Ishtar | Victoria Olt

2020

Acrylic and handmade watercolor on paper.

18 x 24 in
46 x 61 cm + frame included for free in shipments within Estonia

} Ishtar {

Ishtar was one of the most revered Goddesses of Ancient Mesopotamia. She was the Goddess of love, war and fertility. Her origins date back even earlier to the Sumer civilization (c. 4500-1900 BC), where she was worshiped as Inanna. Her husband was the god Dumuzid (God of shepherds). She is associated with planet Venus and believed to be responsible for all life. She appears in many stories and legends, but she is probably most famous for her part in the Epic of Gilgamesh (which is one of the oldest surviving works of literature). In the epic, Ishtar falls in love with the King Gilgamesh, who refuses her - not wanting to be turned to cattle, like most of Ishtar’s lovers before him.

This enrages Ishtar and she asks her father Anu to send the Bull of Heaven to punish Gilgamesh. Gilgamesh defeats the Bull together with his companion Enkidu, for which the Gods condemn Enkidu to death. Following this event, Gilgamesh starts fearing his own death and so begins his quest for immortality.