an independent 1erification of the practice. #trabo was almost certainl( familiar with /erodotus"s
wor,& so it is unclear whether he was simpl( parrotin! the earlier piece. /e would ha1e had no
moti1e to do otherwise.
6i,ewise 6ucian is not a reliable source because he was a satirist. /e wasn"t e1en !oin! for
accurate an( more than modern satirists li,e %ichael %oor are. 6ucian would ha1e been tr(in!
to ma,e a point rather than simpl( to rela( facts. /e had a personal a!enda and mi!ht not ha1e
had an( first hand ,nowled!e whatsoe1er.
This practice is part of what people thin, of when the( thin, of sacred prostitution. *f that
practice did in fact ta,e place it would ha1e been rather late in the historical record. *f it too,
place late in time& then it mi!ht not be representati1e of the practices of the 4ld 'ab(lonians or
#umerians.
'ertman does !o on to tal, about some of the character of *shtar + *nanna in relation to sacred
prostitution.
L. . . the concept of sacred prostitution would ha1e been consistent with the character of *shtar& a
!oddess of carnal pleasure who used men and se. for her own hi!her purposes.L ('ertman& 9??E&
p798)
/e thin,s that& while we don"t ,now whether the practice too, place& we do ,now that it would
ha1e been ,eepin! with the nature of the !oddess *nanna + *shtar. *n other words if there is no
e1idence to the contrar( we lose nothin! b( acceptin! that it mi!ht ha1e ta,en place.
$resumabl( howe1er the later %esopotamian law codes mi!ht ha1e said somethin! on the
subject if the practice was indeed mandated b( law. *f it was wide spread throu!hout the re!ion&
as the 5ree, sources would su!!est& then the practice should ha1e been recorded b( some local
source.
#ince this was rather late in %esopotamian historical records we ha1e a much !reater chance that
someone would ha1e recorded somethin! somewhere. e should be able to see somethin! about
the practice in %esopotamian sources. There would ha1e been re!ulatin! bodies and ta. records.
The trouble here is that this is simpl( one thin! that can be called temple prostitution.
%esopotamia had a bit more of a de1eloped concept of prostitution than we do toda(. The(
differenced between 1ar(in! t(pes of paid se. pur1e(ors much more than we do in the En!lish
lan!ua!e.
L0or the prostitutes of and courtesans of the female se.& we ha1e at least half a do-en different
desi!nations of these !roups. #ome stress their reli!ious characterG the qasistu were the
consecrated()) the istaritu , devoted to Ishtar, emphasi-ed the lin,s to their di1ine patroness. e
often find or!ani-ations of kulmasitu& whose name means nothin! to us. The Kezertu
undoutedle( owe their name to their hairst(le & which was curled (kezeru) ... 6i,ewise the
samhatu seems to allude to a certain lu.ur( of dress of the ladies that was somewhat flash( or
sluttish. The most common term that seems to ha1e indicated the professionals of free lo1e as a
!roup& is harimtu& which stresses the fact that the( were were apart from others (haradmu: to
separate). *t is noteworth( that the term is found re!ularl( in connection with the !oddess *shtar&
indicatin! that the( also had her as a standard bearer or model. ('ottero& 7889& 7BB<7B8.)
This means that there were prostitutes that were connected to the temple. *t does not mean that
the se. acts that the( performed were in an( wa( more sacred than those performed b(
prostitutes that weren"t associated with the temple& or e1en indi1iduals who were ha1in!
e.tramarital se. without bein! married.
*n other words *nanna ma( indeed ha1e been a prostitute !oddess& and she ma( ha1e been the
patron !oddess and protector of prostitutes& but this does not mean that prostitution was
considered to be a hol( dut( that members of the temple were required to perform.
A!ain remember that the temple was the lar!est and most di1erse financial institution in an(
!i1en %esopotamian cit(. *f the rest of the cit( that was not under the umbrella of the temple
were to simpl( 1anish the temple would ha1e been able to function comfortabl( independentl(.
This in fact led to mista,en estimates of the si-e of #umerian cities in the earl( da(s of
Ass(riolo!(.
6et us presume howe1er that sacred prostitution did indeed happen in *nanna"s temples. *nanna
wasn"t the onl( deit( that was worshiped e1en in the cit( of >ru,. hat held true for the temple
of *nanna& a temple specificall( called the di1ine ta1ern& would not necessaril( be true of temples
across the rest of #umer and %esopotamia in !eneral.
*n post #ar!onic times there was somethin! that has been called The 5reat =ite or
The #acred %arria!e. This is where the hi!h priestess of *nanna had se. once a (ear with
the ruler of the cit(. The ,in! would ta,e on the roll of the !od 3umu-i for this ritual.
This was primaril( a political maneu1er. The secular leader was tied to the lar!est or!ani-ation in
the cit( and too, on authorit( o1er both of them. *n addition to this it was also a fertilit( ritual.
3umu-i was associated with shepherdin! and the reju1enation of 1ine crops& and b( ta,in! on
the roll of 3umu-i he was shown to the people to be the source of prosperit( for the entire cit(.
This practice is not e1idence of sacred prostitution. The priestesses of *nanna was performin! a
se.ual ritual and was not !ettin! paid for the se. alone. The se. was not the important feature of
the ritual. The connection between the ,in! and the temple and the ritual reju1enation of the land
was far more important.
*t also is not e1idence of much of an(thin! in $re #ar!onic times. The ritual didn"t e.ist prior to
the #ar!onic d(nast(. *t can"t be used as proof that the( did similar thin!s before then.
#o here we ha1e to sa( that the jur( is out on the subject of the #acred $rostitute. The
ancient %esopotamian sources aren"t reall( in question. *t is the e.ternal sources that we are
unsure of. The 5ree,s were loo,in! at thin!s from a 5ree, point of 1iew& and we are loo,in! at
thin!s from the point of 1iew of modern estern En!lish spea,ers.
e are left with an understandin! of what the ancients actuall( did rather than an( clear
understandin! of the concept of #acred $rostitution . The fault ma( not lie in our
understandin! of the ancient te.ts. The fault ma( simpl( be found in that we do not ha1e a clear
!rasp of what we mean when we use the words #acred and $rostitute to!ether.