Sumerian accounts of devastating Meteorite impact.

There was in recent years consideration of a meteorite impact during the Bronze age at Umm al Binni in Eastern Mesopotamia, i want to suggest here that this possibly related to the exploits of Ninurta mythos and his destruction of the Asag Mountain, but also the texts indicate devastation in the marshlands were a 3.4 km impact crater is postulated to be found.



Postulated Impact Crater

Because of the extremely young nature of the sediments in the marshlands of the Tigris Euphrates confluence area, it is difficult to find a geological explanation for the shape of the Umm al Binni structure.

Master (2001, 2002) speculated on the possible consequences of this structure, if it was indeed of impact origin, for Bronze-Age Mesopotamia, and suggested that it might possibly be linked with an ~2350 BCE “ash” layer found at Tell Leilan (Syria) and in sea sediment core off Oman, re-interpreted by Marie-Agnes Courty to be an impact fallout layer.

Master also suggested that an impact-generated tsunami could have been responsible for the Babylonian and Sumerian “flood” legends

So i considered here in Mesopotamian representations of the Perseid meteor stream that this was represented as under the control of Ninurta, his tradition contains the best preserved accounts of destruction wrought upon the Earth on an enormous scale, they are detailed and graphic and given the suggested dates for the Umm al Binni impact could be based on direct eye witness testimony.

An enormous hurricane, irresistible, went before the hero, stirred up the dust, caused the dust to settle, levelled high and low, filled the holes. It caused a rain of coals and flaming fires; the fire consumed men. It overturned tall trees by their trunks, reducing the forests to heaps, Earth put her hands on her heart and cried harrowingly; the Tigris was muddied, disturbed, cloudy, stirred up.

The birds there tried to lift their heads to fly away, but their wings trailed on the ground. The storm flooded out the fish there in the subterranean waters, their mouths snapped at the air. It reduced the animals of the open country to firewood, roasting them like locusts. It was a deluge rising and disastrously ruining the mountains.

Like an accursed storm, it howled in a raucous voice; like a gigantic snake, it roared at the Land. It dried up the waters of the mountains, dragged away the tamarisks, tore the flesh of the Earth and covered her with painful wounds. It set fire to the reedbeds, bathed the sky in blood, turned it inside out; it dispersed the people there. At that moment, on that day, the fields became black scum, across the whole extent of the horizon, reddish like purple dye -- truly it was so!

Exploits of Ninurta



The exploits of Ninurta account would suggest that the greater impact was in the mountains to the East of the Umm al Binni strike, the destruction of the Asag mountain, though there is concern also at destruction and devastation within the wetlands and the Tigris is recorded as having been greatly disturbed as would be the case with a lesser impact also in in that region.

A 3.4 km diameter circular structure, discovered in southern Iraq on published satellite imagery by Master (2001), was interpreted to be a possible meteorite impact crater, based on its morphology (its approximately polygonal outline, an apparent raised rim, and a surrounding annulus), which differed greatly from the highly irregular outlines of surrounding lakes. The structure, which is situated in the Al ’Amarah marshes, near theconfluence of the Tigris and the Euphrates Rivers

In this case then you have the graphic evidence of Ninurta being associated with the Perseid meteor stream on seals, in the context of storm like induced death and destruction, the text describing in detail the storm onslaught of Ninurta that was considered to have destroyed a Mountain to the East and also wrought devastation in the Marshlands, but none of this has been previously considered in association with the suggested Umm al Binni, and it really needs to be.

The account continues in relating Ninurta's exploits against various types of stones and minerals, his smashing and grinding to like flour of these but also how all the various types could be best used, because after all if a mountain is destroyed then that provides a lot of stone fragments to be utilized, a natural consequence then and follow on from the destruction of the mountain Asag, which like the stones was held to have been rebellious.

