-
VVVV
Other Second-Millennium Royal andCommemorative Inscriptions
A
.
R
.
GEORGE
89
MS 4716 is a cone inscribed with a buildinginscription in the
name of Ime-Dagan, king ofIsin (19551937). It is unusual in two
respects:(a) the text is in the Akkadian language, unlikeIme-Dagans
other building inscriptions, whichemploy Sumerian; and (b) the text
continuesfrom the head to the shaft, and the latter is divid-ed
into two columns whose lines are perpendic-ular to its long axis,
instead of parallel.
The building whose construction is record-ed on this cone is a
defensive wall comprisingan earthen rampart and a ditch (
ikum
) beyondit. Ime-Dagan is known to have constructedor restored
two city walls: that of Isin, his cap-ital, and that of Drum, a
garrison town nearUruk (formerly misread as D
2
r in eastern Baby-lonia). The former wall is the subject of a
well-known cone inscription in Sumerian, of whicha further exemplar
is published below as textNo. 39. Ime-Dagans work on Drums wall
isrecorded in a Sumerian inscription writtentwice, once on the head
and again on the shaft,on a single clay nail first published in
1937(Frayne 1990: 42 E4.1.4.11). The present text
exhibits a similarity of structure with the latter,especially,
but, if I have understood l. 22 cor-rectly as containing a toponym,
it reports a dif-ferent geographical location.
Noteworthy is the Akkadian version ofIme-Dagans royal titulary:
as demonstrated inthe notes below, it differs in several
unexpectedways from the standardized titulary of his Sum-erian
inscriptions (RIM E4.1.4.12, 1112 and15: 17'20'). The inscription
is important alsofor its detailed metrology, in a passage
whichgives two measurements for the width of thewalls ditch, first
in
nindan
rods (the twelve-cubit measure,
ca
6 m) and again in anotherunit, previously unattested. The
inscriptionends in an unexplained repetition of
nindan
,from which it appears that the text is defectiveor
unfinished.
The text displays several examples of third-millennium sign
values;
d
(
TU
)
-ri-im
(l. 21) for
drim
,
a-d
(
TI
)
-im
(24) for
adm
and
i-k
(
GA
)
-am
(26) for
ikam
are all unremarkable; but
-
for thepossessive suffix (30:
ru-pu-u-
) is extraordinarybefore the late second millennium.
Ime-Dagan of Isin
No. 38 MS 4716 Pl. XXXII
In addition to the great barrel of Sn-iddinamedited in the
preceding chapter (No. 37), thereare in the Schyen Collection some
thirty roy-al and commemorative inscriptions of the sec-ond
millennium (Nos. 3867). Many of theseare duplicates of already
known texts, but sev-eral are new: an Akkadian cone inscription
ofIme-Dagan (No. 38), a Sumerian clay-nailinscription of Gungunum
(No. 44), a Sumerian
cylinder inscription of Sn-irbam (No. 50, pre-viously known but
falsely attributed to Sn-iddinam), four formal texts from the reign
ofRm-Sn (Nos. 5154), a dedicatory inscrip-tion of Kurigalzu (No.
61), a few fragments ofunattributed monumental inscriptions on
stone(Nos. 6366), and a commemorative label on apotsherd (No.
67).
-
90
Roya l I n s c r i p t i on s and Re l a t e d Tex t s
head1
d
i
-me-
d
da-g
[
an
]2
za-ni-in
3 [
n
]
ippuru
(nibru)
ki
4
tu-ku-ul-ti
5
urim
5ki
6
a-e-er
7
eridu
(
NUN
)
ki
shaft col. i8
na-i-i
[
r
]9
mi-i
10
uruk
(unug)
ki
11
mu-ut e
4
-tr
12
e-lum
13
d
ama
(utu)
-si-in
ki
14
ar u-me-ri-im
15
-l
16
ma
-at
17
wa-ri-im
18
ta-li-im
19
d
en-ll
20
d
i-me-
d
da-gan
21
a d-ri-im
22 [
]
a
?
na
?
-a
Z
-na-an-ni / -im
23 [
e-p-ri-
]
u
?
shaft col. ii24
ki-i
-ma a-d-
im
!
25
-a-a-p-ik
26
i-k-am
27
i-na mi-i-lam
28
i-na
/
ni-in-da-an-ni-im
29
ru-pu-u-
30
e-re-et
31
i-na we-e-li-im
32
ra-pa-a
33
mu--ra
34
-s-ir-u35 ni-in-da-an
Ime-Dagan, provisioner of Nippur, main-stay of 5 Ur, provider
for Eridu, guardian ofthe rites of 10 Uruk, sacred spouse of
thegoddess Itar, sun of Isin, king of Sumer, 15god of the land of
Warium, brother of thegod Enlil.20 (I), Ime-Dagan: as for the wall
[of] Naz-nannum(?), its [earthwork(?)] 25 I had piledup as high as
a mountain. With a ditch two and a half its width in rods, 30 ten
widein wlum units I enclosed it to the fore. 35Rod.
23. Akkadian znin Nippuru corresponds to -a nibruki in the
Sumerian version of Ime-Dagans titulary, a routine equivalence.
45. tukulti Uri // sag-s urim5-maki is an unex-
pected equivalence.67. ir Eridu // ud-da gub eriduki-ga,
also
unexpected. 810. nir m Uruk is a paraphrase of Sumerian
en unugki-ga en-priest of Uruk.1112. mut Itar ellum is a variant
counterpart of
dam ki-g dinanna-ka beloved spouse ofInanna.
13. ama Iin is a free variant of lugal -si-inki-na king of
Isin.
14. ili mt Wariim instead of ki-uri landWarium. Warium was the
hinterland ofAkkade, with which Sum. ki.uri was usuallyequated.
2123. A reading t urrim dawn watch seemsimprobable in the
context, and so a genitiveconstruction, i.e. a drim, is presumed.
Thisphrase anticipates the eventual object ofuapik; I cannot find
that object in l. 22(which seems to contain an otherwise
unat-tested toponym), so restore l. 23 accordingly.The expression
(ipik) eper apkum to raiseearthworks is a clich in royal
buildinginscriptions.
2728. Two and a half rods is the equivalent ofabout fifteen
metres. Given that the metro-logical unit hitherto normalized as
nindanumis a loanword from Sumerian nindan, it wasalways likely
that a spelling would eventuallyappear that argues instead for
nindannum.
31. In isolation WE-e-li-im might be a spellingof plim limestone
or pelm egg, though
-
Othe r S e c ond -Mi l l e nn ium Roya l and Commemo r a t i v e
I n s c r i p t i on s 91
/pe/ so spelled sits uneasily with /pi/ writtenp in uapik (l.
25). But the context suggestsinstead that WE-e-li-im signifies a
metrologicalunit alternative to the linear unit nindannum.The
stated equivalence of 2.5 nindan = 10
WE-e-li-im makes one of the latter units theequivalent of three
standard cubits.
34. mura is understood as a variant of the spa-tial adverb
mara.
No. 39 MS 4741 Pl. XXXIII
This is a perfect cone inscribed in two columnswith a well-known
building inscription ofIme-Dagan, king of Isin. The text is
mostrecently edited by Douglas Frayne (1990: 3132 E4.1.4.5) from
sixteen exemplars. The firstto be published, in 1937, was acquired
on theantiquities market by the Nies BabylonianCollection, now at
Yale. Many further exem-plars have been reported since 1990,
includingeight excavated at Isin by the German expedi-tion in 1986
(Krebernik 1992: 10912), one in
Denmark (Westenholz and Eidem 198990:113 no. 7), three in the
Bible Lands Museum inJerusalem (Westenholz and Westenholz
2006:8788), and nine in the Michail Collection inItaly (Pettinato
1997: 15260 nos. 7583). Theinscription, in Sumerian, commemorates
theconstruction of the wall of the city of Isin. Notsurprisingly,
those exemplars with archaeolog-ical provenance all stem from Isin,
mostly fromthe temenos wall around the temple of Gula(Frayne 1990:
32, Krebernik 1992: 109).
col. i1 di-me-dda-gan2 nita kalag-ga3 lugal -si-in / ki-na4
lugal an-ub-da / limmu-ba-ke45 ud nibruki
6 uru ki-g7 den-ll-l8 g-bi 9 mu-un-du
col. ii10 ren-bi kaskal-t[a]11 ba-ra-an-zi-ga-a12 bd gal
13 -si-inki-na14 mu-un-d15 bd-ba16 di-me-dda-gan17 den-ll-da /
an-gal18 mu-bi-im
Ime-Dagan, mighty male, king of Isin,king of the four corners of
the world: 5when he discontinued the tribute obliga-tions of
Nippur, the city beloved of Enlil,(and) 10 freed its workforce from
militaryservice, he built the great wall of Isin. Thename 15 of
that wall is By grace of EnlilIme-Dagan is powerful.
1617. For this translation of the walls namesee George 1996:
366.
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92 Roya l I n s c r i p t i on s and Re l a t e d Tex t s
col. i1 dli-p-it-e4-tr2 re-i-um3 pa-li-i4 nippuru(nibru)ki
5 i-ka-ru-um6 ki-nu-um7 a uri(urim5)
ki-im8 la mu-pa-ar-ki-um9 a-na eridu(NUN)ki
10 num(en)um
11 s-ma-at12 uruk(unug)ki
13 ar -si-inki
14 ar ma-at15 u-me-ri-im16 a-k-d-im17 b-b-il18 li-i-ba e4-tr19
a-na-ku20 ga-ni-in
col. ii21 b-b-i[l]23 i-d den-[ll]24 dmullil(nin.ll)-[tim]25 i-na
-[si-inki]26 a-al ar-ru-ti-[ia]27 i-na ba-ab [ekallim(.gal)lim]28
dli-p-it-[e4-tr]29 ma-ru den-ll30 a-na-ku31 i-nu-mi32 ki-i-ta-am33
i-na ma-at34 u-me-ri-im35 a-k-d-im36 a-ku-nu-ni37 e-pu-u
Lipit-Itar, shepherd who reveres Nippur, 5steadfast ploughman of
Ur, unceasing inthe care of Eridu, 10 en-priest worthy ofUruk, king
of Isin, king of Sumer andAkkad, favourite of Itar am I.
30 When I, Lipit-Itar, son of Enlil, estab-lished justice in the
land of Sumer 35 andAkkad, I built 20 a storeroom pleasing(?)
toEnlil and Ninlil, 25 in Isin, my royal capital,at the gate of the
palace.
This complete cone, partly encrusted withmineral salts, is
inscribed in two columns witha very well-attested inscription of
Lipit-Itar,king of Isin (19361926). The text was last edit-ed, from
fifty-three exemplars, by DouglasFrayne (1990: 4951 E4.1.5.3). The
first exem-plar to be published, in 1921, was acquired bythe
British Museum in 1920, but another hadalready been accessioned by
the same museumas early as 1882, and other exemplars of thecone are
scattered all over the world. At leastanother nine can be added to
Fraynes list,including examples kept in museums in Han-
nover (Neumann 2000: 78586 no. II), Cam-bridge, Stockholm, and
Jerusalem (Westenholzand Westenholz 2006: 89), and four
shorter,variant versions excavated at Isin in the late1980s and
rapidly published (Sommerfeld 1992:15458). The inscription, in
Akkadian, com-memorates the construction of a warehouse forEnlil
and Ninlil at the palace gate of Isin. Mostexemplars are without
archaeological prove-nance, but eleven derive from scattered
archae-ological loci at Isin (see further Sommerfeld1992: 158).
Lipit-Itar of IsinNo. 40 MS 1869 Pl. XXXIII
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Othe r S e c ond -Mi l l e nn ium Roya l and Commemo r a t i v e
I n s c r i p t i on s 93
MS 1935 is a one-third-size brick stamped withthe standard
Sumerian inscription of Br-Sn,king of Isin (18971876). The text has
mostrecently been edited by Douglas Frayne, whorecords at least
nineteen exemplars (1990: 69
70 E4.1.7.1; see in addition Spar 1988: 161 no.118). The first
to be published, in 1893, is in theUniversity Museum in
Philadelphia. Thosewith an archaeological provenance come
fromNippur and Isin.
1 dbur-dsn(suen)2 sipa nibruki / du10-du103 engar kalag-ga4
urim5
ki-ma5 gi-ur eriduki-ga / ki-bi gi46 en me-a tm-ma7 unugki-ga8
lugal -si-in / ki-na9 lugal ki-en-gi / ki-uri
10 dam me-te / r k dinanna
Br-Sn, shepherd who pleases Nippursheart, strong ploughman of
Ur, 5 who re-stored the cultic ordinances of Eridu, en-priest
worthy of the rites of Uruk, king ofIsin, king of Sumer and Akkad,
10 spousesuited to the holy loins of Inanna.
