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Patron deity of Borsippa, god of wisdom and writing. In the first millennium BCE, Nabu is one of the most important Mesopotamian deities. First a minister of Marduk, he later becomes his coregent at the head of the pantheon. Nabu's influence on Mesopotamian culture is significant well into the later periods. Nabu appears in the Bible as Nebo.
Functions
Late Babylonian stamp seal depicting symbols of Nabu and Marduk on a protective dragon. British Museum BM 108849. Nabu is the patron deity of Borsippa as well as the minister and scribe of Marduk. Nabu's most important scribal duty was effected annually on the 11th day of Nisannu (the first month of the year), marking the end of the aktu TT -festival: having settled the fate of the land with Marduk whom he saved, Nabu inscribed it on the Tablet of Destinies, in accordance with the creation myth Enma eli TT . Probably as a consequence of his scribal role, Nabu soon became god of writing, progressively taking over from the goddess Nidaba in that function. As god of writing, Nabu was also the patron of scribes, commonly invoked in the colophons of texts. From god of writing Nabu became lord of wisdom, thus inheriting a characteristic of his divine ancestor Enki/Ea who was traditionally accepted as the father of Marduk. In the Neo-Babylonian period Nabu was on a par with Bel/Marduk as joint heads of the pantheon and co-rulers of the universe (Pomponio 1978: 100).
result of Muati's syncretism with Nabu. Nidaba is occasionally associated with Nabu as co-resident of the bt mummu of Assur, but she is presented more as an homologous deity than as a spouse. Nabu is syncretised with Ninurta, his relationship with Marduk mirroring that of Ninurta with Enlil (Pomponio 1978: 194-5). He is also associated with amaand Sin through his cosmological symbolism of light and darkness (Pomponio 1978: 200). Astronomicaly he can be identified with the planet Mercury (Pomponio 1978: 202-5). Nabu is so closely associated with Marduk that he sometimes shares his attributes (see for example hymn III.45.e in Foster 2005: 702-3).
Cult Places
Nabu's main cult centre was the Ezida temple in Borsippa. His cult was also strongly linked to Babylon since his cult statue was paraded between Borsippa and Babylon during the aktu TT -festival. The formula for king Samsu-ditana's 17th regnal year mentions a shrine dedicated to the cult of Nabu in Esagil and records that a statue of Nabu was brought into the temple of Marduk (cf. Pomponio 1998-2001: 17), so this date can be taken as terminus ante quem for the earliest cultic manifestation of Nabu in Babylon. In the Neo-Assyrian period, temples of Nabu are attested at Assur, Nineveh, Kalhu, Dur-arrukin, Kurba'il and Guzana. Outside Mesopotamia, eastwards, a temple was built for Nabu at Dur-Untash in Elam. There is archaeological evidence that the cult of Nabu spread as far north as Nuzi and as far west as Ugarit.
millennium CE.
Iconography
The main symbol of Nabu is a single wedge, vertical or horizontal, sometimes resting on a clay tablet or a dais. This wedge represents the writing stylus and probably by its shape is also meant to suggest cuneiform writing. Nabu and the writing stylus are occasionally shown on top of a protective muhuu dragon (Seidl 1998-2001). Nabu is typically depicted wearing a long fringed robe under a slit skirt.