| Bull of Heaven | |
|---|---|
 | |
|
Other Names |
Gugalanna |
|
First Appearance |
Mesopotamian Mythology |
|
Created by |
Unknown |
Origin[]
The Bull of Heaven is a destructive celestial beast from Mesopotamian mythology, best known from the Epic of Gilgamesh. In the earlier Sumerian version, the goddess Inanna sends the Bull to attack Gilgamesh for unclear reasons.
In the later and more complete Akkadian account (Tablet VI), the goddess Ishtar, the East Semitic counterpart of Inanna, becomes enraged when Gilgamesh rejects her advances. She demands the Bull of Heaven from her father Anu, threatening to unleash the dead if he refuses. Anu reluctantly gives her the Bull, which she sends to devastate Uruk.
The Bull wreaks massive destruction, but Gilgamesh and Enkidu kill it together with Enkidu restraining it while Gilgamesh delivers the killing blow. Enkidu then hurls the Bull’s thigh at Ishtar in defiance.
Because they killed a divine creature, the gods decree that Enkidu must die, setting his fatal illness into motion. His death becomes the major turning point of the epic, driving Gilgamesh into a quest to confront his mortality.
The Bull of Heaven was associated with the constellation Taurus, and the myth may have had astronomical significance. Elements of the story echo later Near Eastern and Mediterranean literature, including Ugaritic myths, the biblical tale of Joseph, and Greek epics.
Public Domain Appearances[]
All published appearances of Bull of Heaven from before January 1, 1931 are public domain in the US.
Some notable appearances are listed below:
Public Domain Literary Appearances[]
- Gilgamesh and the Bull of Heaven
- Epic of Gilgamesh