Br-Sn of IsinNo. 41 MS 1935 Pl. XXXIII
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94 Roya l I n s c r i p t i on s and Re l a t e d Tex t s
MS 4585 is a small barrel cylinder of clayinscribed in a single
column with a fifteen-lineSumerian building inscription that
occupiesthree-quarters of its surface. At least one otherclay
barrel bearing this inscription is extant butof unknown
whereabouts; I saw photographsin 2008. The text is a close variant
of an inscrip-tion of Enlil-bni, king of Isin (18621839),known only
from a clay impression thatcame to light in Afak near Nippur in the
late1950s and is now in the Iraq Museum (Frayne1990: 8485
E4.1.10.9). The sole difference ofany substance lies in l. 6, which
the impres-sions first editor, Dietz Otto Edzard, copied as
en me-te unugki-[g]a (Edzard 1959: 27). Edzardconsidered that
the object might originallyhave come from Nippur or Isin, both
beingnear Afak. The new inscription restores thename of the
building whose construction itreports, but which is damaged on the
clayimpression, as Egal-iminbi-lugalene Palace(that Rules) All
Kings. This ceremonial nameis evidently the name of one of
Enlil-bnis res-idences, and an early example of a Sumerianpalace
name.1 The ideological message it bearssuits best a palace in his
capital, Isin, and Isin ison these grounds a more likely
provenancethan Nippur.
Enlil-bni of IsinNo. 42 MS 4585 Pl. XXXIII
1. Others, built by kings from Lipit-Itar of Isin toEsarhaddon
of Assyria, are collected in George1993: 171, to which add
.gal..l.la Palace ofHappiness, the name of Aur-r2a-i Is resi-
dence at Nineveh (King and Grayson 2001). Onthe ideological
messages conveyed by Sumerianpalace names see George 20012.
1 den-ll-ba-ni2 sipa ng-nam r-ra3 nibruki
4 engar e ma5 urim5
ki-ma6 m nu-tm-mu7 eriduki-ga8 dam -ge pd-da9 dinanna me-en
10 ud ng-si-s11 ki-en-gi ki-uri-e
12 i-ni-in-gar-ra13 -gal-imin!(8)-bi-14 lugal-e-ne15 mu-d
Enlil-bni, shepherd who provides every-thing in abundance for
Nippur, plough-man who raises tall the barley 5 of Ur,unceasing in
the care of Eridu, spouse cho-sen in the heart of Inanna, am I. 10
When Iestablished justice in Sumer and Akkad, 15 Ibuilt (the
palace) Egal-iminbi-lugalene.
67. The variant version of this inscription hasat this point
(Frayne 1990: 85 ll. 67): en me-te unugki-ga / eriduki-ga en-priest
worthy ofUruk and Eridu. In his other inscriptionsEnlil-bnis
patronage of Eridu is expressedby the epithet: me eriduki-ga k-k-ge
whokeeps sacred the rites of Eridu (RIME4.1.10.1: 6, 4: 8 and 5:
11).
1314. The third sign of the buildings name iswritten with eight
wedges in two ranks, i.e.like ussu eight, but this makes little
sense inthe context of royal ideology and I haveresorted to
emendation. The expressionimin-bi, literally their seven, denotes
agroup of seven (heptad, as in dimin-bi =Sebettu) but comes in
academic Sumerian tomean totality; see imin = kiatu in NabntuXIV 36
and other lexical texts.
-
Othe r S e c ond -Mi l l e nn ium Roya l and Commemo r a t i v e
I n s c r i p t i on s 95
MS 1846/5 is an intact cone inscribed in a sin-gle column with a
well-known Sumerianbuilding inscription of Enlil-bni, king of
Isin.The text appears on cones, nails, a brick, and atablet, and
was most recently edited by DouglasFrayne from ten exemplars (1990:
7879E4.1.10.2). The first of these to be published, in1911, was a
clay nail in Manchester, which hassince been numbered JRL 1094 and
repub-
lished by Farouk Al-Rawi (2000: 34 no. 76,59). Another nail with
this inscription came tolight in the late 1980s (Sommerfeld 1992:
159d). The inscription commemorates a recon-struction or repair of
the city wall of Isin. Mostexemplars come from Isin (several with
exactarchaeological findspots), but one was excavat-ed at
Nippur.
No. 43 MS 1846/5 Pl. XXXIII
1 den-ll-ba-ni2 sipa ng-nam r-ra3 nibruki
4 lugal kalag-ga5 lugal -si-inki-na6 lugal ki-en-gi ki-uri7 dam
-ge pd-da8 dinanna9 ki-g den-ll
10 dnin-IN-si-na-ka-ke411 bd-gal -si-inki-na12 mu-d13 bd-ba14
den-ll-ba-ni-15 idam(suu)-ki-in16 mu-bi-im
Enlil-bni, who provides everything inabundance for Nippur,
mighty king, 5 kingof Isin, king of Sumer and Akkad, spousechosen
in the heart of Inanna, beloved ofEnlil 10 and the Lady of Isin,
built the greatwall of Isin. The name of that wall is En-lil-bni 15
is firmly founded.
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96 Roya l I n s c r i p t i on s and Re l a t e d Tex t s
This is the head of a clay nail, lacking the shaft.Inscribed on
the head, in two columns of nine-teen and eighteen lines, is a
Sumerian buildinginscription of Gungunum, king of Larsa (19321906).
Gungunum was the fifth king of thedynasty that claimed Naplnum as
founder, andthe second whose own inscriptions are extant(on his
reign see Charpin 2004: 7073). Thetext commemorates his work on the
wall ofLarsa, a project already documented by thename of his
twenty-first year (Sigrist 1990: 910) and by a short text stamped
on bricks foundat Larsa and nearby Umm al-Wawiya (Frayne
1990: 11718 E4.2.5.3). While other inscrip-tions date to
Gungunums reign, hitherto thebrick inscription was the only
surviving textactually written in his name. The present text isa
much fuller account of the building of Larsaswall, and reveals as
motivation for the work theneed to protect the city from flooding
(ll. 2223). The inscription includes the earliest exam-ple yet
known in Babylonia of a royal state-ment of ideal market rates of
commoditiesagainst silver (on such tariffs see, e.g., Vargyas1997,
and add von Dassow 2009).
Gungunum of LarsaNo. 44 MS 2871 Pl. XXXIV
col. i1 ud an-n2 den-ll-le3 dutu-r4 larsamki-ma5 nam-lugal6
ki-en-gi ki-uri7 nam-sipa kur-mar-d8 u mu-na-an-du7-u-a9 ud-ba
gu-un-gu-nu-um
10 nita kalag-ga11 lugal larsamki-ma12 engar rimki-ma13
u-gi4-gi4 -bbbar-ra14 lugal ki-en-gi ki-uri15 ibila kalag-ga16
sa-mi-um-ma17 bd-gal larsamki-ma18 dutu-ki-bal-e-s-di19
mu-bi-imcol. ii20 mu-un-d21 nam-galam-diri-mu-ta22 uruki-mu
ambar-ta23 -em-ta-e1124 mu-a-ka25 sig4-bi u-mu-d26 bd-gal
u-mu-til27 uruki-{ni}-g murub4-ba
28 d-buranun si a-pa-ni-s29 ud-ba ud-bala-g30 e 3 e-gur-ta31 sg
10 ma-na-ta32 0.0.1 5 sla-ta33 1 gn- ganba(KI.LAM!)? -gar-m34
ugnim-mu nam-i-a35 kin-bi u-mu-ni-b-ak36 g-e lugal ng-gi-na me-en37
-ba gi -b-in-gar
When An and Enlil granted in full to Utuin Larsa 5 kingship over
Sumer and Akkad,and also the role of shepherd over theAmorites,
then Gungunum, 10 the mightymale, king of Larsa, ploughman of
Ur,avenger of E-babbar, king of Sumer andAkkad, 15 mighty heir of
Samium, 20 con-structed the great wall of Larsa called UtuConquers
the Rebel Lands. By my sur-passing ingenuity I did raise my city
abovethe morass. In the space of a single year 25 Idid make its
brickwork, I did complete thegreat wall. Through the midst of my
city Idid direct the Euphrates.
At that time, in the days of my reign, 30the market rate was set
at three kor of bar-ley, ten minas of wool, fifteen litres of
oilfor one shekel (of silver). My workforce 35did do its work amid
plenty. I am the kingof justice, I did complete that task.
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Othe r S e c ond -Mi l l e nn ium Roya l and Commemo r a t i v e
I n s c r i p t i on s 97
33. An alternative reading of the problematicsigns in the middle
of the line is ur5
!-gin7!!
respectively. The inscriptions of subse-quent kings of Larsa
employ both ganba andur5-gin7 in passages that report tariffs.
Thestatement formerly attributed to Sn-iqam(Sollberger 1965: 15 on
BM 132266, Hawkins1986: 95 no. 2), but since identified as Nr-Adads
(Sollberger 1982b: 342), closes as fol-lows (Frayne 1990: 149 ll.
6163): ganba ma-da-g-ka k 1 gn-e ur5-gin7 ba-ra-sa10 at
the market rate (obtaining) in my realm, oneshekel of silver
purchased respectively. Sn-iddinams tariff reads similarly (Frayne
1990:166 ll. 6669): ganba urim5
ki larsamki ma-da-g-[ka] k 1 gn-e ur5-gin7 a-ba-ra-[sa10]at the
market rate (obtaining) in Ur, Larsaand my realm, one shekel of
silver [pur-chased] respectively.
37. This line contains an unusual predication ofthe well-known
compound -gi-gar-rawork assignment.
Sn-iddinam of LarsaNo. 45 MS 4765 Pl. XXXV
This piece is a very damaged cone-shaft in-scribed in two
columns with a building inscrip-tion of Sn-iddinam, king of Larsa
(18491843).The topic is his rebuilding or repair of E-bab-bar, the
temple of Utu at Larsa. The text, inSumerian, is an abbreviated
version of aninscription last edited by Douglas Frayne fromtwelve
exemplars (1990: 16466 E4.2.9.6).One of these was a limestone
plaque excavatedat Larsa by the French expedition of 197881;the
rest were clay cones found at Ur by SirLeonard Woolley during the
period 192732.The inscription was first reconstructed byEdmond
Sollberger as a text of seventy-fivelines (UET VIII 72, Sollberger
1965: 15). Thepresent cone holds a text of fifty lines, in whichll.
3969 of Sollbergers text are replaced withthree lines (ll. 3840 in
the present edition).The material omitted is the statement of
wagesand the tariff of prices. Sn-iddinams com-memorative
inscription for E-babbar thusexists in two versions, one that
includes thismaterial and one that excludes it. Unfortunate-ly
little of the alternative three-line passage islegible on MS
4765.
When inscribed in two columns the twoversions of the inscription
can be distinguishedby the point of turn from col. i to col. ii.
OnMS 4765 this occurs at ll. 2324. As can be seenfrom two exemplars
published in handcopies,UET I 132 (Gadd 1928 pl. 25, Fraynes
exem-plar 2) and IM 26913 (Edzard 1957a: pl. 3,Fraynes exemplar
11), the longer versionmakes the turn at ll. 3637.2 Six of the
otherexemplars incorporated into Sollberger andFraynes
reconstruction of UET VIII 72 holdparts of the passages omitted by
MS 4765 andthus also bear witness to the long version(Fraynes
exemplars 1, 3, 4+5, 7, 10, 12). With-out a breakdown of the
disposition by columnsof individual lines of the two other
exemplars(6, 8+9), it is not possible to allocate these piec-es
with any certainty to the one version or theother. Whether or not
either of them is moreproperly a duplicate of the present cone
ratherthan UET VIII 72, MS 4765 effectively bears anew inscription
of Sn-iddinam. It brings theadded benefit of allowing the
completion ofline-ends broken off in the long version, espe-cially
near the beginning of the text.
2. It has not been recognized that the fragment IM26913
preserves the point of turn: on Edzardscopy i 1'15' = ll. 2237 of
Sollbergers edition
(1965); i 16' = not l. 38 but l. 1 (i.e. i 1); ii 1'12'= 66 or
6778; and ii 13', which Sollberger couldnot place, is l. 38 (i.e.
ii 1).
