Position in chronology
Gudea Statue K
Translation · reference
High confidence(i 1') .... (ii 2) He transported diorite from the mountains of Magan, fashioned his statue from it, named it for her his sake “As I am ... loved by his master, may my life be prolonged!”, and brought it before him into the E-ninnu. (iii 1) Whoever erases its inscription, removes ..., or strips it from its regular offering, (which is) 1 sila of flour (and) 1 sila of husked emmer groats, may Ninĝirsu, the king of weapons, Bau, the child of An, and Ig-alima and Šul-šagana, the beloved children of Ninĝirsu, uproot him, (and) put an end to his lineage!
Source: Electronic Text Corpus of Sumerian Royal Inscriptions (ETCSRI), University of Vienna, edited by Gábor Zólyomi et al. https://oracc.museum.upenn.edu/etcsri/Q001549/
Why it matters
Transliteration
Scholarly note
Sumerian royal inscription, published in the Electronic Text Corpus of Sumerian Royal Inscriptions (ETCSRI) by Gábor Zólyomi and collaborators. Translation reproduced from the ETCSRI edition. ORACC text Q001549.
Attribution
Image: .
Translation excerpted from Electronic Text Corpus of Sumerian Royal Inscriptions (ETCSRI), University of Vienna, edited by Gábor Zólyomi et al. https://oracc.museum.upenn.edu/etcsri/Q001549/.
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The earliest historical document in human history. Before this, we have lists, accounts, and dedications. Here, for the first time, a ruler tells us what happened — with names, places, and consequences.
The oldest surviving law code in human history. The principle that the state — not the wronged family — defines and enforces justice begins here.
Not the first law code, but the most complete and the most famous. Inscribed on a black diorite stele over two meters tall, displayed in a public place — law made visible, law made monumental.