The Run of King Shulgi of Ur
Explore More
Looking for more content like this? Explore other texts in the Ancient Near East collection or try searching for similar themes in our tag library.
Summary
Date: 2000 B.C.E.
A Praise Poem of Shulgi (c. 2020-2000 BCE) is an ancient Sumerian document celebrating the famous run of 200 miles (321.8 km) in one day made by the king Shulgi of Ur (r. 2029-1982 BCE) to distinguish his reign by officiating at the religious festivals in the cities of Nippur and Ur on the same day. The piece was either commissioned or written by Shulgi who is depicted throughout as "a mighty man," swift as an owl or falcon, determined as a mule, fierce as a lion, husband of the goddess Inanna, who has done what no king before him had ever even attempted.
More Books
In the same collection