in Mesopotamia. Such grave goods most frequently include beads, pins, other small
pieces of jewelry, shells for cosmetics, and, more rarely, seals. These tend to be
interpreted as female burials. Burials of male individuals tend to show grave goods such
as weapons, albeit only occasionally, and even less frequently tools associated with the
dead person’s trade. These were always found either next to or on top of the skeletal
remains (for an overview see Pollock 1999 : 213 – 214 ; Eickhoff 1993 : tabs. 16 , 18 ).
However, whether such grave goods reflect everyday reality is another matter altogether
(see a critical discussion in Pollock 1999 : 197 , 213 ; also see Crass 2001 ; Arnold 2006 :
150 – 152 ). For example, visual representations from the Early Dynastic period show
none of the rich jewelry that was found in the burials of high-ranking women or in
some of the “co-interments” in the Royal Cemetery. For this reason, we should consider
that factors other than markers of gender or status could have played a role in the
preparation of the corpse for the funeral, such as religious and metaphysical ideas (see,
for example, Barrett 2007 ; Katz 2005 : 55 , 65 ; Katz 2007 : 171 – 172 ).
The reform texts of Uru’inimgina, the last ruler of the first dynasty of Lagash (c. 2350
BC), mention a certain lu’umummain the context of regulations for a cemetery burial.
His specific function remains unclear (Cooper 1986 : La 9. 1 .), but Hrusˇka ( 1973 : 113 )
cautiously considered whether lu’umummamay have been someone who washed and
cleaned the corpses. In many cultures, the cleaning of the corpse and the subsequent
anointing initiate the funerary rites. We may therefore tentatively assume such
practices for ancient Mesopotamia (cf. Winter 1999 : 249 ; Katz 2007 : 170 ).
After the cleaning, the body was dressed. This is reflected in the archaeological
record by the large amount of pins and other objects such as jewelry, seals or weapons,
which were found lying on top of the skeletons in the Royal Cemetery as well as in
other places. In the Royal Cemetery, Woolley was also able to identify remains of
fabric in the graves PG 357 and RT 1237 (Woolley 1934 : 427 , 117 , 121 ). A document
from Adab, which records among other things grave goods for the funeral of a temple
administrator and his wife, also mentions a number of fabrics (Gelb, Steinkeller,
Whiting 1991 : 101 i 9 –ii 1 , ii 13 –iii 1 ). Therefore, the often repeated hypothesis that
the dead were buried nude in Mesopotamia–based mainly on several passages
from the myth Inanna’s Descent to the Netherworld–is not supported by evidence
from administrative texts and the archaeological record (see also Katz 1995 ;
2005 : 66 ).
The findings from the Royal Cemetery show that decorating the heads of both male
and female corpses was a central part in preparing the corpse for its burial, although
some differences according to gender can be observed. The sets of headdresses found
in the main female burials of the Royal Tombs, and less frequently in the female burials
of the “private cemetery,” consisted of golden and silver hairbands, elaborate wreaths
made from precious metals and semi-precious stones, hair combs of precious metal
decorated with rosettes, golden or silver hair circlets, and golden earrings in half-moon
shape (Woolley 1934 : 240 – 243 ; Vogel 2008 : 409 – 426 ). Many of the women who were
buried in the “co-interments” were equipped with the same pieces of jewelry (Gansell
2007 ; Pollock 1991 a: 372 – 376 , 1983 : 157 ). On a few occasions, the excavators found
brîms(headbands) consisting of large elongated golden beads and semi-precious stones
with the male burials. Very rarely these headbands were found with the male “co-
interments” (Woolley 1934 : 234 – 244 ; Vogel 2008 : 434 – 447 ). In addition, the male
burials yielded tiaras made from precious metals and, in one instance, a golden helmet
–– Death and burial ––