Shamash

Shamash In Near Eastern mythology (Babylonian-Assyrian), sun god, (originally female) god of justice and healing, his consort was the goddess Aa, and his attendants were Kittu (truth) and Mesharu (righteousness). He appears in the epic poem Gilgamesh as a friend of the hero. He is portrayed in the relief atop the stele of Hammurabi in the Louvre in Paris as the divine source and justification for the laws that were codified under Hammurabi and given
to his subjects to obey. Among his epithets were Babbar (shiner) and Ma-banda-anna (sky ship).

SEE ALSO:

• Aa
• Gilgamesh

SOURCE:

Encyclopedia of World Mythology and Legend, Third Edition – Written by Anthony S. Mercatante & James R. Dow– Copyright © 2009 by Anthony S. Mercatante

NOTE:

Since the Sumerians, Akkadians, Babylonians, Assyrians and others all shared essentially the same pantheon and belief systms, these articles are all combined under the Mesopotamian mythology / deities / legendary creatures category.