In the mountains, the day came to an end. The sun bade it farewell he washed the blood from his clothes, the hero wiped his brow, he made a victory-chant over the dead body. When he had brought the Asag which he had slain to the condition of a ship wrecked by a tidal wave, the gods of the Land came to him. Like exhausted wild asses they prostrated themselves before him, and for this lord, because of his proud conduct, for Ninurta, the son of Enlil, they clapped their hands in greeting.

The stone that fell from Heaven...

Wow ! That does sound like some kind of a meteor hit !... ( Or the mountain exploded ! LOL).... Either way, I wouldn't want to be there when that happened.

a reply to: Meldionne1

Yes the Asag mountain seemed to get the worst of it and was no more, a location yet to be suggested or identified but the texts are generally considered to relate to the Zagros mountains to the East in Iran. What perhaps occurred is that a large metoerite broke up over the general region and there were greater and lesser multiple impacts, in the gulf and as far away as Syria as well as the Mesopotamian marshlands.

The Asag's terrifying splendour was contained, it began to fade, it began to fade. It looked wonderingly upwards. Like water he agitated it, he scattered it into the mountains, like esparto grass he pulled it up, like esparto grass he ripped it up. Ninurta's splendour covered the Land, he pounded the Asag like roasted barley, , he piled it up like a heap of broken bricks, he heaped it up like flour, as a potter does with coals; he piled it up like stamped earth whose mud has been dredged. The hero had achieved his heart's desire. Ninurta, the lord, the son of Enlil, …… began to calm down.

a reply to: Kantzveldt

Fascinating again. You've provided a wealth of information and "further reading" topics for me in this arena. Great OP!

a reply to: dogstar23

There's another fascinating case worth considering in Uzbekistan, particularly so because it seems to involve an air burst explosion directly above an ancient fortress, high temperature discharge from above producing a forest of fulgurites and tektites, this occurring directly above a site in the middle of nowhere suggesting Ninurta could be pretty accurate with his meteor strikes when he wanted to be...

a reply to: Kantzveldt

I have read and seen some discussions where a similar event may be associated with the story of Sodom as told in the bible.

It may be a stretch to find any direct association to the same meteoric event,, but I just thought I would mention it.

a reply to: Kantzveldt

Good thread OP .Reading the post "worlds in collision " rings truer and truer . The You tuber newearth has lots of vids of remnants that could also be interpreted as the angry gods .Immanuel Velikovsky in his book looks at many Biblical instances where this may have been the background to these supernatural events ... eta...I see you have posted the vid that I was thinking about ..

a reply to: tinymind

You'd expect so wouldn't you, if multiple related impacts struck the greater region around 2,350 BCE causing effects also in the region of Syria that the Sodom and Gommorah narrative would be the Hebrews later take on things, how city states in the areas known to Ebla had been affected.

They were more than likely only repeating in a variant form the presumed reasoning and justification behind the strikes, for the Mesopotamians this related to the various mountain tribes of the Asag region and the expansion of their cult of the Asag mountain.

the Asag, a child who sucked the power of milk without ever staying with a wet-nurse, a foster-child, O my master -- knowing no father, a murderer from the mountains, a youth who has come forth from ……, whose face knows no shame; impudent of eye, an arrogant male

The plants have unanimously named it king over them; like a great wild bull, it tosses its horns amongst them. The šu, the saĝkal, the esi (diorite), the usium, the kagena (haematite), and the heroic nu stones, its warriors, constantly come raiding the cities. For them a shark's tooth has grown up in the mountains; it has stripped the trees. Before its might the gods of those cities bow towards it.

My master, this same creature has erected a throne dais: it is not lying idle. Ninurta, lord, it actually decides the Land's lawsuits, just as you do. Who can compass the Asag's dread glory? Who can counteract the severity of its frown? People are terrified, fear makes the flesh creep; their eyes are fixed upon it. My master, the mountains have taken their offerings to it."

a reply to: the2ofusr1

Yes it's a very interesting case made in that video relating to the site in Uzbekistan, hard to find anything more on it though.

a reply to: Kantzveldt

Excellent find! A meteoric impact during Sumerian times goes a long way towards explaining certain aspects of their mythology. Of course, someone will be along in a moment to explain that it was really a crashed spaceship.

