Sargon of Akkad, also known as Sargon the Great "the Great King" (Akkadian 𒈗𒁺 Šarru-kīnu, meaning "the true king" or "the king is legitimate"), was a Semitic emperor of the Akkadian Empire known for his conquests of the Sumerian city-states in the 24th and 23rd centuries BC. The founder of the dynasty of Akkad, Sargon reigned during the penultimate quarter of the third millennium BC. Cuneiform sources agree that he was cup-bearer (official in charge of wine) of king Ur-Zababa of Kish, and some later historians have speculated that he killed the king and usurped his throne before embarking on the...