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Sumer and Babylon · Lugal-e (The Exploits of Ninurta)

Sharur, the weapon that talks

EvidenceDocumentedThe text exists and is quoted from a published translation. What it describes is a separate question.What this means
ReferenceLugal-e (The Exploits of Ninurta)
Writtenc. 2100 BCE
SetMythic time
Ninurta's weapon Sharur flies ahead to scout the enemy Asag, reports back to him with advice, and fights on its own.

Summary by the editors. Translation: Summary in my own words

Read it literally

A sentient weapon that flies on reconnaissance. A drone with an AI.

What scholars say

Sumerian epic.

Looks like technology From the sky

Quick answers about Lugal-e

Where is Lugal-e found?

Lugal-e (The Exploits of Ninurta) (Sumer and Babylon). Translation quoted: Summary in my own words.

When was Lugal-e written?

c. 2100 BCE.

What do scholars say about Lugal-e?

Sumerian epic.

Rabbit holes in this passage

GodNinurtaThe warrior son of Enlil, who fought a stone demon with a talking weapon and turned a battlefield into irrigated farmland.ObjectSharurNinurta's weapon that speaks, flies off to scout the enemy, and reports back with advice. Literature's oldest talking weapon.

Sources

  1. The Exploits of Ninurta (Lugal-e), ETCSL t.1.6.2, University of OxfordPrimary text

Scholarly dates are rounded. The wording follows the named public-domain translation.

Updated