Is there a proposed location for the mountain that was destroyed? That would be something to behold.

a reply to: bigfatfurrytexan

No not really because nobody has ever considered to look, other than the general consideration that the scenario involves the Zagros mountains and related tribes bordering Mesopotamia to the East, nobody has ever taken the exploits of Ninurta seriously or considered them in such a context.

Hard for me to say what you'd expect to be looking for or find, perhaps a large pile of debris formerly known as the Asag mountain, not necessarily an impact crater if a mountain was struck, probably also of course evidence of intense heat, Tektites and such.

I expect it will be found.

It is the case that salt glaciers can form when salt seeps from faults in the Earths crust, that such can colonize impact craters as it were, and there are examples of this in the Zagros mountains in highly disturbed areas.

Zagros salt glaciers.



It may then be the case that pillars of salt were a natural consequence to impact damage to the Earths crust.

I just googled some pics of the mountain range and from the air /space you can see craters through out the range....it totally looks like it was pitted with meteors ! I'm not sure how to upload on here....so....I can't up load the pics yet.

originally posted by: bigfatfurrytexan
Is there a proposed location for the mountain that was destroyed? That would be something to behold.

The paper cites a crater but it's in the middle of marshes.

a reply to: Byrd


There was the concern of what occurred to the birds and fishes of the marshes and the animals of the surrounding open countryside, but the greater devastation seems to have involved the Asag mountain. which is why i suggested multiple impacts were involved.

It overturned tall trees by their trunks, reducing the forests to heaps, Earth put her hands on her heart and cried harrowingly; the Tigris was muddied, disturbed, cloudy, stirred up.

The birds there tried to lift their heads to fly away, but their wings trailed on the ground. The storm flooded out the fish there in the subterranean waters, their mouths snapped at the air. It reduced the animals of the open country to firewood, roasting them like locusts. It was a deluge rising and disastrously ruining the mountains.

Like an accursed storm, it howled in a raucous voice; like a gigantic snake, it roared at the Land. It dried up the waters of the mountains, dragged away the tamarisks, tore the flesh of the Earth and covered her with painful wounds. It set fire to the reedbeds, bathed the sky in blood, turned it inside out; it dispersed the people there. At that moment, on that day, the fields became black scum, across the whole extent of the horizon, reddish like purple dye -- truly it was s

That does sound like how the people back then would have thought of the destructive force of a huge meteor impact or even a comet impact. With enough energy being created on impact, it could ignite any magnesium or other metals in the mountain creating a big and impressive percussion bomb. Magnesium is used in some rockets and in sparklers to create the effect. But other metals can be triggered to react also. Who knows what the meteors were made of.

Sounds like there were a few of them hitting. I wonder if this is about the time of the Saddam and Gamora incident in the bible?.

The story itself...it sounds exactly like a meteor impact.

Now im interested in seeing what kind of physical evidence turns up. One would assume that a mountain being obliterated would leave rubble for miles in the direction the meteor was traveling. Unless its in a range, and the rubble itself impacted surrounding mountains.

I mean, the evidence goes back a few thousand years, so it may some somewhat obscured. But you'd imagine it would have to be there, and somewhat apparent once you start looking.

a reply to: Kantzveldt

An interesting idea, but I see a few problems with it:
* the Mitanni seals date from about 1500 BC
* the presumed Umm Al Bini structure dates to a thousand years before (2400 BC)
* a meteor impact that affected a mountain would make a pretty noticeable crater - bigger than Umm Al Bini lake.
* One that obliterated a mountain would be about the size of Chixhulub (because mountains are pretty darn big an tough.)
* I don't see any reference that the Mitanni used winged panthers in their iconography. Can you supply a reference?

