Vul-lush III., indeed claims to have been the first to give him a prominent place in the Assyrian Pantheon; and it may be conjectured that the Babylonian expeditions of this monarch furnished the impulse which led to a modification in this respect of the Assyrian religious system.

The later kings, Sargon and his successors, maintain the worship introduced by Vul-lush.

Sargon habitually regards his power as conferred upon him by the combined favor of Merodach and Asshur, while Esarhaddon sculptures Merodach's emblem, together with that of Asshur, over the images of foreign gods brought to him by a suppliant prince.

No temple to Merodach, is, however, known to have existed in Assyria, even under the later kings.

His name, however, was not infrequently used as an element in the appellations of Assyrians.
NERGAL.
Among the Minor gods, Nergal is one whom the Assyrians seem to have regarded with extraordinary reverence.