アッシリアの帝王獅子狩りと王権

Abstract

The aim of this paper is to discuss the meaning of the Assyrian royal lion hunt from the religious point of view and to speculate further how it was perceived in society. Some features of the hunt described in texts suggest possible associations between the Assyrian royal hunt and mythological themes. This leads us to speculate that the hunt was performed as a “cult-drama” based on Ninurta's myths in which the king's role as a victorious hunter conveys an association with the achievement of the divine hero. In Mesopotamia, there is evidence that a “hunting prohibition” existed concerning lions where the killing of the animal was strictly reserved for the king. In order to investigate the reason for such prohibition, the significance of the royal lion hunt in the context of its social function is examined Ninurta achieves his divine kingship by subduing monsters; in a similar way, the king's position in society is reinforced by slaying lions.Possible explanations for the specific function of the royal lion hunt as perceived in society are sought from the anthropological point of view. The lions were seen as embodying the essence of wild forces which are to be brought into society at a propitious time in order to ensure the continuity of life in the community. The king functions as the only figure who is capable of introducing such forces into society from the wild, since he occupies the place of conjunction between the wild and the civilised domains.