I can't find the seal in the British Museum (or elsewhere, but I know it exists.) Want to see if more work has been done on it.

On the other hand, I freakin' *love* the fact that your articles make me go look up the research - so take my comments more as a student's critique of another's serious paper. I've learned SO much and enjoyed the little morning hunt on this one. (I had to go look up meteors, impact craters, impact crater reports, impact crater sizes, the Mitanni, the Sumerians, Ninurta, legends, cylinder seals, and prowled some of the British Museum's online collection.)

originally posted by: Kantzveldt
a reply to: Byrd

There was the concern of what occurred to the birds and fishes of the marshes and the animals of the surrounding open countryside, but the greater devastation seems to have involved the Asag mountain. which is why i suggested multiple impacts were involved.

The thing is, I don't see any mention of a location of Asag mountain.

I do agree that the description is suggestive but would like to see a bit more on this. BTW, this is a possible for running past someone with a good knowledge of Assyriology... it might be accepted as an article somewhere. But you do need an expert's advice here.

Egyptology, I could help with. I'm out of my league with Assyriology.

a reply to: Kantzveldt
Nice Kantz,
S and F

Eventually the mainstream academics will acknowledge that celestial events played a large part in the bronze age world.

a reply to: Byrd
Hi Byrd,
Here is some of the latest on Umm al Bini and the Middle bronze age impact,


Umm al Bini crater field

Abstract. We focus on one of the most important
events in human history, the 4.2 kiloyear event, when
great civilisations around the world collapsed into
anarchy and social chaos. From this moment on,
climate cooling and widespread aridification began,
lowering agricultural food production and human
living conditions. Various hypotheses exist about its
cause; the most promising approach links the 4.2
kiloyear event to a cosmic asteroid crash into
Mesopotamia. The asteroid landed in a densely
populated area; we examine at first major
translations of preserved Sumerian documents on
details and progression of this catastrophic event.
We quote major impact features as observed by
historical Sumerian eyewitnesses. The impact, as a
full strike, eradicated the Imperial city of Akkad. The
impact damaged all other Sumerian towns to
different degrees. Based on our findings, we identify
the location of the missing city of Akkad. We analyse
the onset of global cooling and severe aridification in
the framework of our cosmic climate footprint
analysis for a selected 1,000 year timeframe. This
footprint analysis of Holocene climate change
affirms the occurrence and date of the impact event.
We also identify volcanic mega-­‐‑eruptions, which are
responsible for multi-­‐‑decadal global temperature
dips but which cannot cause centennial-­‐‑long climate
changes. The footprint analysis takes 5 climate
macroforcings into account and explains global
cooling and aridification based on impact-­‐‑related
causes.
Citation. Seifert, J., Lemke, F.: The destruction of the
city of Akkad by a cosmic asteroid impact and the
link to global climate change, 2013,

THE DESTRUCTION OF THE CITY OF AKKAD BY A COSMIC ASTEROID
And

2.1. Impact site and its geological conditions
The 4.2 kiloyear event, as an asteroid, comet or
cosmic impact, occurred in the geographic triangle
Nasiriya--‐‑Basra--‐‑Amarah in Iraq. The area is a marshy
flood plain, a large sedimentary basin, built by 4
major rivers including Euphrates and Tigris.
Holocene sediments make up the top 20 meters,
Pliocene sediments start in 170 m depth. Sediments
are filling a gap between 2 large tectonic plates and
therefore have a depth of up to 12 km (4).
Underground air filled “domes”, related to salt or
limestone deposits or volcanoes are impossible to
exist, therefore, no ground subsidence sinkholes
above underground voids may be found. This is an
important aspect because the most frequent
argument, overly repeated against impact crater
research, points to collapsed underground domes.
The impact site was the shore line of the Persian
Gulf. The water level at the impact site was shallow,
described as about 10 meters deep (5).The boundary
extent of the shallow marine Gulf estuary is given in
figure 5 of (6). The major impact structure is called
the Umm--‐‑al--‐‑Binni lake (16), located West of the
Amarah--‐‑Basrah road. Figure 1 shows the impact
locations. The impact produced several impact
craters in the area, because, as in most cases, an
asteroid breaks into fractions shortly before the
impact, due to its immense heat. Several craters form
a so--‐‑called ´strewn field´.

