
Artist's commentary
The Tablet of Destinies
In the distant past, in the age of the old gods, when the king of the gods was Enlil, not Marduk, there was a monstrous bird that the Akkadians called Anzû.
Its Sumerian name was Imdugud.
It was a demon of storms, and a god who was a manifestation of strong winds and great clouds.
This monstrous bird served Enlil, but one day, it stole a great treasure while its master was bathing.
And when it did, all creation was shrouded in darkness, and the world was threatened with destruction.
The great treasure that Anzû stole was the Tablet of Destinies, the ultimate symbol of royal authority over the world and its gods.
And so, a creature like Anzû should never have been allowed to touch it.
Not because it threatened the world with destruction, no, but because the royal authority would not answer to a being that did not have any right to it.
And so the hero god Ninurta, son of Enlil, stole back the Tablet and the world was restored.
And many years later, when the age of man was at its peak, the great treasure was brought to the golden city.
What would the raging storm god Anzû think?
What would one who could not seize royal authority think when the King of Heroes, a descendant of the gods, managed what it couldn't?