only three or four are known from southern Mesopotamia. Based on the distribution of these works of art and on the serpentine form of the "boat god" Frans Wiggermann proposed an association between him and the gods of the "trans-Tigridian" region, such as Ishtaran from Der and Inshushinak from Susa. According to Helene J. Kantor, an argument against the identification of the boat god with Sirsir is the apparent relatively high status of the latter in the Early Dynastic sources. References Bibliography Mesopotamian gods Sea and river gods