The Uruk Prophecy: a New Assessment

The Uruk Prophecy, a literary prophetic text in Akkadian from fifth century BCE Uruk, predicts the sequential rise of evil kings to the eventual rise of the righteous king of Uruk and his everlasting dynasty. This study is dedicated to an exploration of the Uruk Prophecy’s date, historical context, and purpose, as well as to some of its literary features. While previous studies have focused on the allegedly historical references therein and, accordingly, interpreted the Uruk Prophecy as an ex eventu text predicting the rise of historical figures, the present study posits it contains a genuine prophecy, reflecting the unrealistic hope for the rise of a Urukean king to rule over the four quarters of the land.