In Assyria, as in Babylonia, images of deities made excursions from their cellas on feast days. These journeys were also duly reported to the king. Thus we read that the god Adad-of-Plenty went for an outing in the park (no. 58); that Adad of Kilizi and the goddess Parisat-palê journeyed to their festival chapels on the occasion of the New Year celebration (nos. 189, 153); that Enlil, the old chief of the Babylonian pantheon, enjoyed an outing to one of the fortresses (no. 6); that Ištar of Arbela went to a "divine party" (no. 147); and that Ištar of Nineveh was taken on procession atop the city walls (no. 152). The image of this goddess is also said to have traveled through the city gate down to the canal, then back to the gate of the Nabû temple, and finally out into the countryside to the temple of Gula, goddess of healing (no. 135). It is also reported that her avatar, Šatru-Ištar, was due to arrive in Arbela from the town of Milqia, and that the king and the goddess would make a triumphal entrance into the city together (who would be the first to enter, however, was a dilemma for the king to solve) (no. 149). Finally, we read that the procession of Aššur and the Moon god to the garden of the lower terrace was accompanied by the performance of sacrifices meant to bring benefit to the king (no. 58), while the journey of Tašmetu to her festival chapel on the occasion of her "party" was punctuated by offerings specifically intended to assure his longevity and good health (no. 130).
The sacred marriage of Nabû and Tašmetu is also the topic of several letters. On the appointed day it is said that the god was taken by chariot from the temple, then to the palace threshing floor, and finally to the garden, where sacrifices were performed (no. 78); that Nabû and Tašmetu spent six days and seven nights in their wedding bed (no. 70); that the god afterwards went out to "stretch his legs" and do some hunting in the game park (no. 70); and finally that the sacrifices attending this rite were performed both for the life of the king and the lives of the crown princes and other male progeny (no. 56).
Given all these comings and goings of divine images, accidents were bound to happen during transport. We read, therefore, that the rim of Aššur's banquet table and the front side of his image were damaged while beingyulled in a chariot (no. 44), and that the ceremonial couch of the goddess Sarratsamme was dropped by porters bringing her out of her temple (no. 192).
Steven W. Cole
Steven W. Cole, 'Divine Processions and Sacred Marriage', Letters from Assyrian and Babylonian Priests to Kings Esarhaddon and Assurbanipal, SAA 13. Original publication: Helsinki, Helsinki University Press, 1998; online contents: SAAo/SAA13 Project, a sub-project of MOCCI, 2020 [http://oracc.org/saao/saa13/lettersfrompriests/divineprocessionsandsacredmarriage/]