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98 Roya l I n s c r i p t i on s and Re l a t e d Tex t s
col. i1 ud dutu -babbar-ra2 nam-bi mu-un-tar-ra-[(a)]3 [me]
gi-ur u-bi / [d]u7-du7-d4 [ki-tu]-bi dagal-e-d5 [gal-le]-e inim
nu-kr-ru!-[na]6 [k]a-a! mu-un-bar-ra-a7 [ud-b]a
dsn(suen)-i-din-na-am8 [nita] kalag-ga9 [-a] urim5
ki-ma10 [lugal] larsam[k]i-ma11 [lugal ki]-en-gi ki-uri me-en12
[ul dutu ku]r klib?-b[a-ni]-ta13 [igi zi mu-u]n-i-[i]n-bar14
[nam-sipa l]arsa[m]ki-x15 [u-mu-u]n-l-en16 [ren ma-da] lu-a-na17
[inim-mu-] -em-mi-tu18 [-g-g] gal-gal-la-na?19 [u-m]u-
-em-mi-i[n-si]20 [ki-tu] -dg-ga-na21 [u] dagal di-d22
[n]am-n-tuk-mu-23 !-bi u-mu-da-an- / gcol. ii24 ud-bi-a dutu
lugal-mu-r25 [in]im sa6-sa6-ge-m[u]-ta26 uruki-g i-dutu27
-b-ta-z[i]28 ugnim larsamki-ma29 a-bi um-mi-tu-?30 -gal -[e4]31
[d]g-ga-b[i-d]32 l-kin-ak-b[i-]33 a-ba-ra?-[x x]34 mu a[-k]a35
sig4
!-a[l-ur5-ra-bi]36 -b[-du]37 -babbar-[ra ki-g-g]-ni38 u-[x (x) x
]x
39 nam?-[x (x) x] x40 ki?-[(x)]-bi? u-[mu-(na)-gi4]41
dsn(suen)-i-din-na-am me-[en] 42 nun-gal [?] galam43 sig?
tm-t[m-m]u? me?-en?44 ud-ba [sag-ki zalag]45 -l uruki46
-babbar-ra47 kin-bi u-mu-ni-til48 dutu49 [d]-ri5-da-ke450
u-mu-dg
When Utu determined the destiny of thetemple E-babbar and, to
perfect [the rites]and ordinances, to enlarge its site, 5
[sol-emnly] made a decision [with his] unalter-able command, then
on me, Sn-iddinam,mighty [male, provider] for Ur, 10 [king]
ofLarsa, [king of] Sumer and Akkad, [theyoung hero Utu] fixed [his
steadfast gaze,]from among all the [lands. 15 He did] raiseme up to
be Larsas [shepherd.] He didmake [the workforce] of his teeming
[land]dwell at [my command.] He did [pass] intomy [control] the
great [task of command-ing] them(!). 20 He charged me, in my
rev-erence, to enlarge the dwelling that pleaseshis heart.
At that time, 25 through my fine words, Idid expel complaints
from my city for mymaster Utu. Having made the host of Larsadwell
together as one, I did [give them fortheir] labour 30 wages, food
and oil-[rationsto] their hearts content. In the space of asingle
year, I did [mould 35 its baked] bricks.I [did build for him]
E-babbar, his [belovedhouse,]. . ., 40 I did [restore it] to its
(proper)state. I, Sn-iddinam, a great prince of clev-er [mind(?)]
who . . . am I.
At that time, (with) the citys [beamingcountenance] and 45
joyful heart, I didcomplete that task and 50 did please thehearts
of Utu and fierida.
-
Othe r S e c ond -Mi l l e nn ium Roya l and Commemo r a t i v e
I n s c r i p t i on s 99
14. Apparently not larsamki-ma-, as expectedfrom Sollbergers
restoration of the longerversion of the inscription (UET VIII 72:
16).
33. From UET I 132 // VIII 72 we expect a-ba-m-m.
43. In the longer version of the inscription thebeginning of
this line was read sig-nim un-ten und oben by Krki (1980: 77) and
sig-tm-tm who carries off the Lower Landby Frayne (1990: 166 l.
71), but the first signis not a good sig on IM 26913, the only
pub-lished source (Edzard 1957a: pl. 3 ii 6').
Nos. 4649
In addition to No. 45, the Schyen collectioncontains four hollow
barrel cylinders eachinscribed with a Sumerian inscription of
thesame king, commemorating his dredging of theriver Tigris. The
inscription was last publishedby Douglas Frayne, who then knew
fourexemplars, three barrels and a cone fragment(1990: 15860
E4.2.9.2). The first of these toappear was published in 1923, when
it was inthe possession of the antiquities dealer E. S.David of New
York; its whereabouts are nowunknown. A second exemplar, a barrel
now inthe Ashmolean Museum, Oxford, was boughtin Baghdad in the
same year. A third barrel wasacquired from E. S. David by the
OrientalInstitute Museum, Chicago, in 1931. The conefragment was
excavated at Larsa by Andr Par-rot in 1933 and is now in the
Louvre.3 SinceFraynes edition four further barrels have
beenpublished, one now in Spain (Civil 2002),another in the Michail
Collection in Italy (Pet-tinato 1997: 17679 no. 97), a third in the
BibleLands Museum in Jerusalem (Westenholz andWestenholz 2006:
93100), and a fourth (afragment only) in private hands in
Denmark(Westenholz and Eidem 198990: 113 no. 13).Many more have
been reported more briefly,including four in private ownership in
NewYork (Beckman 1997), and perhaps as many asten others that were
sold by auction houses inLondon, New York, and Vienna between
1997
and 2002 (Westenholz and Westenholz 2006:93).
Miguel Civil speculated that those barrelsnot actually excavated
at Larsa may neverthe-less have come from there (2002: 245). That
ispossible, but the two barrels that passedthrough Davids hands
have been attributed tosites other than Larsa: Bismayah (ancient
Adab)and Tell al-Buzekh, by which must be meantTell Ibzaikh
(ancient Zabalam). Both Adab andZabalam lay on the western branch
of theTigris, which at this time entered the territoryof Larsa
upstream of Makan-pir (Tell AbuDuwari) and watered much of southern
Baby-lonia either via the old Iturungal, a watercoursethat branched
off the Tigris between Karkaraand Zabalam and flowed south toward
Larsaitself, or via its successor. The Tigris was a cru-cial
resource for the well-being of Sn-iddi-nams state. Both Zabalam and
Adab are thusplausible provenances for this kings Tigris
cyl-inders, but, given E. S. Davids close profes-sional
relationship with Edgar J. Banks, theerstwhile excavator of Bismaya
and notorioushawker of antiquities, they may be
fictitiousprovenances. Another possible provenance forinscriptions
of Sn-iddinam that report thedredging of the Tigris is Makan-pir,
for abuilding inscription composed for this kingsconstruction of
the wall of this town alsoreports that he provided its people with
water
3. AO 25110 = L.[33].7A: correct Frayne 1990: 158from Arnaud
1977: 6, 1994: 13 no. 93.
-
100 Roya l I n s c r i p t i on s and Re l a t e d Tex t s
by dredging the river that ran through it. Thename of the river
is damaged in the text, but,given that Makan-pir lay on the Tigris,
itmust be that river.4
The four cylinders published here are notexact duplicates.
Differences between themand the exemplars edited by Frayne are
mostlyvery minor, but note No. 47: 70: gi4 for gub(dittography from
l. 68). Fraynes edition canbe corrected in the following
substantive points:
(a) Nos. 46: 15 // 47: 15 // 48: 15 // 49: 15:ki-bi- for
ma-bi-The new sources agree with at least eightother exemplars. The
photograph of theMichail Collections barrel has ki-bi-(Pettinato
1997: 177 top), despite Petti-natos transliteration ma-bi- (176 i
15).Fraynes reading derives solely from thebarrel copied by
Langdon, where thedrawing suggests ki! as easily as ma!(Langdon
1923 pl. 7 i 16).
(b) Nos. 46: 41 // 47: 43 // 48: 43 // 49: 42:in-dub libir for
in-dub pd Note that the sign is clearly libir on theonly exemplar
hitherto published in cune-iform copy (Langdon 1923 pl. 7 ii 8),
andwas so read by I. Krki (Krki 1980: 61 l.43). One of Sn-iddinams
brick inscrip-tions refers also to the in-dub libir (RIME4.2.9.11:
6, ed. Frayne 1990: 17172).
(c) Nos. 46: 52 // 47: 54 // 48: 54 // 49: 54: 1(bariga)-ta for
1 gur-ta In agreement with at least six other exem-plars (Beckman
1997 sub l. 54, Civil 2002:247, Westenholz and Westenholz 2006:
97ii 18). The numeral 1, when written withDIfi, cannot signify one
kor, which was byconvention written Afi gur; DIfi in
capacitymeasure signifies 1 bariga = 60 sla. Fraynes1 gur-ta
derives from the two exemplarsformerly in the possession of the
dealer E.S. David of New York and from the barrelin the Ashmolean
Museum. Langdonscopy of the one David barrel has e x-ta,where x can
be interpreted alternatively asillegible traces of a damaged or
erased signbefore the numeral DIfi (Langdon 1923 pl.7 ii 19). O. R.
Gurney was unsure of thetext on the Ashmolean barrel (Gurney1977:
93: sign after e appears to be thenumeral 1, possibly followed by a
damagedgur); he did not reveal whether the nu-meral was DIfi or
Afi. In other inscriptionsof kings of Larsa the figure for each
work-ers barley ration is usually thirty litres (3bn, Nr-Adad and
Warad-Sn), once fortylitres (4 bn, Sn-iddinam, Steinkeller2004b:
142 ii 6). The more generous sixtylitres (1 bariga) in most
exemplars ofE4.2.9.2 is a plausible match for reality(Civil 2002:
246), but the variant 1 gur-ta(three hundred litres), if real, is
excessiveand surely an error.
4. Steinkeller 2004b: 142 ii 323: d x x [ . . . ]-la uruki-ba
u-mu-ba-al. The absence of bothcopy and photograph of the fragments
on whichthis line occurs prevents certainty, but one may
provisionally restore didigna [d gu (or dagal)]-la, as in the
present inscription, and translate: Hedug out the Tigris, the
[great (or wide) river,] in-side that town.
-
Othe r S e c ond -Mi l l e nn ium Roya l and Commemo r a t i v e
I n s c r i p t i on s 101
col. i1 dsn(suen)-i-din-na-am2 nita kalag-ga3 -a rimki-ma4 lugal
larsamki-ma5 lugal ki-en-gi ki-uri6 lugal -babbar dutu-ke47
mu-un-d-a8 [g]i-ur dingir-re-e-ne9 [k]i-bi- b-in-gi4-a me-en
10 [u]d an-n den-ll / dnanna dutu-bi11 [b]ala dg ng-si-s12 ud-bi
s-s-ud-r13 g-ra sag-e-e-e / ma-ni-in-rig7-e-a14 gtu dagal-la-mu15
[k]i-bi- gar16 sag-bi- -a-ta17 uruki ma-da-mu-18 a dg g-g-d19 a-r
z-m20 nam-ur-sag-g-mu21 ud-da egir-bi-22 pa--a ma ak-d23 an-ra
den-ll-ra / inim in-ne-sa6-sa624 a-r-zu gi-na-mu- /
u-mu-i-in-e-
ge-e-a25 []didigna ba-al-a-da26 [k]i-bi- gi4-a-da27 [u]d ti-la
s-ud-r-28 mu-mu g-g-d29 [i]nim nu-kr-ru-bi-a30 -bi u-mu-da-an-g-e31
ud-ba dug4-ga-dug4-ga32 an dinanna-ta33 e-ga den-ll /
dnin-ll-l-ta
col. ii34 dikur dingir-mu 35 -ta-g-ta36 usu ma dnanna /
dutu-ta37 didigna38 d -gl-la dutu-ke439 -ma-mu-ta40 gal-bi
-em-mi-ba-al41 ki-sur-ra in-dub libir-m[u]-42 ka-bi um-mi-tum443
a-gam-ma-bi-44 si-gal -em-mi-s45 a da-r46 -gl m nu-tm-mu47 larsamki
kalam-ma-mu-48 -em-mi-gar49 ud didigna d gu-la50
mu-ba-a[l-(la)]-a51 l-di-e52 e 1 (bariga)-ta53 ninda 2 sla-ta54 ka
4 sla-ta55 2 gn-ta-m56 ud a-a57 ur-gin7 u a-ba-an-ti58 l -l59 l
-ta60 ba-ra-b-tuk61 usu ma-da-mu-ta62 kin-bi -em-mi-til63 inim
ka-a-bar64 dingir gal-e-ne-ta65 didigna d dagal-la66 ki-bi-
