The Role of Rituals in Warfare during the Neo-Assyrian Period
In imperial Assyria during the first millennium BCE, ritual pervaded every aspect of life. As the link between the divine realm and the earthly one, the king's primary duty was to discover the gods' will and enact it. To this end, an array of ritual experts in the art of reading and reacti...
| Published in: | Religion compass |
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| Main Author: | |
| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | Drawer...
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| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
Wiley-Blackwell
[2016]
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| In: |
Religion compass
Year: 2016, Volume: 10, Issue: 9, Pages: 219-229 |
| Standardized Subjects / Keyword chains: | B
Assyria
/ Warfare
/ Ritual
/ History 912 BC-627 BC
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| RelBib Classification: | AD Sociology of religion; religious policy AG Religious life; material religion BC Ancient Orient; religion KBL Near East and North Africa TC Pre-Christian history ; Ancient Near East |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (Verlag) Volltext (doi) |
| Summary: | In imperial Assyria during the first millennium BCE, ritual pervaded every aspect of life. As the link between the divine realm and the earthly one, the king's primary duty was to discover the gods' will and enact it. To this end, an array of ritual experts in the art of reading and reacting to divine signs aided the king. Due to the risk involved, warfare required particular attention from the experts during every phase of operations. Based on evidence from cuneiform sources (ritual texts, royal inscriptions, and letters) and monumental art (narrative sculptured reliefs), this article focuses on how ritual activity at each campaign stage affected different audiences, including the enemy, the king's officials, and the Assyrian army. |
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| ISSN: | 1749-8171 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: Religion compass
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1111/rec3.12206 |