Page:History of Early Iran.pdf/36

20 fortunes, brought suits in the law courts, and owned slaves. Her importance increased with the passing years. In early Elamite documents we notice the frequent mention of the ruler's mother, sister, or daughter. The available evidence in the so-called "classical" period points to the matrilinear character of the royal succession; that is, right to the throne was traceable through the mother. Instances of brother-sister marriages occur, and presumably this was a general practice. It is even possible that this type of marriage practiced by Achaemenian Persian kings should be traced back to an Elamite origin, for to Aryan minds union of full brother and sister was repulsive.

Peculiarities of the Elamite royal succession will be pointed out from time to time as they occur. Particularly noteworthy is a curious system by which a prince in a relatively minor position could advance step by step to one of great importance, sometimes even to sovereignty. On other occasions the kingship descended, not from father to son, but from brother to brother. In many parts of the ancient East the kings were considered as gods; in Elam not the king alone but the entire ruling family was deified.

Elamite religion was naturally polytheistic in character. Unfortunately, some of the divine names were written only by means of the Akkadian ideograms. This does not mean that the name of the sun-god, Shamash in Semitic, for example, was so pronounced