Ennigaldi-Nanna

Ennigaldi was a daughter of Nabonidus, who ruled as king of Babylon from 556 to 539 BC. Nabonidus was genealogically unconnected to previous Babylonian kings but he might have been married to a daughter of the previous ruler Nebuchadnezzar II (605–562 BC), which would make Ennigaldi and her siblings into Nebuchadnezzar's grandchildren. The name of their mother is unknown but she may have been the figure remembered in later tradition under the name Nitocris. Nabonidus had great interest in archaeology. He conducted extensive excavations, included more allusions to past rulers in his writings than most other kings, and is the earliest known person in history to attempt to chronologically date archaeological artifacts. Ennigaldi's interest in archaeology and history probably stemmed from her father. == Career ==

High priestess In 547 BC, The entu was devoted to the moon-god Sin (known as Nanna in Sumerian times) and was the highest-ranking priestess in the country, supposedly divinely elected by the god himself and revealed through omens. All known entu were of royal blood, having been sisters or daughters of kings. Nabonidus was supposedly inspired to restore the office after a partial lunar eclipse in 554 BC, which he interpreted as an omen, and the find of a stele created by Nebuchadnezzar I showing the investiture of that king's daughter as entu. According to Nabonidus, he selected Ennigaldi as entu only after having learnt through lengthy divination that she was the choice of Sin. founded a museum containing artifacts from past Mesopotamian civilizations, located about five hundred feet southeast of the ziggurat. though the collection covered a timespan of about 1,500 years (–600 BC). Among the items on display were artifacts that had once belonged to Nebuchadnezzar II, The museum included clay tablets and cones with inscriptions containing descriptions of the objects (i.e. museum labels) written in three different languages, Ennigaldi's museum ceased operations at the latest around 500 BC; == Legacy ==

The ruins of Ennigaldi's museum were discovered by the British archaeologist Leonard Woolley during excavations of the Ur temple complex in 1925. The neatly arranged objects of various different ages allowed Woolley to quickly identify the site as the remains of a museum. == Notes ==