WOMEN UNDER AKKADIAN RULEDuring his reign, Sargon of Akkad (c 2324 – 2279 ) conquered Sumer and established a
unified, centralized state with Akkad as the political and administrative center.
Different mentalities may have been one reason for recurrent revolts of Sumerian
cities during the 140 years of Akkadian rule. For Sumerians law and order were impor-
tant, everything in the universe including humans had its rightful place and purpose
based on divine design. While Sumerians were poetic, evident in the use of meta-
phoric language, Akkadians were more dramatic, temperamental, and individualistic.
Sumerian popular religion was local and centered on one city god or goddess, Akkadian
religion was more universal but less structured (A. Westenholz 1993 ).
Akkadian kings controlled temples and their wealth by establishing their daughters
as high priestesses of major Sumerian gods, but did not impose their religion. Royal
princes became governors, and the kings also relied on a new class of loyal Akkadian
notables and royal servants. Although Sargon claimed he appointed Akkadian gover-
nors (ensís) throughout Sumer, according to later records most ensís of Sumerian cities
were local but subservient to Akkadians. When a city revolted free men and women
were forced into labor as state dependents, or for Akkadian masters. In Akkadian
society, gradations of status were important. Economic change is attested by unifi-
cation of measures and weights, new materials and technologies. Further, agricultural
land was purchased or confiscated and largely redistributed to Akkadians. In Sumer,
large estates were now owned by Akkadians and more land was in private hands than
previously.
Royal women of the Akkadian dynasty had access to resources, held land, conducted
business, dedicated votive gifts, and traveled in high style. Royal marriages were monog-
amous as were those of ordinary people. Most famous is the en-priestess of Nanna at
Ur, Enheduana (Figure 12. 1 ), daughter of Sargon, who was also a poet. It is remarkable
that from the Akkadian period onward we have only statues of royal women and
priestesses (Figure 19. 7 ), whereas votive gifts were also donated by other women.
Women are rarely named in legal documents, but more women who did not belong
to the royal family or were priestesses owned a seal. According to inscriptions, they were
predominantly women in the service of an elite woman (for Akkadian seal images, see
Boehmer 1965 ; Collon 1982 ; for inscriptions, Edzard 1968 ). Occasionally a couple is
depicted, as on the seal of a translator of Meluhha whose wife stands behind him
(Boehmer 1965 : fig. 557 ). Anonymous women seal owners are shown in presentation
scenes, or as elite woman receiving other women (audience theme), or in ritual scenes
with a palm tree. Mothers are more visible, as on the seal of a wet-nurse accompanied
by the mother of her charge (Figure 18. 6 ), or in images with mother and child (Collon
1982 : no. 142 ); women are also shown serving or entertaining other women (Asher-
Greve 2006 : figs. 15 , 16 ; J. G. Westenholz 2011 ). But increased visibility of individual
women is deceptive because, compared to men, few women owned a seal. The estimate
based on inscribed seals that roughly 5 percent of Akkadian seals were owned by
women may be too low because most seals are not inscribed and, as in the Early
Dynastic period, woman also owned seals with the same themes as men so ownership
is impossible to determine from the theme alone.
Economic agency of some women was substantial, they could make investments; for
example, Ama-é was custodian of the family finances and leased land whereas her
–– Women and agency ––