Bonekickers

History behind ‘The Cradle of Civilisation’: Marduk, Tiamat and the Tablet of Destinies

Marduk was one of the ancient deities of Mesopotamia, but had a strong association with Babylon and the lower Euphrates area. Marduk became the supreme deity in the pantheon of Mesopotamian gods, and his deeds were recorded in a series of creation poems, most famous being the Enuma Elis, composed about the eighteenth century BC. These tell of his birth, battles with other gods, and his ultimate victory.

One of the key episodes of Marduk's conflict with the gods was with Tiamat, a primeval goddess, asociated with the sea, and sometimes identified by sea serpents, snakes or dragons. In the epics, Tiamat possessed the Tablet of Destinies, that contained prophesies for the future; whoever possessed it would rule the world. It was represented as a clay tablet with a cuneiform inscription. Marduk was able to retrieve the Tablet in the battle and so claim his position as the supreme deity on the Mesopotamian pantheon.

These myths and stories need to be viewed alongside the various political and intellectual struggles in ancient Mesopotamia between the various city-states. The emergence of Marduk as the most important god reflected the rise of Babylon in the second millenium BC, in which the past deeds of the gods were seen as prophesies for the future destiny of mankind.