-em-mi-gi467 ud ul-du-r-68 mu-mu -em-mi-gub
No. 46 MS 2014 Pl. XXXVI
-
102 Roya l I n s c r i p t i on s and Re l a t e d Tex t s
No. 47 MS 2034 Pl. XXXVI
col. i1 dsn(suen)-i-din-na-am2 nita kalag-ga3 -a urim5
ki-ma4 lugal larsamki-ma5 lugal ki-en-gi ki-uri-ke46 lugal
-babbar dutu-ke47 mu-un-d-a8 gi-ur dingir-re-e-ne9 ki-bi-
b-in-gi4-a me- / en
10 ud an-n den-ll / dnanna dutu-bi11 bala dg ng-si-s12 ud-bi
s-s-ud-r13 g-ra sag-e-e-e / ma-ni-in-rig7-e-a14 gtu dagal-la-mu15
ki-bi- gar16 sag-bi- -a-ta17 uruki ma-da-mu-18 a dg g-g-d19 a-r
z-m20 nam-ur-sag-g-mu21 ud-da egir-bi-22 pa- ma ak-d23 an-ra
den-ll-ra24 inim in-ne-sa6-sa625 a-r-zu gi-na-mu-26
u-mu-i-in-e-g[e-e-a]27 didigna ba-[al-la-a-da]28 ki-bi-
gi4-[a-da]29 ud ti-la s-u[d-r-]30 mu-mu g-g-[d]31 inim
nu-kr-ru-bi-a32 -bi u-da-an-g-e33 ud-ba dug4-ga-dug4-ga
col. ii34 an dinanna-ta35 e-ga den-ll / dnin-ll-ta36 dikur
dingir-mu 37 -ta-g-ta38 usu ma dnanna / dutu-ta39 didigna40 d
-gl-la dutu-ke441 -ma-mu-ta42 gal-bi -em-mi-ba-al43 ki-sur-ra
in-dub libir-mu-44 ka-bi um-mi-tum445 a-gam-ma-bi-46 si-gal
-em-mi-s47 a da-r48 -gl m nu-tm-mu49 larsamki kalam-ma-mu-50
-em-mi-gar51 ud didigna d gu-la52 mu-ba-al-la-a53 l-di-e54 e 1
(bariga)-ta55 ninda 2 sla-ta56 ka 4 sla-ta57 2 gn-ta-m58 [ud a]-a59
[ur-gin7] u a-an-ti60 [l] -l61 [l] -ta62 [ba-ra-b]-tuk63 [usu
ma-d]a-mu-ta64 [kin-bi ]-em-mi-til65 [inim ka]-a-bar66 dingir
gal-e-ne-ta67 didigna d dagal-la68 ki-bi -em-mi-gi469 ud ul
du-r-a-70 mu-mu -em-mi-gi4
-
Othe r S e c ond -Mi l l e nn ium Roya l and Commemo r a t i v e
I n s c r i p t i on s 103
col. i1 dsn(suen)-i-din-na-am2 nita kalag-ga3 -a rimki-ma4 lugal
larsamki-ma5 lugal ki-en-gi ki- / uri-ke46 lugal -babbar dutu-ke47
mu-un-d-a8 gi-ur dingir-re-e- / ne9 ki-bi- b-in- / gi4-a me-en
10 ud an-n den-ll / dnanna dutu-bi11 bala dg ng-si-s12 ud-bi
s-s-ud-r13 g-ra sag-e-e / ma-ni-in-rig7- / e-a14 gtu dagal-la-mu15
ki-bi- gar16 sag-bi- -a-ta17 uruki ma-da-mu-18 a dg g-g-d19 a-r
z-m20 nam-ur-sag-g-mu21 ud-da egir-bi-22 pa- ma ak-d23 an-ra
den-ll-ra24 inim in-ne-sa6- / sa625 a-r-zu gi-na-mu-26
u-mu-i-in-e-ge- / e-a27 didigna ba-al-a-da28 ki-bi- gi4-a-da29 ud
ti-la s-ud-r-30 mu-mu g-g-d31 inim nu-kr-ru-bi-a32 -bi u-mu-da-an-
/ g-e33 ud-ba dug4-ga-dug4-ga
col. ii34 an dinanna-ta35 e-ga den-ll / dnin-ll-l-ta36 dikur
dingir-mu 37 -ta-g-ta38 usu ma dnanna / dutu-ta39 didigna40 d
-gl-la dutu-ke441 -ma-mu-ta42 gal-bi -em-mi-ba- / al43 ki-sur-ra
[i]n-dub / libir-m[u]-44 ka-bi um-mi-tum445 a-gam-ma-bi-46 si-gal
-em-mi-s47 a da-r48 -gl m nu-tm-mu49 larsamki [ka]lam-ma-mu-50
-em-mi-gar51 ud didigna d gu-la52 mu-ba-al-a53 l-di-e54 e 1
(bariga)-ta55 ninda 2 sla-ta56 ka 4 sla-ta57 2 gn-ta-m58 ud a-m59
ur-gin7 u a-ba-an-ti60 l -l61 l -ta62 ba-ra-b-tuk63 usu
ma-da-mu-ta64 kin-bi -em-mi-til65 inim ka-a-bar66 dingir
gal-e-ne-ta67 didigna d dagal-la68 ki-bi- -em-mi- / gi469 ud
ul-du-r-70 mu-mu71 -em-mi-gub
No. 48 MS 3552/1 Pl. XXXVI
-
104 Roya l I n s c r i p t i on s and Re l a t e d Tex t s
col. i1 [dsn(s]uen)-i-din-na-am2 [nita] kalag-ga3 [-a u]rim5
ki-ma4 [lugal lar]samki-ma5 [lugal ki]-en-gi ki-uri-ke46 [lugal]
-babbar dutu-ke47 [mu]-un-d-a8 gi-ur dingir-re-e-ne9 ki-bi-
b-in-gi4-a me-en
10 ud an-n den-ll 11 dnanna dutu-bi12 bala dg ng-si-s13 ud-bi
s-s-ud-r14 g-ra sag-e-e-e / ma-ni-in-rig7-e-a15 gtu dagal-la-mu
ki-bi- gar16 sag-bi- -a-ta17 uruki ma-da-mu-18 a dg g-g-d19 a-r
z-m20 nam-ur-sag-g-mu21 ud-da egir-bi-22 pa- ma ak-d23 an-ra
den-ll-ra24 inim in-ne-sa6-sa625 a-r-zu gi-na-mu-26
u-mu-i-in-e-ge-e-a27 didigna ba-al-la-a-da28 ki-bi- gi4-a-da29 ud
ti-la s-ud-r-30 mu-mu g-g-d31 inim nu-kr-ru-bi-a32 -bi
u-mu-da-an-g-e33 ud-ba dug4-ga-dug4-ga34 an dinanna-ta35 e-ga
den-ll dnin-ll-l-ta
col. ii36 dikur dingir-mu 37 -ta-g-ta38 usu ma dnanna /
dutu-ta39 didigna d -gl-l[a] / dutu-ke440 -ma-mu-ta41 gal-bi
-em-mi-ba-al42 ki-sur-ra in-dub libir-mu-43 ka-bi um-mi-tum444
a-gam-ma-bi-45 si-gal -em-mi-s46 a da-r47 -gl m nu-tm-mu48 larsamki
kalam-ma-mu-49 -em-mi-gar50 ud didigna 51 d gu-la52 mu-ba-al-la-a53
l-di-e54 e 1 (bariga)-ta55 ninda 2 sla-ta56 ka 4 sla-ta57 2
gn-ta-m58 ud a-a59 ur-gin7 u a-ba-an-ti60 l -l61 l -ta62
ba-ra-b-tuk63 usu ma-da-mu-ta64 kin-bi -em-mi-til65 inim ka-a-bar66
dingir gal-e-ne-ta67 didigna d dagal-la68 ki-bi- -em-mi-gi469 ud ul
du-r-70 mu-mu -em-mi-gub
No. 49 MS 3552/2 Pl. XXXVI
-
Othe r S e c ond -Mi l l e nn ium Roya l and Commemo r a t i v e
I n s c r i p t i on s 105
Sn-iddinam, mighty male, provisioner ofUr, king of Larsa, 5 king
of Sumer andAkkad, king who built E-babbar, the templeof Utu, and
restored to their former state therites of the temple of the gods,
am I.
10 When An, Enlil, Nanna and Utu be-stowed on me a pleasant
reign of justiceand long days, 15 in my great wisdom, pris-tine and
pre-eminent, in order to bringfresh water to my city and land, 20
to makemy nature, honour and heroism supremelymanifest to future
time, I addressed the fin-est words to An and Enlil. Having
con-curred 25 with my steadfast prayer, by theirirrevocable command
they charged methat the Tigris be dug and restored to itsformer
state, so 30 to establish my name fora long life-span.
Then, by order of An and Inanna, 35 withthe agreement of Enlil
and Ninlil, by leaveof Ikur, my god and helper, through the
supreme power of Nanna and Utu, I didthoroughly dig, 40 in my
success, the Tigris,Utus river of abundance. Having taken itsintake
back to my border, the old bound-ary, 45 I did thoroughly improve
its courseas far as its (end in the) marshland. I did es-tablish a
permanent water supply and un-ceasing abundance for Larsa and my
land.
50 When I dug the Tigris, the great river,the wages of a single
man were: sixty litresof barley, 55 two litres of bread, four
litresof beer, two shekels of oil such (a ration)was received
daily. I let no man 60 have less,no man more.
By the power of my people I did com-plete that task. 65 By the
decisive commandof the great gods I did restore the Tigris,the wide
river, to its former state. For fu-ture time, in perpetuity, 70 I
did establishmy fame.
-
106 Roya l I n s c r i p t i on s and Re l a t e d Tex t s
This is a solid cylinder inscribed in two col-umns with a
Sumerian building inscription ofSn-irbam, briefly king of Larsa
(18421841).The cylinder is rejoined from two fragmentsand its
surface is in poor condition. The build-ing whose reconstruction or
repair is com-memorated by the text is the E-babbar, Utustemple in
Larsa. The text duplicates lines pre-served on two even-more
fragmentary claycones already published and allows for the
firsttime their correct attribution. One was exca-vated by William
Kelly Loftus at Larsa in 1850and is now in the British Museum. This
cone isone of the first Sumerian building inscriptionsever
published (as I R 3 no. 9, in 1861), and hashitherto been
attributed to Sn-irbams prede-cessor, Sn-iddinam (RIM E4.2.9.7, ed.
Frayne1990: 16667). The second exemplar is a piecefrom the shaft of
a clay cone or nail acquired bythe Iraq Museum soon after its
founding and
published by D. O. Edzard in 1957 (RIME4.2.0.3, ed. Frayne 1990:
32122). In theabsence of a royal name and titulary it couldnot be
attributed to any specific reign. The cyl-inder published here
reveals that the namehitherto read in l. 7 of the British
Museumscone as dsn-i-[di-in-nam] is, in fact, to berestored as
dsn-i-[ri-ba-am]. Together the twocones and the cylinder bear
witness to the firstmonumental inscription of this king so
farknown. Their importance lies not only in thisexpansion of the
historical record, but also inthe revelation that Sn-irbam was not
the sonof his predecessor, but of an otherwise un-known person
called Gae-rabi.
Because this inscription has not previouslybeen reconstructed
and the sources are frag-mentary, it is given here in both
synoptic(score) and composite transliterations.
Sn-irbam of LarsaNo. 50 MS 4766 Pl. XXXVII
Ms Museum number Place of publicationa MS 4766 here, pl. XXXVIIb
BM 30215 (51-1-1, 256) I R 3 no. 9, CT 20 30; RIM E4.2.9.7c IM 5553
Edzard 1957a: 189 and pl. 4; RIM E4.2.0.3
col. i1 a [ ]utu
b d[ ]2 a [ ] pirig-[ ]
b en pirig-[ ]3 a [ ]-gar a[n-n]a t[ak4
?-(x)]b gi!si-gar an-na [ ]
4 a [ ]-kud sig igi-n[im- ]b di-kud sig igi-n[im- ]
5 a lugal -bbbar-rab [l]ugal -[ ]
6 a lugal-a-ni-irb [l]ugal-a-ni-[ ]
7 a dsuen-i-ri-ba-amb dsuen-i-[ ]
8 a nita kalag-gab nita kalag-[ ]
9 a [du]mu ga-eki-ra-bib dumu ga-ek[i- ]
10 a [ ]-a urim5ki-m[a]
b -a uri[m5ki]-m[a]
11 a [lugal] larsamki-mab lugal lars[am ]
12 a [luga]l ki-en-g[i] ki- / ur[i]-ke4b lugal ki-e[n- ] / ki
ur[i- ]
col. ii13 a -bbbar
c [ -b]bbar14 a ki-t[u k]i-g!-g-ni
c [ k]i-g-g-[ ]
-
Othe r S e c ond -Mi l l e nn ium Roya l and Commemo r a t i v e
I n s c r i p t i on s 107
15 a [] gir17-zal-l[a]- / n[i]c [ gi]r17-zal-la-k[a- ]
16 a mu-na-ni- / [d]c [ ]-na-d[]
17 a [da]g ki-gar ud-u[l] / da-r[i-] c [ ] ki-gar ud-u[l- ] / [
]-ka-ni [ ]
18 a m[u]-na-an-[ ]c [ ]-an-[ ]
19 a [i]nim sa6-s[a6-ge] / [x]-da!-n[i-]
c [ s]a6-sa6-ge / [x]-da-ni-x20 a d[ ]
c [ ]utu -en-na-[ ]21 a -[ ]22 a ti-la-ni sa6-ga
c [ ]-la ur sa6-[ ]23 a ud-bi -b- / s-ud-d
c [ ] -[ ]- / [s]-ud-d[]
dutu en pirig-[u?] gi!si-gar an-na t[ak4-tak4?]
di-kud sig igi-n[im-ma] 5 lugal -bbbar-ralugal-a-ni-ir
dsn(suen)-i-ri-ba-am nita kalag-ga dumu ga-e ki-ra-bi 10 -a
urim5
ki-m[a] lugallarsamki-ma lugal ki-en-g[i] ki-ur[i]-ke4 -bbbar
ki-tu ki-g-g-ni 15 [] gir17-zal-la-(k[a])-n[i] mu-na-(ni)-d[ da]g
ki-gar ud-u[l] da-r[i-] (var. [x]-ka-ni-[x]) m[u]-na-an-[dm? i]nim
sa6-sa6-ge [zi]-da-ni-[]
20 dutu -en-na-[l] ti-la-ni sa6-ga ud-bi -b-s-ud-d
For Utu, lord, [fierce(?)] lion, who [drawsback the] bolts of
heaven, judge of aboveand below, 5 master of E-babbar, his
lord,Sn-irbam, mighty male, son of Gae-ra-bi, 10 provider for Ur,
king of Larsa, kingof Sumer and Akkad, built E-babbar, hisbeloved
abode, 15 his house of joy. Thebuildings emplacement, (his)
foundationof olden times, [in] perpetuity he [con-structed] for
him. [For] his fine and[steadfast] deeds may 20 Utu [rejoice]
inhim, may he extend the days of his beau-teous life!