2.2. Progression of the impact event
We will start with the bolide´s approach in the
atmosphere. The bolide was seen from Earth in
advance, as approaching comet, 15 days before
impacting Earth (7).The bolide disintegrated into
several fragments, shortly before its impact into
shallow waters of the Persian Gulf . The impact into
a 10 meter water depth instantly vaporised the water
on contact with 2,000 °C hot bolides. We may
assume a modestly high water wave, but the site was
too shallow to produce a tsunami. Historical impact
descriptions do not mention a sea--‐‑front tsunami. The
impact occurred late in the evening, but still in
daylight. As next, witnesses saw an enormous
intense sky lightening and could hear the impact
sound (8), a massive heat wave propagated (9) and
all bolides disappeared deep in soft river delta
sediments.
From this moment on, the cooling down process
of bolides, stuck deep in sediments commenced and
continued, sustained by inflowing Gulf waters into
the craters: The water and the mud around all
bolides heated tremendously and rose as giant dark
mud plumes high in the air. The plume formation
above all craters did not abate, as additional Gulf
waters poured into impact craters, thus loosening
and supplying more mud. The mud particles were
lifted into the air by the ultra--‐‑hot steam. In the
atmosphere, under steam participation, mud
particles agglomerated to hail--‐‑sized pebbles,
described as “pellets” (10) which rained down,
glowing visibly, miles away, to the ground (9, lines
179--‐‑187): “(...) a fiery glow burns with the raging
storm (...)“ and (11, lines 79--‐‑92): ”the dark time was
roasted by hail--‐‑storms [of pebbles] and flames” and
on the ground (9, lines 192--‐‑196): “the scorching
potsherds made the dust glow (...)”. The cooling
time of bolides took 24 hours, i.e. one night and the
following daytime (8). On noon next day, the sun
was recognisable through the dust haze again. Mud
plumes over impact sites were ´cooked´, sterilised,
without biological micro--‐‑life, and contained much
sea salt from Gulf waters. The mud plumes could
not lift larger diameter sediments, such as stones and
gravel high enough into the air. Those heavier
sediments rose somewhat, like a fluidized bed in
combustion technology, and continued to fall back
into the crater, thus forming pebbly steam cones in
the ground above stuck bolides, from where fine clay
fractions continuously steamed out due to inflowing
Gulf waters. Clay pebbles agglomerating in the dust
plume in the air contained unusual and rare high
temperature clay spherules, which only form at
temperatures of more than 1,000 °C( 10). The mud
plume moved with the prevailing wind direction,
toward Northwest, depositing the mud into this
direction (12) and not into the opposite South--‐‑East
(13).
A homogenous mud clay layer covered the
impact area within 24 hours, towns, villages, fields,
rivers, irrigation channels, the whole countryside.
The greater the layer thickness, the closer to the
impact site. This burying of the entire country was a
supernatural event for all Sumerian inhabitants, as a
message and punishment by gods, as historical “City
Lament” tablets prove.
Today, cosmic impact theories calculate the
impact strength by a multitude of Hiroshima bomb
effects. All those theories, however, do not consider
real impact conditions of the event. There was no
energy release on a hard, rocky surface, propagating
a blast wave above ground. Instead, bolides
immediately disappeared into soft alluvial
sediments and their energy was steamed out via
ultra--‐‑hot vapour--‐‑mud plumes into the atmosphere,
soaring from.deep out of estuary sediments.
The impact site lay within a major populated
area. This gives us the chance to examine, what
contemporaries reported on the event. We will go
straight into the original Sumerian tablet
translations.