Mesopotamian Cosmic Geography

Overview

In this comprehensive study, Wayne Horowitz examines all of the extant Mesopotamian texts relating to the ideas of the physical universe and its constituent parts—heaven, earth, the subterranean waters, and the underworld. He shows that the Mesopotamian view of the universe, although somewhat discordant, remained fairly constant over more than 2,500 years.

Horowitz surveys the various sources for Mesopotamian cosmic geography, including mythological and literary texts, as well as the famous “Babylonian Map of the World” and various astrological and astronomical texts. According to this ancient worldview, the universe was built by the gods in earliest times and was held together by cosmic bonds. But beyond this general notion, Horowitz discovers a significant variety of cosmological views in texts of different genres and from different periods. In addition, the available evidence leaves a number of problems unsolved. What are the bounds of the universe? What is beyond the limits of the universe? Horowitz explores some of the speculations made by these ancient people.

In the second section of the book, Horowitz discusses each of the various regions and their names in various locales and time periods, drawing on the disparate sources to show where there is coherence and where there is difference of perspective. In addition, he discusses all of the names for the different parts of the universe and examines the geographies of each region.

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