3. Cf. a passage of Sn-iddinams literary letterto Utu: tak4
{lal}
gi!si-gar an-ki // tak4 si-gar[an-ki] who draws back the bolt of
heavenand earth (Borger 1991: 33 l. 7, OB manu-scripts); and an
epithet of Utu in text No. 51below (MS 2983) l. 6: tak4
gisi-gar ul-r.
1921. Cf. the similar prayer in a cone-inscrip-tion of
Sn-iddinam (RIM E4.2.9.5: 1921,ed. Frayne 1990: 163): ng-ak-bi-
dutu -en-da-l For this deed may Utu rejoice inhim!
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108 Roya l I n s c r i p t i on s and Re l a t e d Tex t s
Three tablets and a vase fragment in the Schy-en Collection hold
copies of Sumerian formalinscriptions from the time of Rm-Sn I, a
long-reigning king of Larsa (18221763). Three,Nos. 5153, are votive
inscriptions made onbehalf of the king by individuals, and can
beadded to the eight such texts already knownfrom this reign and
edited by Douglas Frayne(1990: 3029 E4.2.14.23 and 20017). Two
arecopies on clay tablets and can be most closelycompared with two
similar tablets now in the
Yale Babylonian Collection (RIM E4.2.14.20067). The Yale tablets
were purchasedbefore 1919 and are presumed by Frayne tocome from
Larsa, probably because many tab-lets acquired by Yale at about the
same time arebelieved to derive from that city. Larsa is anobvious
candidate for the provenance of thethree tablets now in the Schyen
Collection,but other scriptoria within Rm-Sns kingdommay well have
produced such tablets.
Rm-Sn I of Larsa
MS 2983 is a tablet inscribed with thirty-fivelines of Old
Babylonian cursive cuneiform.5
The last two lines are separated from the fore-going by a
ruling, and are more faintly im-pressed, perhaps because they were
added laterwhen the clay was already nearly dry.
The structure of the first part of the textresembles a
commemorative inscription. Itbegins with the name and elaborate
epithets ofa deity (the sun-god Utu), to which is append-ed the
dative postposition (ll. 16). The nextstructural element is the
self-identification ofthe ruler, Rm-Sn, to whose standard
titularyare appended literary phrases that apply to himrelations
with the gods conventional in theroyal ideology of the period
(717).
The remainder of the text confounds ourexpectation of a
commemorative inscription.The next passage describes how Utu, in
thecompany of the gods, informs the top-rankingdeities, An and
Enlil, that he has chosen Rm-Sn to bring peace and security to his
city, Larsa(1824). The following lines seem to continueUtus address
but turn from past to future,asserting Rm-Sns obedience and
requestingthat his reign be a success (2530). The last fewlines are
difficult to decipher and have not yet
yielded connected sense, but it is clear the veryend of the text
holds a prayer by Rm-Sn toAn and Enlil soliciting his own
continuinggood reputation (3135).
The message of the latter part of the text isthat Rm-Sn was
chosen by Utu, that thischoice was endorsed by all the gods, and
thatUtu sought the senior gods assurance that hisnominee enjoy a
successful reign. In thisrespect it is a composition suited to a
formaloccasion such as a coronation. Rm-Sns for-mal accession to
power is suspected as the con-text of several hymnic praise-poems
thataddress him in the second person (UET VI1026, ed. Steible 1975,
Charpin 1986: 273302). However, the titulary used in the
presentcomposition does not match that employed ininscriptions from
the beginning of Rm-Snsreign, having more in common with the
titu-lary of his second and third decades (see thenotes on ll. 7
and 89).
Another occasion must be sought. In thisregard it is significant
that Rm-Sns namelacks the divine determinative here (in contrastto
texts Nos. 5254), for his chancellery adopt-ed this style in his
twenty-second year, proba-bly as a consequence of Larsas recovery
of
No. 51 MS 2983 Pls. XXXVIIIXLI
5. I acknowledge with gratitude Nicole Brischscomments on this
text and exonerate her frommistakes that persist.
-
Othe r S e c ond -Mi l l e nn ium Roya l and Commemo r a t i v e
I n s c r i p t i on s 109
obv.1 dutu en gal kalag!-ga! an--ga ma-an[e?
x x] / i-lim-ma-ni g r-ra ba-kr-k[r-ra]
2 ud5-sag ma kin-gal me ng-nam-ma id-d ng-x x
3 di-kud gal sipa sag-gi6-ga ng-a-na mu sa4-a / dug4-ga-ni
nu-km-me
4 x-di zu -g-g-ni di-di r-bi dug4-ga-?
5 n-tar-tar ng-si-s m-m igi-{igi}-k bar-re!
6 tak4 gisi-gar uta-e utu--ta utu--u /
gi-nu11 u[d] g-g lugal-a-ni-ir7 ri-im-dsn(suen) nun g-[u]n gr-ru
nibruki
8 -a urim5ki-ma me eriduki-ga u-du7-du7
9 sag-n-tar gr-suki ki-laga!(fiIR.BUR)ki!-a10 -babbar-da
n-te-g11 lugal larsamki-ma lugal ki-en-gi ki-uri-
me-en12 sipa u-dug4-ga an
den-ll-l-me-en13 dnin-ur-sag-g ud tu-da-ni-ta / nam dg
tar-ra-me-en14 ul dnanna k-ge pd-da / sipa gi-tuku
dutu15 dKIfi-eri11-gal dingir sag-du-ga-na /m[u]
ma sa4-a me-en16 ur-sag en ka-a-bar ul dutu / a-a sag-gi6-
ga17 ri-im-dsn(suen) lugal!/nun!? -m dug4-ga
/ -ga-na me-en
rev.18 unken dingir-re-e-ne-ka u-mu im-mi-
in-dab519 igi an den-ll-l- u-mu-u[n-de6
?]20 dutu lugal-mu g ba-da-ni-in-d[]21 larsamki uru -tu-da-g -bi
dg-[ge-d]22 -dam-didli-bi ki-tu!(tablet: tu-ki)-a tu-
-d / edin br-ra n--d23 ki? [x] x x-g? g-t s-ke g-g-24 -bi
[m]u-da-an-g25 ri-im-dsn(suen) l an den-ll-le ng x x x26 inim ng-gi
dnanna dutu nu-ta-x (x)27 nam-sipa-mu ma-da dagal-la-g28 gal -g-e29
gigu-za-g larsamki-ka-ma (sic!) / suu-
bi a-ba-gi-n30 gidru-mu-ta! g-d-a-{x}-g / gr-mu-
u[ ]a-ma-ab-gurum-e-d31 lugal kin?/l? ng-ba[l-bal x x x ]x32 x x
KA ki ba x[ x ] x x x x x33 x tag?-ga ng-nam? x da? x
------------------------------------------------------34 an-n
den-ll-le u? a-ba-gd-d!35 mu sa6-ga-mu igi-dingir-re-e-ne /
u4--
u g a-ba-ab-d[]
control over Nippur in his twentieth year(Charpin 1986: 300,
2004: 120 fn. 517). If theepithet that claims his gift of tribute
to Enlil (l.7) is grounded in fact, the date of compositionwill
fall between his twentieth year and histwenty-second year. The
occasion was evi-dently some ritual ceremony at which it
wasappropriate to reiterate the ideology of divineselection and
mission originally expressed at
Rm-Sns coronation. Because the composi-tion depicts Utu leading
Rm-Sn before theassembly of the gods, which was held in
theUbu-ukkinna, a court of Enlils cult-centre atNippur, it may be
proposed that the ceremonywas a rite in which Rm-Sn presented his
giftof tribute to Enlil and was formally recognizedas king at
Nippur in consequence.
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110 Roya l I n s c r i p t i on s and Re l a t e d Tex t s
1 For Utu, great and mighty(!) lord whose [ . . . warms] the
livestock(?) from heavens midst, whose radiance is kindled for the
teeming people,
2 supreme bellwether, leader (equipped with) control over
everything, who counts up . . . ,
3 great judge, shepherd of the black-headed people, all that
were ever given name, whose spoken word cannot be altered,
4 who knows . . . , pronounces his commissions, . . .
5 who looks after (matters), making justice grow, watching with
a bright eye,
6 who draws back the bolts of the firmament from dawn to dusk,
spreading the light of day, his lord,
7 I, Rm-Sn, the prince who delivers tribute to Nippur,
8 provisioner of Ur, who conducts to perfection the rites of
Eridu,
9 who takes care of Girsu and Laga,10 who reveres the temple
E-babbar,11 I, king of Larsa, king of Sumer and Akkad,12 I, the
shepherd chosen by the touch of An
and Enlil,13 I, one given a fine destiny by Ninursag
from the day she bore me,14 I, chosen in the holy heart of the
young
hero Nanna, shepherd who obeys Utu,15 called an exalted name by
Nergal, the god
who begot me,
16 I, of whom the warrior, expert at making decisions, young
hero Utu, father of the black-headed people,
17 said in his heart, Rm-Sn shall be king(?)!:
18 in the gods assembly he took my hand,19 before An and Enlil
he did [lead me(?).]20 My lord Utu addressed them:21 To make
content Larsa, the city that I
created (lit. to which I gave birth),22 to settle its many
villages in (their) abodes,
and make (them) lie freely(?) in the plain,23 to bring harmony
to my(?) . . . 24 I hereby do charge him.25 May Rm-Sn, the one . .
. by An and
Enlil,26 by the true command of Nanna and Utu,
which cannot be revoked(?),28 solemnly discharge27 the duty of
being my shepherd in my
wide land!29 May he secure the base of my throne in
Larsa!30 With my staff may he subdue at my feet
those who take against me!3133 unintelligible34 May An and Enlil
extend (their) hands
(in blessing),35 may they daily [pronounce] my name fine
before the gods!
2. For kin-gal (= kingal) with me see the incipitof Rm-Sn F (UET
VI 105: 1, ed. Charpin1986: 287): dri-im-dsn(suen) lugal
me-nun-nakingal me-sr-ra nam-nun-na sag-l ORm-Sn, king (provided
with) the essence ofnobility, leader (equipped with) all powers
ofoffice, head held aloft in princeliness.
4. With the end of the line cf. Nabntu V 2: r-dug4-ga = te-e-lum
to pronounce, enunciateclearly(?) (courtesy Brisch).
6. I am grateful to C. Wilcke for the readinguta(U+GA)-e, here
and in text No. 52: 3,and for references to it in the literature
(Civil
1983b: 2378; on U+GA see further Wilcke1987: 103 fnn. 12). As a
literary synonym ofan heaven, sky uta-e (or utae, seeHorowitz 1998:
232) is typical of literary textsof Rm-Sins reign, but not
exclusive to it. Itappears in his building inscription for Ikurfrom
Ur (RIM E4.2.14.1: 6, ed. Frayne 1990:272), his daughter Enanedus
inscription fromUr (RIM E4.2.14.20: 5, ed. Frayne 1990:300), and
his hymn to the god aya (Rm-Sn B 19, ed. Charpin 1986: 344), but
also inother praise poetry (Ibbi-Suen D 7, ed.Sjberg 197071: 146;
Ku-Nanna to Nin-
-
Othe r S e c ond -Mi l l e nn ium Roya l and Commemo r a t i v e
I n s c r i p t i on s 111
ubur 10, ed. Walker and Kramer 1982: 80;Inanna and An 130, ed.
van Dijk 1998: 19;hymn to Nanna N 1542: 6, ed. ETCSLt.4.13.a).
Rm-Sn also uses ud g-g of the moon-god, Nanna-Sn (RIM
E4.2.14.11: 5).
7. Rm-Sns usual epithets in relation to Enlilscult-centre are
nun n-tuk nibruki princewho reveres Nippur (RIM E4.2.14.2: 10,
3:10, 5: 8, 6: 14), nita n-tuk nibruki man whoreveres Nippur (RIM
E4.2.14.4: 8), sipainim sa6-sa6-ge nibru
ki shepherd who doesfine things for Nippur (RIM E4.2.14.8: 11,9:
10, 10: 8), and, nearest to that of thepresent line, nun g-un kr
(i.e. guru6?)nibruki prince who bears(?) tribute to Nip-pur (RIM
E4.2.14.11: 12, 12: 8, 13: 11, 17:25). The change in these epithets
seems toreflect developments in Larsas political rela-tions with
Nippur (Frayne 1990: 270).Though the present epithet is new, it is
clear-
ly a variant of that exhibited in the inscrip-tions that Frayne
places after Rm-Sns twen-tieth year, when Larsa regained control
ofNippur.
89. In most examples of Rm-Sns titulary,the epithets relating to
these cult-centresplace Eridu after Girsu-Laga and have megi-ur
eriduki-ga instead of our me eriduki-ga. The sole exception is RIM
E4.2.14. 8:1415, which agrees with our text in both
theseparticulars. Frayne places it in years 1420.
