• supersquirrel@sopuli.xyz
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    14 hours ago

    I like the elder scrolls series of games too, especially Morrowind, but isn’t the most obvious answer here that the part of the team that was working on inspiration for different architectures and cultures might have googled similar things to you, stumbled on similar photos and thought “I am going to steal that”?

    I am not saying this was nefarious, this is just how “exoticism” or seeing other cultures mundane as exotic can degrade our capacity to understand what we are perceiving.

    Edit ok so Azura is an imperfect echo of Ishtar

    Azura’s Moon is always shown as a Crescent, while accompanied by her single Star. Irl the Crescent and Star symbol can be traced back Sumerian iconography to the moon deity Sin and goddess Ishtar.

    Sin (aka Nanna) is said to be what gave the name for the concept of sin in the Semetic traditions. The Moons being the body of Mundus’s god king (and diety to be associated with the first the sin of liberty) is an interesting note.

    Ishtar (aka Inanna) is a goddess of love, sex, fertility, and war. She is also associated with the morningstar Venus. Also… …

    The Sumerians were known astrologers, and traced these and other celestial bodies for many things, but most importantly, for divine prophecy.

    I find the possibility of influence interesting, as well as the implications of Azura displaying Herself as a bridge between them, or perhaps a scale weighing them against each other."

    https://www.reddit.com/r/teslore/comments/57ms7g/what_is_azuras_moon/

    • aMockTie@lemmy.world
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      13 hours ago

      I would absolutely believe that this was coincidence or unintentional “borrowing” or “inspiration” if the name of the location wasn’t literally “Azura Deluxe Hotels.” At that point it’s pretty blatent.

      Edit response to parent edit: I can’t find any iconography that represents the religious Azura (or Ishtar) with both the Sun and Moon, especially as depicted in this statue, outside of the Elder Scrolls universe. Happy to be proven wrong, but I think it’s clear which party was influenced by the other.