Or… how to bury a queen. For those of you who think there might be
a slight dichotomy here… I am here to tell you that in the most
obscure statements lie the seeds of utmost clarity. I shall proceed.
The city is Ur. The country is Southern Mesopotamia–the
birthplace… by the way–of Abraham. The period… 2600 to 2400 BC.
The time has come to bury Queen Puabi. She is decked out in all her
finery. Wreaths and flowers form her gold headdress. She wears a
cloak of gold beads and precious stones. She sports gold pins and
amulets. A gold cup is nestled in her hands. The dead get thirsty too
you know. Lying on a bier she is carried in all her royal splendor
down the ramp of her grave pit and placed into her chamber. Around
her are placed some of her prized possessions. A headdress of Lapis
Lazuli beads. Some cockle shells filled with cosmetics in case she
should find herself suddenly away of some slight deterioration of
skin tone. This happens occasionally with the passing of time. And
there was more.
There was a wooden sledge laden with gold and silver and drawn by
two oxen placed just outside her chamber. Once the sledge was in
place… the oxen were killed. They would accompany her on all her
deathly adventures. And with oxen were the grooms who had led to
beasts deep into the earth’s bowels. And with the grooms… a dozen
young women wearing headdresses and necklaces of precious stones. And
then three more maidens made their way into the queen’s chambers. And
then five soldiers made their way down the ramp leading to the royal
burial chamber. And then… the drank the draught given to them… a
drugged potion that would render them unconscious as the earth
covered them and they were buried alive to be with their queen.
Civilization was still in its earlier stages. The HMO’s were still
covering the medical costs for drugs needed to bolster oneself for
the oncoming roll of the death drums. Today these drugs would be
curtailed in the quest of cost-effective medical treatments based on
necessity. True cruelty would soon enough herald the oncoming
onslaught of pragmatism.
And then… many many years later… all this was uncovered. And
treasures were discovered. In one there were six soldiers and 68
court ladies. And they also found a goat. A wooden goat. Covered in
gold and Lapis Lazuli. A great statue of the beast standing on its
hind legs to eat a golden bush. What a sight. What a goat. What
ultimate devotion was required from those who served royalty.
All that said… I feel it only fair to show you a little memento of
those days. A beast perhaps. A goat perhaps. Gilded and maybe
gelded… upright… chewing golden fodder… with no other hopes
than to just be… for a little while longer.
Ah… the folly that comes from the hopes of reflected glory to be
gleaned from serving society’s elite. Well… at least we don’t make
these mistakes today… do we?
For those of you who are new to this thing called Tidbits…may I
direct you to my home page at www.tyler-adam.com where you will
scroll down the left side menu till you get to the area that says
Current Tidbits… and then click on it in order to view an upright
Gilded Goat chewing on gilded leaves… a treasure found in the tomb
of Queen Puabi.
And there ya have it.
That’s it for this week folks.
Catch you all next week.
Benjamin Mark