22. Other instances of ki-tu(+loc.) . . . tuoccur in the
Lamentation over the Destruc-tion of Sumer and Ur 3233 (ed.
Michalow-ski 1989: 38). The expression edin br-ra nis a functional
equivalent of -sal-la n //Akk. aburr rabum to lie at pasture; cf.
alsopargni rabum to lie in meadowland.
24. Note the present-performative function ofthe amu, as in
Akkadian.
No. 52 MS 3409 Pl. XLII
This text on a tablet of fourteen lines is a copyof a votive
inscription recording a dedication toNingirsu made on behalf of
Rm-Sn by ascribe named Ningirsu-uballi. The dedicated
object is a votive arrowhead of bronze. Thekings name has the
divine determinative, andso the inscription derives from the middle
orend of his reign.
obv.1 dnin-gr-su-ra2 ur-sag l-rim ub-ub-b? / ur-sag
bala gr-ni- g gar-ra3 en ki-r u-ni- si- / ga k-bar! uta-e
t-bi DI4 dKA.DI -[m]a-ni s-s5 lugal lagaki-ra lugal-a-ni-ir6
na[m]-ti dri-im-dsn(suen) lugal larsamki-
ma-[]7 dnin-gr-s--ba-l-i / dumu li-p-it-
ditar(inanna) dub-sar gal? larsamki-[ma-ke4]
8 im-8-ba zabar -ni / an-ub-da lmmu-ba / ng-ki-a sur l-rim
l-gig!
rev.9 dnin-gr-su lugal-a-ni-ir / n[g-k]i-a sur
tuk-a10 sag-ki-ni r su-lim ri-a11 ng-z[i]--gl nam-ti-la / pirig
a-a
mu4-mu4 / u-ni-ta u-du-a12 sag-tuku inim-gar sa6-ga-ni13 zi-ni
ru-ak14 r n-tuku-ni a mu-na-ru
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112 Roya l I n s c r i p t i on s and Re l a t e d Tex t s
1 To Ningirsu, 2 the warrior who casts downthe wicked, who
subdues the rebel mountainranges beneath his foot, 3 the lord into
whosehands is given the earth below, who pronounc-es decisions from
the firmament above, 4 thegod who achieves the triumph of Itaran, 5
lordof Laga, his lord, 6 for the life of Rm-Sn, kingof Larsa, 7
Ningirsu-uballi, son of Lipit-Itar,chief(?) scribe of Larsa, 14 his
humble servant,dedicated 8 his Bronze (arrowhead), Sent Forthon the
Eight Winds, that in the four quarters ofthe world saves the
creatures of the earth butbears hatred for the wicked, 9 (so that)
Ningirsuhis lord, who owns that which saves the crea-tures of the
earth, 10 whose brow is imbuedwith fierce awesome radiance, 11 who
gives lifeto all living beings, who grasps in his hand alion
superbly clad(?), 12 may cause a protectivespirits favourable
oracle 13 to preserve his life.
2. Perhaps better ur-sag -bala moun-tain range, rebel land.
3. Reading of the latter part of the line suggest-ed by C.
Wilcke. The terms ki-r and uta-e here convey cosmic opposites; for
ki-r asa synonym of eretum netherworld seeHorowitz 1998: 276.
4. If correctly read, this line cites the warriorNingirsu as the
agent of retribution of thejustice-god Itaran of D2r (much as his
coun-terpart Ninurta is avenger of Enlil at Nip-pur?), and provides
evidence for a furtherconnection between Itaran and Girsu
(seeLambert 197680, Selz 1995: 155).
8. This line evidently denotes the object dedi-cated and the
first unit, im-8-ba zabar -ni,can be identified as its name. For
zabarbronze as a term for an arrowhead see AaIII/3 202 = Diri I
133: za-barzabar = u-ut-pu.An arrow called Bronze Sent Forth on
theEight Winds would make an appropriatevotive offering for the
warrior Ningirsu.Elsewhere in Sumerian literature his arrowsare
described as ti sr m-a nim-gim gr-dafurious arrows that in battle
flash like light-
ning (Gudea Cyl. B xiv 5, see Cooper 1978:15960), and eight
winds are ridden byNinurta on his journey into battle against
theasag-demon (Lugale 77, ref. courtesy C.Wilcke). The first
attribute of Ningirsusarrow also occurs in l. 9, where it is
repeatedwith tuk-a; it provides an instance of Sum.sur to save, a
meaning that cannot be sub-stantiated from lexical texts but is
well esta-blished in first-millennium writing, wherethe Sumerogram
sur stands for Akk. eru tosave. In the final phrase, l-gig! is
presu-med to be a variant of commonplace ul-gig= zrum to hate; for
l(GIfiGIfi = KIB) as awriting of ul wicked see Proto-Ea 643:
u-ulGIfiGIfi, Ea IV 208: u-ulKIB = lem-nu.
12. Reading courtesy C. Wilcke, who suggeststhat sag-tuk = mukl
ri and draws attentionto Antagal E iv 3': TUKdu-TUKdu = kul-lu
ri(sag); Diri I 319: du-ut-tuTUK-TUK = kul-lum ri(sag); etc.
13. The omission of final is clear fromthe parallel
inscriptions, No. 53: 30 belowand RIM E4.2.14.23: 35, ed. Frayne
1990:303.
-
Othe r S e c ond -Mi l l e nn ium Roya l and Commemo r a t i v e
I n s c r i p t i on s 113
No. 53 MS 3289 Pl. XLIII
This is a copy on a tablet of a votive inscriptionof thirty-five
lines, recording a dedication to adeity, probably An, of bronze
cups made onbehalf of Rm-Sn by his wife, Rm-Sn-fiala-btau. A
subscript notes that there were ninesuch cups, presumably because
they all bore theidentical inscription. A very similar
votiveinscription of this lady records her dedicationof a stone
basin, set up in the main gate of thecourtyard of E-me-urur, Itars
temple at Larsa(RIM E4.2.14.23, ed. Frayne 1990: 3023).Lines 1321
of the present text are restoredafter that example. Both
dedications weremade for the life of Rm-Sn and his
daughter,Lir-gamlum. The kings name is mentionedfirst, as deference
dictates, and is prefixed with
the divine determinative. This detail places theinscription in
the middle or later decades of hisreign. In both texts the true
reason for Rm-Sn-fiala-btaus votive gifts was clearly thepoor
health of the daughter. Both inscriptionsrequest relief from the
various demons thatafflict her body and eyes, and the text on
thebasin also asks that she be spared from bandits.The latter
request suggests that the royal house-hold was preparing to send
the sick princess ona journey, presumably in the hope that shewould
find a cure. Perhaps this entailed a visitto the doctors of Gula,
the goddess of healing,in Isin, a city that fell into Rm-Sns hands
in1794 BC, the twenty-ninth year of his reign.
obv.1 an-[ra]2 m?-sag a-a dingir-re-e-ne3 [du]g4
?-ga-ni sag-ba DU4 x-k su-lim-ma sa7-ga5 n-gal u ri-a6
nam-tar-tar-ra-na gal-le-e kal7 an-ki-a zag n[u-s]8 dingir u-m-m
gi[-tuk]u9 l-n-te-g[-n]a
10 nam-t[i-la . . . ]x11 nam-e-e b-b-tar-re-a12 lugal-a-ni-ir13
dri-im-[ds][n(suen)]- / d[a-la-ba-a]-ta-
[u]14 dam [ki-g]15 [d]ri-i[m-dsn(suen)]16 [dumu-munu]s
ds[n(suen)-ma-gir-ke4]17 [munus sun5-na]18 [me-te nam-lugal-la-
tm-ma]
rev.19 [nam-ti dri-im-dsn(suen)]20 [lugal larsamki-ma-]21 [
li-ri-i-ga-am-lum]22 dumu-munus-[a-ni]23 zabar-ga zab[ar]24 me-te
banur-[ra]25 -mu-d[m]26 -al igi-ni-a zi-zi-i-[d]27 la-ra-a
ng-gig-ga si-il-i-d28 -sg su-a-na gl-la-a29 l n nu-te-g-na m-mu-d30
zi-ni ru ak-d31 nam-ti32 li-ri-i-ga-am-lum33 dumu-munus-a-ni34
nam-ti-la-ni-35 a mu-na-ru
------------------------------------------------------------------------36
zabar-ga / ti-i-it
1 [For] An, 2 the bellwether, father of thegods, 3 whose word is
their leader, 4 pure. . . , beauteous in splendour, 5 imbuedwith
fearsome dread, 6 whose determiningof destiny is very precious, 7
who is unri-
valled in heaven and earth, 8 god who hearsthe benedictions 9 of
the one who revereshim, 11 and determines as (his) destiny 10 alife
[of long days(?),] 12 her lord, 13 Rm-Sn-fiala-btau, 14 [beloved]
wife 15 of
-
114 Roya l I n s c r i p t i on s and Re l a t e d Tex t s
Rm-[Sn, 16 daughter] of Sn-[magir, 17 pi-ous lady, 18 ornament
worthy of the royalmajesty, 19 for the life of Rm-Sn, 20 kingof
Larsa, 21 and Lir-gamlum, 22 her]daughter, 25 made 23 bronze milk
cups, 24 ta-ble ornaments, 26 and, in order to make theaal-disease
leave her eyes, 27 to banish thedangers of sickness, 29 to pass on
to one
who does not revere him 28 the asag-demonthat is in her body, 30
and to preserve herlife, 35 she dedicated (them) 31 for the life
32of Lir-gamlum, 33 her daughter, 34 and forher own life. 36 Nine
milk cups.
1318. Restored after RIM E4.2.14.23: 1317.I have omitted the
first-person enclitic me-enbecause in the present inscription
Rm-Snswife refers to herself in the third person (seell. 3334).
1922. Restored from RIM E4.2.14.23: 912.3135. The same as RIM
E4.2.14.23: 3637 +
39, except that the third person is used, notthe first.
No. 54 MS 3268 Pl. XLIV
A fragment of an alabaster jar incised with aSumerian dedicatory
inscription aligned per-pendicular to the base. The inscription
recordsone Nawiram-arrs presentation of the jar asa votive gift for
the benefit of his lord, KingRm-Sn. The beginning of the text is
missing;
it would have identified the deity to whom thejar was given. The
absence of any postpositionafter the beneficiarys name (l. 2')
suggests thatthe language of this inscription is not Sumerianbut
Akkadian, and it is read accordingly.
1' [a-na bal]([nam-t]i) [For the life] of2' [dri-i]m-dsn(suen)
[Rm]-Sn,3' rubti([m]u-tm) presented by4' na-wi-ra-am-a-ru-ur
Nawiram-arr,5' mri(dumu) qti(ba)-dama(utu) son of Qti-fiama.
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Othe r S e c ond -Mi l l e nn ium Roya l and Commemo r a t i v e
I n s c r i p t i on s 115
Four versions are extant of a Sumerian text thatrecords the
building of a palace by Sn-kid,who was king of Uruk in the
mid-nineteenthcentury. They occur on large numbers ofbricks,
tablets, and cones, and have been editedby Douglas Frayne (1990:
44151 E4.4.1.25;see in addition Spar 1988: 158 no. 115, West-enholz
and Eidem 198990: 113 nos. 1012,Sollberger 1990: 5, Owen 1991: 112
nos. 38284, Franke 1992, Cussini 1994, Veenker 1994:126 EM 6,
Allred and Gadotti 2007: 1 2.1, Seri2007: 1920 3.41, Hilgert 2008:
17 2.22,Glassner 2009, Robson and Clark 2009: 13
5.45, Lorenz and Schrakamp 2009, Ragavan2010: 45 5.1). Where
known, the archaeo-logical provenance of these objects is Uruk,most
especially the building thereby identifiedas Sn-kids palace but
also elsewhere on thesite. The first to come to notice was a brick
sentback to the British Museum by William KellyLoftus in 1850, and
published in 1861 as I R 3no. 8.
The Schyen Collection includes a tabletthat is an exemplar of
RIM E4.4.1.3 (MS 1880)and two duplicate cones that are exemplars
ofRIM E4.4.1.4 (MS 1698/1, 1790).
Sn-kid of Uruk
No. 55 MS 1880 Pl. XLIV
obv.1 dsn(suen)-k-i-id2 nita kalag-ga3 lugal unugki-ga4 lugal
am-na-nu-um5 -a 6 -an-na7 -gal
rev.8 nam-lugal-la- / ka-ni9 mu-d
Sn-kid, mighty male, king of Uruk, kingof the Amnnum (tribe), 5
provider for E-anna, built his royal palace.
Nos. 5657 MS 1698/1, 1790 Pl. XLIV
1 dsn(suen)-k-i-id2 nita kalag-ga3 lugal unugki-ga4 lugal
am-na-nu-um5 -a -an-na6 ud -an-na7 mu-d-a8 -gal9
nam-lugal-la-ka-ni
10 mu-d
Sn-kid, mighty male, king of Uruk, kingof the Amnnum (tribe), 5
provider for E-anna when he built E-anna 10 he built hisroyal
palace.
