Sumul is the Canaanite Mother of Vultures, Who devoured the body of the hero Aqhat, son of King Dana'el (who has parallels to the Biblical Daniel).

In gratitude for a night of hospitality, the craftsman God Koshar U Khasis gives Dana'el a splendid bow, which Dana'el then gives to his son Anqat. However, the Goddess Anat, Herself a warrior and archer, very much desires this bow, and offers Anqat silver, gold, and even immortality for it. He refuses, though, even going so far as to call Her a liar for offering him the impossible gift of immortality, and in anger She kills him. (She doesn't get the bow, however, as it falls into the Sea.) Vultures then eat his body, and the land is plunged into famine.

When King Dana'el finds out his son's fate, he sets out to recover his body. He kills each vulture, one at a time, and opens each up, looking for the remains of Anqat. He does not find him until he kills the greatest and last of the vultures, Sumul, the Queen, breaking Her wings. She falls at his feet and he cuts Her open, finding the fat and bone that is all that remains of his son. He then takes his remains and gives them a proper burial. Some versions have Aqhat restored to life, either by his father Dana'el or the Goddess Anat.

This legend may make reference to the memory of a harvest-ritual involving human sacrifice, in which the body was expected to be eaten by vultures. Vultures have been regarded in various cultures as intermediaries between mortals and the Gods; or purifiers, who help the soul to transform by getting rid of the earthly body. In Egypt, the vulture was regarded as a protective Goddess, Nekhbet, Who watched over the Pharoah as a Mother.

Also called: Samal, Sml. Some translations call Her the Mother of Eagles, perhaps because that bird has a more noble ring to it in modern cultures; like vultures, they have been known to eat carrion.