Judy Chicago (American, b. 1939). The Dinner Party (Heritage
Floor; detail), 1974–79. Porcelain with rainbow and gold luster,
48 x 48 x 48 ft. (14.6 x 14.6 x 14.6 m). Brooklyn Museum, Gift
of the Elizabeth A. Sackler Foundation, 2002.10. © Judy Chicago.
Photograph by Jook Leung Photography Flourished circa 1750 B.C.,
Sippar, Babylonia (modern-day Iraq) Amat-Mamu was a priestess
and temple scribe in Sippar, a city of ancient Babylonia. She
was a member of the gagum, a walled precinct with hundreds of
houses inhabited exclusively by naditu women. Naditus came from
the wealthiest families in Sippar; they controlled their own
money and participated in the city's economy through investment
and trade. They were prohibited from marrying or bearing
children (the word naditum means "fallow" or "taboo"), which
greatly increased their life expectancy. Naditu documents
indicate that Amat-Mamu was one of eight scribes within Sippar's
gagum, and that her career spanned the reigns of three
kings—Hammurabi (1792–1750 B.C.),