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116 Roya l I n s c r i p t i on s and Re l a t e d Tex t s
The Schyen Collection holds blocks cut fromthree bricks stamped
with a well-known Sum-erianizing inscription of ammurapi, king
ofBabylon (17921750). The text was mostrecently edited by Douglas
Frayne (1990: 352E4.3.6.15). The first brick to come to
lightbearing this inscription was acquired by EdgarJ. Banks during
his expedition to Tell Bismaya,the site of ancient Adab, in 1903
and publishedin 1930. In the 1930s and subsequently
severalexemplars were found at nearby Tell Ibzaikh,
ancient Zabalam, and it may be that Bankssbrick came likewise
from this site, for theinscription reports ammurapis constructionof
E-zi-kalamma, the goddess Itars temple inZabalam. The three
exemplars published hereare exact duplicates, except for the loss
of thefirst part of l. 1 on MS 4749, and are for this rea-son not
transliterated separately. A fourthexemplar, formerly MS 1876/3,
was donated in1994 to the British Museum, where it nowbears the
registration number 1994-11-8, 1.6
ammurapi of Babylon
6. I owe this information to the kindness of JonTaylor. The
brick can be found in the BritishMuseums online research database
by searchingfor 1994,1108.1 at
http://www.britishmuse-um.org/research.aspx (visited August
2009).
Nos. 5860 MS 1876/1, 1876/2, 4749 Pl. XLIV
1 a-am-mu- / ra-p2 lugal kalag-ga3 lugal4 k-dingir-raki
5 lugal an-ub-da / limmu-ba-ke46 badm7 -zi-kalam-ma8 dinanna9
zabalamki- / ta
Hammurapi, mighty king, king of Baby-lon, 5 king of the four
world-regions,builder of E-zi-kalamma, the temple ofItar in
Zabalam.
ammurapiarrum dannumarBbilimar kibrtim arbaimbniE-zi-kalammabt
Itarina Zabalim
6. The spelling of bni emulates Narm-Snsinscription
commemorating an earlier recon-struction of the same temple (see
text No. 24:2).
-
Othe r S e c ond -Mi l l e nn ium Roya l and Commemo r a t i v e
I n s c r i p t i on s 117
Kurigalzu IINo. 61 MS 3210 Pl. XLV
This is a copy on an oblong clay tablet of acommemorative
inscription in archaizing,monumental script. The inscription, in
MiddleBabylonian, records the gift of a sword byKurigalzu to the
god Ninurta, in return for thegods punishment of an allied force of
menfrom the mountains and the city of D2r innortheast Babylonia.
Their offence was to per-petrate a massacre of citizens of Nippur
in thecourtyard of Ninurtas temple, -sag-dingir-e-ne. This
Kurigalzu is identified by his patro-nym, son of Burnaburia, and is
accordingly theking of Babylon conventionally designatedKurigalzu
II (13321308).
The inscription raises two interestingissues. The first is that
the only temple of Nin-urta yet known to have borne the name
-sag-dingir-e-ne was in Dr-Kurigalzu, now AqarQuf west of Baghdad.
It was identified by stonedoor-sockets found in situ at Aqar Quf
andbearing an inscription of one of the Kurigalzus.
That being so, it is strange that citizens of far-away Nippur
were massacred in its courtyard.Perhaps the name of Ninurtas new
temple atDr-Kurigalzu was borrowed from some oth-erwise unattested
shrine of his at Nippur.
The second point is an historical one. Kuri-galzu son of
Burnaburia is generally held tohave been a successful monarch. What
is re-ported of the political and military history ofKurigalzus
reign, in Chronicle P, speaks of warwith Elam, Assyria, and,
probably, the Sealand,in battles conducted on the borders of
Babylo-nia. It thus comes as a significant piece of infor-mation
that an enemy could have formed acombined force of people from the
mountains,presumably the Zagros, and from D2r, and suc-cessfully
led them all the way to Dr-Kurigalzuor Nippur, there to take over
one of the citysholy places and slaughter civilians. It wouldseem
that Kurigalzu IIs reign was punctuatedby a least one period of
extreme weakness.
obv.1 dnin-urta be-lum a pu-lu-ta2 ez-ze-ta ra-mu-3 sa-pi-in
za-i-ri4 a-bu-ba-nu la a-ni-u5 i-ti-in mr(dumu) ma-am-ma-na-ma6
i-i-na lem-na a ad(kur)7 a u-ma la i-u-8 la mu-a-q-ir i-li9 i-tu
a-di-u id-ka-a-um-ma
10 um-ma-an de-e-er11 a-na re--ti-u i-u-za-am-maedge12
[i]?-ru-da?-ma i-na ki-sa-al-li13 []a -sag-dingir-e-ne
rev.14 nam-a-ra -e-i-ma15 da-am mr(dumu)me nippuru(nibru)ki
16 ki-ma me-e it-bu-uk17 be-lum ra-bu- dnin-urta gi-mi-il-li18
mr(dumu)me nippuru(nibru)ki a-na tu-ur-ri19 a-di su-ur-ri ul
u-ki-is-su-ma20 na-pi-ta-u ki-ma me-e it-bu-uk21 a-na at-tim
dku-ri-gal-zu22 mr(dumu) dbur-na-bu-ri-ia-a23 a-na be-l ra-bi-i
dnin-urta24 mu-[kil]-lu re-e ar-ru-ti-u25 nam-a-ar ks-pi ru-u-i-i26
si-mat qa-ti-u el-le-e-tiedge27 u!-te!-eb-ni-ma28 i-q-is-su
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118 Roya l I n s c r i p t i on s and Re l a t e d Tex t s
Against Ninurta, the lord imbued withfierce dread, who lays flat
the enemy, aDeluge that does not tire, 5 a certain some-body
mobilized a wicked foe in the moun-tains, who had no name and held
no godsprecious, and 10 took troops from D2r to behis allies, and
sent (them), and had (them)draw blades in the courtyard of
E-sang-dingirene, and spilled like water 15 theblood of Nippurs
citizens.
In order to avenge the citizens of Nip-pur, the great lord
Ninurta immediately al-lowed him no pardon but 20 spilled his
life-(blood) like water.
Because of this, Kurigalzu, son of Burn-aburia, had fashioned
for the great lordNinurta, who holds his rule in honour, 25 adirk
of reddish silver, worthy of his purehands, and bestowed it on
him.
4. Ninurta is commonly described as abbu aDeluge (Annus 2002:
123). This is the firstattestation of abbu with infixed -n-.
Thefunction of the infix in this case is uncertain,perhaps
sometimes diminutive (GAG 56r),though that is not a probable
explanationhere.
5. For itn as an indefinite article, typicallyused to introduce
anonymous persons, seeGeorge 2003: 186.
19. I read ukssma from ku, lit. he did notallow (anyone) to show
him mercy. For thisnuance of ku see the synonym list Malku V8687:
a-za-ru to forgive = re-e-mu to takepity, ka-a-u to show mercy.
24. Note the literary construct state in final -u.25. On the
practice of dedicating swords and
other weapons as votive offerings, see Rad-ner and Kroll
2006.
No. 62 MS 1988 Pl. XLVI
This is an eye-stone dedicated by Kurigalzu tothe minor god
Mr-bti. It is of a common sort:a lenticular disc of agate, white
around a brownpupil, bearing a three-line inscription incisedon the
pupil. The form and function of suchstones has been studied by W.
G. Lambert,who cites many such objects bearing inscrip-tions of
Kurigalzu (Lambert 1969). The first ofKurigalzus eye-stones to gain
attention wasacquired by the British Museum in 1866 andpublished in
1887 (Brinkman 1976: 226Q.2.79); others are scattered in museums
acrossthree continents. As objects of beauty, and per-haps
talismanic value, eye-stones were passeddown through the ages and
often ended up farfrom their original places of use. Thus
thearchaeological provenances, where known, ofKurigalzus eye-stones
range from Babylonia(Nippur, especially the hoard of stone and
glassartefacts found in area III) and Assyria (Aur)
to Luristan (Surkh Dum); see further Brinkman1976: 22527
Q.2.7489. Some eye-stones ofKurigalzu identify him by patronym as
Kuri-galzu, son of Burnaburia, i.e., the secondking of this name,
and it is probable that allstem from Kurigalzu IIs reign. H.
Waetzoldthas published a piece that adds to the
gemstonesattributable to this king, a pierced onyx beaddedicated to
Enlil by Kurigalzu lugal r tur(Waetzoldt 2001). The epithet puzzled
him. Asolution he did not consider is to read Kurigalzuar kiati eru
K., king of the world, theyounger, a style that distinguishes him
fromhis predecessor Kurigalzu I. Indeed, Kurigalzue-e-ru K. the
younger is how the son ofBurnaburia is known in the synchronistic
his-tory (CT 34 38 i 16, 18, ed. Grayson 1975: 159).
Those of Kurigalzus published eye-stonesthat bear dedications to
deities cite the godsEnlil, Ninlil, Ninurta, Adad, Nuska, and
Mar-
-
Othe r S e c ond -Mi l l e nn ium Roya l and Commemo r a t i v e
I n s c r i p t i on s 119
duk. The present stone, which is dedicated tonone of these, is
thus a slender addition to ourknowledge of this kings pious works.
Therecipient, Mr-bti, bears a generic name, Sonof the House, given
to divine sons who residewith their father. In the second
millennium thisname occurs only on the twelfth-centuryboundary
stone that records NebuchadnezzarIs grant of land to fiitti-Marduk,
where it is anepithet of the snake-god (BBSt 6 ii 49, ed. King1912:
36): dMUfi ilu(dingir) u-pu-u mr(dumu)bti() a urude-e-er Nira,
pre-eminent god,Son-of-the-House of D2r. By implication ofthe
epithet, Nira should be the son of Itarn,the chief deity of D2r.
Nira occurs also as amember of the temple-household of Itarn in
scholarly lists (McEwan 1983: 21819, addCavigneaux 1981: 87 ll.
7277), and in aboundary stone of Nazi-Marutta that invokeshim as
Itarans messenger (MDP II 19 iv 23,ed. Scheil 1900: 91 and pl. 17:
dMUfi ip-ru adKA.DI). Mr-bti of D2r is well known in
first-millennium sources, as are Mr-bti of Babylonand Borsippa
(Krebernik 1989). Another Mr-bti probably resided in Nergals temple
at M-Turnat (see below, text No. 78: 21). Outsidescholarly lists,
the epithet Mr-bti had by thistime displaced the snake-gods true
name atD2r. Kurigalzus eye-stone pushes knowledgeof one or other of
the gods called Mr-bti backa further two centuries.
1 {a} dmr(a)-bti() (On) Mr-bti2 ku-ri-gal-zu Kurigalzu3 in-na-ba
bestowed (this).
1. The superfluous a can be explained as a falsestart by a
stone-cutter who at first thought hewas going to incise an Akkadian
inscription
on the pattern a-na DN RN iq, but thenchose instead to write his
text in the Sumer-ian style, with no preposition.
-
120 Roya l I n s c r i p t i on s and Re l a t e d Tex t s
This is a small limestone tablet in portrait for-mat. The
surface of the obverse is destroyed butthree lines of text survive
on the reverse, theremainder of which is blank. They are all
thatremains of a Sumerian building inscriptioncommemorating the
reconstruction or repairof an unidentified temple. The style and
struc-ture of the inscription place its date in the latethird
millennium or the early second, and itsoriginal provenance as
southern Mesopotamia.The use of stone-cutters script provides
nohelp in refining the date paleographically, andthe absence of the
names of the royal builder(RN in the reconstructed translation),
the tem-ple (TN), and the deity who resided there(DN) means that
other evidence must be citedin considering a more exact time and
place oforigin.
The sole aid remaining to us is phraseology.The temple epithet
ki-tu k ki-g-g-ni,which comprises the bulk of the surviving
text(rev. 12), is one deployed by mid-nineteenth-century kings of
Larsa, e.g. Nr-Adad, whouses it of Enkis cult-centre at Eridu
(RIME4.2.8.5: 12), and Sn-iddinam, who applies itto Utus E-babbar
at Larsa (RIM E4.2.9.9: 11).The same expression, but without k,
isemployed by Sn-irbam of the E-babbar atLarsa (above, No. 50: 14)
and by Sn-iqam ofNingizidas sanctuary at Ur (RIM E4.2.11.2:910: []
ki-tu [ki]-g-ni). Somewhat laterRm-Sn so describes many of the
sacred build-ings he and his father Kudur-mabuk recon-structed or
repaired in Larsa, Ur, and othercities of the realm: ki-tu
ki-g-g-ni (RIME4.2.14.2: 15; 3: 15; 4: 13; 6: 26; 8: 30; 9: 41;
10:42). Probably this stone tablet should beascribed to one or
other of these rulers of Larsa.
Unattributed Inscriptions on StoneNo. 63 MS 4981 Pl. XLVI
obv. destroyedrev.
1 ki-tu k[]2 ki-g-g-ni-e3 mu-na-d
[For DN . . . , RN . . . ] built [TN] to behis beloved sacred
dwelling place.
