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The princess exiled from ancient Mesopotamia - Soraya Field Fiorio

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4,300 years ago in ancient Sumer, the most powerful person in the city of Ur was banished to wander the vast desert. Her name was Enheduanna, and by the time of her exile, she had written forty-two hymns and three epic poems— and Sumer hadn’t heard the last of her. Who was this woman, and why was she exiled? Soraya Field Fiorio details the life of history’s first author.

The goddess Inanna is sometimes referred to as the goddess of love, but that’s not quite accurate. In reality she was the goddess of sexual desire. Ancient Mesopotamian literature was much more comfortable celebrating the powers of eroticism or sexuality than we are today. They believed that desire was the energy that inspired the creation of the universe. What did they possibly mean by this?

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TED-Ed Animations feature the words and ideas of educators brought to life by professional animators. Are you an educator or animator interested in creating a TED-Ed Animation? Nominate yourself here »

Meet The Creators

  • Educator Soraya Field Fiorio
  • Director Laura White
  • Narrator Christina Greer
  • Sound Designer Phil Brookes
  • Music Phil Brookes
  • Director of Production Gerta Xhelo
  • Editorial Producer Alex Rosenthal
  • Producer Bethany Cutmore-Scott
  • Associate Editorial Producer Elizabeth Cox
  • Fact-Checker Eden Girma

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