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280 his righteousness he dirtied." Therefore, they decreed for him the "death of a sinner." The year was 2048 B.C. Shulgi*s successor on the throne of Ur was his son Amar-Sin. Though the first two years of his reign were recalled by their war- fare, three years of peace did follow. But in the sixth year an upris- ing needed subduing in the northern district of Ashur, and in the seventh year—2041 B.C.—a major military campaign was required to suppress four western localities and "their lands." The campaign, apparently, was not too successful, for it was not followed by the customary bestowal of titles on the king by Nannar. Instead we find that Amar-Sin turned his attention to Eridu—Enki's city!—establishing there a royal residence and as- suming there priestly functions. This twist in religious filialtics might have been prompted by the practical desire to gain control of Eridu's shipyards; for in the following (ninth) year, Amar-Sin set sail to the same "Place of the Ramp" where Shulgi had gone. But reaching the "Land of Flying for Life" he got no farther: he died of a scorpion's (or snake's) bite. He was replaced on the throne by his brother Shu-Sin. The nine years of his reign (2038-2030 B.C.), though recording two military forays against northern localities, were more conspicuous by their defensive measures. These included the strengthening of the Wall of the West against the Amorites and the construction of two ships: the "Great Ship" and the "Ship of the Abzu." It looks as though Shu-Sin was preparing an escape by sea... . When the next (and last) king of Ur, Ibbi-Sin, ascended the throne, raiders from the west were clashing with the Elamite mer- cenaries in Mesopotamia proper. Soon Sumer's heartland was un- der siege; the people of Ur and Nippur were huddled behind protective walls, and the influence of Nannar had shrunk to a small enclave. Waiting in the wings, as once before, was Marduk. Believing that his time for supremacy had finally come, he left his land of ex- ile and led his followers back to Babylon. And then Awesome Weapons were unleashed, and disaster— unlike any that befell mankind since the Deluge—struck. THE WARS OF GODS AND MEN