-
Othe r S e c ond -Mi l l e nn ium Roya l and Commemo r a t i v e
I n s c r i p t i on s 121
This is a fragment of dense black stone, from astatue or other
large monument, with theremains of three columns of text inscribed
onthe flat surface. The right-hand column holdsan Akkadian
translation of the Sumerian text ofthe middle column, so that it is
certain oneshould read left to right and that the left-handcolumn
will hold an Akkadian translation ofthe column to its left, now
missing entirely(col. i(a)'). No bilingual monumental inscrip-tion
in parallel columns is known from thethird millennium and it seems
likely that thefragment is from the second millennium. Thesurviving
content is a statement in the first per-son, in which an
unidentified figure, no doubta king, reports in col. i' how he was
chosen togovern the country (as restored here), and incol. ii' how
a plural subject, perhaps fiama andAdad, the gods of divination,
rewarded his fair-ness with wisdom. It is, therefore, part of
acommemorative inscription that included ide-ological narrative, or
perhaps a fragment of aself-laudatory hymn of the kind popular
withkings of the first part of the second millennium.
The Sumerian of this piece is of a style andquality consistent
with the era of ammurapiand Samsuiluna of Babylon. Its medium
andformat are shared with many small fragments ofa Sumero-Akkadian
bilingual inscription ondiorite that were excavated at Ur by
SirLeonard Woolley in 1927 and published by C.J. Gadd as UET I 146
(Gadd and Legrain 1928:4446, pls. 3435 and Q; see Reade 2002:
291no. 30). Similar pieces were acquired by theYale Babylonian
Collection at about the sametime and published by Ferris J.
Stephens asYOS IX 3961 (Stephens 1937: 14 and pls. 16
20); they, too, probably came from Ur. Moresuch fragments were
found at Ki between1818 and 1929.
The three sets of fragments from Ur andKish are booked together
by the Royal Inscrip-tions of Mesopotamia project as RIME4.3.6.20,
i.e. ammurapi inscription no. 20(Frayne 1990: 357). Douglas Frayne
there not-ed Marten Stols proposal that UET I 146 iiiivalludes to
an event late in the reign of ammu-rapi, reported further possible
parts of the Urmonument (or monuments) in London andChicago, but
did not edit any of the fragmentsbecause their self-laudatory
content is morehymnic than commemorative.
A fourth contemporaneous monumentalinscription in parallel
bilingual columns is rep-resented by a piece of statuary acquired
by theBritish Museum in 1877 and published by L.W. King (King 1898:
10817 no. 60, CT 214042; photograph Reade 2002: 290 no. 28); acopy
of the text was found in the library of thetemple of fiama at Abu
Habba, showing that itwas still the subject of academic study in
Neo-Babylonian Sippar (Fadhil and Pettinato 1995).Because it
contains text addressed in the secondperson to ammurapi, as well as
references tohis achievements in the third person, this
com-position has usually been identified as a hymnto that king
(e.g. Hecker 1989: 72627; Wasser-man 1992). The self-laudatory
fragment MS3269, with its first-person references, is unlike-ly to
be a piece of this fourth inscription, but itcould very well belong
to one or other of theother three monuments, or it may be of
sepa-rate origin.
No. 64 MS 3269 Pl. XLVI
col. i(a)' col. i(b)'1' [ . . . ] [ma-tam? be?]-lam to [rule(?)
the land, etc.]2' [ . . . ] [-wa-a]-e- / [ra-an-n]i [he]
commissioned me.3' [ . . . ] [ . . . -an-n]i? [ . . . ] me(?).4' [
. . . ] [ . . . ]x-nu- / [x (x) ]x
-
122 Roya l I n s c r i p t i on s and Re l a t e d Tex t s
col. ii(a)' col. ii(b)'0' [dutu?] [dama?] [fiama(?)]1' [di]kur
[dadad] and Adad2' [ng-s]i-s- / mu- a-na m[i-a-ar]- / t[i-ia] loved
me for 3' ki ma-an-g- / e-m i-[ra-mu]- / n[i-in-ni] my
righteousness,4' gtug / silim-ma-[bi] [uz-ni-ia / i-na u-ul-mi?]
[and] opened my ears5' gl m[u-un- / tak4-e] [-pa-at- / tu-] on
[their] greeting(?).
ii' 2'. While ng-si-s is usually translated bymarum, the traces
cannot be m[i-a]-r[i-ia], soit is proposed to restore the rarer
martum.
No. 65 MS 3028 Pl. XLVII
This is a large fragment of dense black stone,deriving from the
curved part of a statue orother monument. It holds the text of an
inscri-ption in post-Old Babylonian Sumerian, ofwhich the remains
of three columns survive.The surviving text of col. i' refers to
Ninurta,the warrior-god of Nippur, in relation to hisfather
Nunamnir (Enlil) and mother (Ninlil).Col. ii' twice mentions his
parents as a pair, thesecond time in connection with the
determin-ing of destinies in Ubu-ukkinna, the court ofthe divine
assembly in E-kur, Enlils temple atNippur. The third surviving
column, which isthe last, has as its subject the supply of rain
and
irrigation water, which bring fertility to thearable land. In
its subject matter, the organiza-tion of the natural world by the
gods, the texthas much in common with the shattered frag-ments of
Kurigalzus diorite statue from AqarQuf (Dr-Kurigalzu), edited first
by SamuelNoah Kramer (1948, 1969), and latterly byNiek Veldhuis
(2008b). In particular, both textscontain repeated mentions of the
divine pairEnlil and Ninlil. As inscribed artefacts, how-ever, they
are dissimilar, for Kurigalzus frag-ments employ a much narrower
column and amuch shorter line.
col. i'1' . . . g]ar?
2' [dnin-u]rta3' [dnu-n]am-nir- / e4' [us]u-ma / [nam-]ul-la5' [
k-g]e-ni- / [pd]-da6' [en5-si] gal7' [ki-]g8' [ama tu-ud-d]a- /
[n]a9' [dnin-l]l
gap
col. ii'1' [x (x) ]x-u2' [x x]-e-ne3' [x i]m-dugud-e4'
[x-i]n-gilim-a-ba5' x ta den-ll 6' dnin-ll-ba-ke47' igi-du8'
su-bi-a / ka s-gi49' ki si-ig-ga-a
10' ad gi4-gi4- / gi4-da
-
Othe r S e c ond -Mi l l e nn ium Roya l and Commemo r a t i v e
I n s c r i p t i on s 123
11' inim diri-bi / ta-e12' ba-an-gi413' den-ll14' dnin-ll-ba15'
u ti-g-e16' nam-tar-ra zi-bi17' ub-u-ukkin-na18' [me] al-a-da19'
[x] gal- / [ne]-ne-er20' [x (x) x ]xgapcol. iii'1' x[ . . . ]2'
im-[x (x) x]3' a k[i? x x] / dul-x[ x]4' ki-bi i[m-x x]5' KA g[
x]6' a-gr-a-g[r-]7' im-g-im-[g]8' r ur-sag-g[]- / ta9' a zi-zi
DUMU
10' d-da d-e / ta-[e]
11' a- ab-s[n-na]12' a u-t[a x]13' l [x (x) x] / [(x) x]14'
suku[d? x (x) x]remainder uninscribed
i' . . . ] 2' Ninurta, 5' [chosen] 4' for supremestrength and
might 3' by Nunamnir, 6' chief[farmer], 7' beloved of 8' [ the
mother who]bore him, 9' Ninlil [ . . .
ii' 5' . . . of Enlil 6' and Ninlil, 7' (with) anaudience gift
8' to comfort(?) them, 9' in aquiet place 10' giving counsel, 11'
addinggenerously(?) 12' he responded. 13' Enlil 14'and Ninlil, 15'
having accepted this, 20' [de-termined] 16' his true destiny 19'
for theirgreat [ . . . ] 17' in Ubu-ukkinna 18' [wherethe
ordinances] are allotted . . .
iii' . . . 9' bringing(!) 7' rains 6' [to] themeadowland, (and)
9' floodwaters 8' fromthe mountain flanks, 10' increasing the
riv-ers flow, 12' [dispensing] water 11' on fieldand furrow, . .
.
ii' 17'18'. The epithet me al-a(l) whichallots the mes is
attached also to the Ubu-ukkinna of Babylon, as recorded in Tintir
II16' (ed. George 1992: 52): ub-u-ukkin-name-zu-al-al-la.
iii 9'. I assume the sign DUMU here is phoneticfor tm-mu
bringing.
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124 Roya l I n s c r i p t i on s and Re l a t e d Tex t s
MS 3270 is a fragment of dense black stoneequipped with one flat
surface but otherwiserough. The broken surface is somewhat
smooth,as if worn by much handling or eroded by theaction of water.
The flat surface is divided intwo horizontally by a slightly curved
groove,deeply incised. Below the groove, to the leftand extending
to the left edge, is a rectangle lessdeeply incised and divided
horizontally into atwo-section case suitable for a two-line
epi-graph. In the upper section are engraved fourcuneiform signs in
good monumental script,but in mirror writing. They can be read as
theAkkadian word me-lu-le-tum games. Thelower section is blank.
Outside the case are twoisolated cuneiform signs, also in mirror
writing.In the middle of the fragment, just above thedeep
horizontal groove, is a sign that resemblesen. Below the groove,
about midway betweenthe right edge and the case, is the sign tum.
Thehead of a single wedge is incised above it and tothe right, near
where the horizontal groovemeets the right edge.
It is impossible to determine whether theperson who engraved
this curious fragmentlived in antiquity or in a more recent age,
butthere is reason not to dismiss it outright as afake. Mirror
writing on stone is a practice thathas no obvious functional
context in ancientMesopotamia, except in the manufacture ofseals.
Mirror writing on stone objects otherthan seals is not unknown,
however. A smallrectangular piece of limestone acquired before1910
by the Royal Ontario Museum is in-scribed in mirror writing with
part of a Sume-rian poem in praise of Rm-Sn of Larsa(Frayne 1989).
It so happens that two othercopies of this passage are known, both
alsoinscribed on small stone objects but neither inmirror writing.
One is a little agate tabletdonated to the Yale Babylonian
Collection in1929 (YOS IX 72, publ. Stephens 1937: 17 andpl. 27).
It was so unique as to be suspected as afake, but the situation
changed with David I.Owens subsequent discovery in the Free
Library of Philadelphia of a stone vase bearingthe same passage
(Owen 1976).
Owen was undecided whether the inscrip-tions on the Philadelphia
and Yale pieces wereengraved in ancient or modern times but didnot
doubt that they are an authentic excerptfrom an ancient
composition, now otherwiselost (Owen 1976: 352). Fraynes piece led
himto suggest that the text was a hymn to An com-posed for Rm-Sns
sake (Frayne 1989: 183).Stone tablets and vases are strange objects
onwhich to find a passage of such a text, whetherengraved in
regular script or in mirror writing.Old Babylonian royal praise
poetry is normallyfound on clay tablets, but several fragments
ofstatues bear hymnic compositions of ammu-rapi of Babylon (see
above on No. 64), andthere is indirect evidence that such
monumentswere made also for kings of Isin (Ludwig 1990:6769, Tinney
1995: 7, Westenholz 2005: 34748). The format of a praise poem of
Sn-iddi-nam of Larsa on clay, set out in short lines as
aKurzzeilentext, suggests that it was originallyengraved on a stone
monument (Brisch 2007:71 Sn-iddinam B).
If one accepts the notion that there wasalready in early
second-millennium Babyloniaa tradition of engraving royal praise
poetry onstatuary, an obvious explanation arises for theexistence
of the three small stone pieces thathold a passage of an otherwise
lost text of Rm-Sn: they derive as spoil from a location inwhich a
genuine monumental text of this kingwas copied for engraving
practice. If the piecesare ancient, they probably come from a
sculp-tors workshop where statues of Rm-Sn werefashioned and
equipped with inscriptions. Ifmodern, their provenance might be
anywherein southern Babylonia where such things arefound. But
because no statue or other objectbearing this text of Rm-Sn has
come to light,the modern scenario is less convincing than
theancient.
Given the prevalence of objects from Rm-Sns kingdom in the
Schyen Collection, it isquite possible that the present fragment
derives
No. 66 MS 3270 Pl. XLVIII
-
Othe r S e c ond -Mi l l e nn ium Roya l and Commemo r a t i v e
I n s c r i p t i on s 125
from the same workshop as the tablets and vasejust discussed.
Both it and the Toronto stonecan be envisaged as practice pieces
cut byapprentice stone-cutters learning how to re-
produce monumental script in mirror writing,in preparation for
employment in the manufac-ture of cylinder seals.
A Commemorative Inscription on a JarNo. 67 MS 4759 Pl.
XLVIII
A sherd from a large jar is inscribed with a ded-icatory
inscription in Sumerian style. The useof /me/ as a nominal suffix
(l. 4) indicates thatthe inscription is post-Ur III in date. The
writ-ing is large and confident, and executed in ascript that,
while elaborate, is not inconsistentwith a date in the Isin-Larsa
period. The textrecords the presentation of the jar to a
goddnin-ubur, who is clearly here considered mas-culine (l. 2:
lugal). When fema