The Weld-Blundell Prism, inscribed in Sumerian cuneiform with the Sumerian King List (1800 BC).This

The Weld-Blundell Prism, inscribed in Sumerian cuneiform with the Sumerian King List (1800 BC).This clay prism is about 20cm high and 9cm wide.  Each side contains text inscribed in two columns, beginning with the pre-flood rulers and ending with Suen-magir of the Isin dynasty (r. 1827 - 1817).The Sumerian King List is preserved in several revised versions, including the one above.  The earliest version was created c. 2100 BC, written by a scribe in the city of Lagash.  It listed all the kings of the region and their accomplishments, and was an attempt to show continuity of order in society stretching back to the beginning of civilization.None of the antediluvian (pre-flood) rulers have been archaeologically verified, and neither has the first half of the First Dynasty of Kish.Etana of Kish is the first Sumerian ruler whose deeds are recorded in any way.  He may have taken the throne quite early in the 3rd millennium BC.  In Sumerian mythology, Etana was a man who ascended to heaven on the back of an eagle.  He was known for superhuman feats and heroism.  Etana of Kish is referred to as “the shepherd, who ascended to heaven and consolidated all the foreign countries”.The first version of the Sumerian King List may have been created to legitimize the reign of Utu-hengal of Uruk (r. c. 2055 - 2048 BC), by showing him as the most recent in a long line of rulers of the region.  He was probably trying to link himself to earlier hero-kings such as Etana of Kish. -- source link

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