Position in chronology
Ashurbanipal 224
Translation · reference
High confidence(1) For the god Marduk, the ex[alte]d lord, king of the gods, supreme one, pre-eminent o[ne ...], one of exa[l]ted strength, foremost of all the lords, [...], all-powerful one, foremost in heaven and netherworld, who directs the Igīgū and [Anunnakū gods ...], who bears the fierce divine weapon, hero of the great gods, [...], the honored, perfect lord wh[o]se [boun]daries cannot be transgressed [...]; (6) the god Šazu (Marduk), who knows the heart of the g[od]s, who exterminates all of the wicked, who [...], who is crowned with the crown of rulershi[p, who] is adorned with [awesom]e terror,…
Source: Novotny, J. & Jeffers, J. 2018–. The Royal Inscriptions of Ashurbanipal (668–631 BC), Aššur-etel-ilāni (630–627 BC) and Sîn-šarra-iškun (626–612 BC), Kings of Assyria. RINAP 5. University Park, PA: Eisenbrauns. https://oracc.museum.upenn.edu/rinap/rinap5/Q007632/
Why it matters
Ashurbanipal's hymnic praise of Marduk — invoking his mastery over the Igīgū and Anunnakū — attests Assyrian kings publicly venerating the chief Babylonian deity, a theological diplomacy central to their claim over the south.
Transliteration
a-na dAMAR.UTU EN ⸢ṣi⸣-[i]-⸢ru⸣ LUGAL DINGIR.MEŠ ⸢šur⸣-bi-i e-tel-⸢li⸣ [...] / e-mu-qa-an ṣi-⸢ra-a⸣-ti a-šá-red nap-ḫar EN.MEŠ [...] / dan-dan-nu a-šá-red AN-⸢e⸣ u KI-tim a-ši-ir dí-gì-gì u d[a-nun-na-ki ...] / na-ši GIŠ.TUKUL.DINGIR ez-⸢zu⸣ ma-am-al DINGIR.MEŠ GAL.MEŠ x [...] / EN kab-tu gít-⸢ma-lum šá⸣ [i]-⸢ta⸣-a-šú la in-né-ti-qu x [...] / ⸢dŠÀ.ZU⸣ mu-de-e ŠÀ ⸢DINGIR.MEŠ⸣ mu-bal-lu-u nap-ḫar…
Scholarly note
Royal inscription of Ashurbanipal or a late Sargonid successor, edited by Jamie Novotny & Joshua Jeffers (RINAP 5, 2018–). ORACC text Q007632.
Attribution
Image: BM — (British Museum, London, UK) — from Nineveh (mod. Kuyunjik) — Photo via Cuneiform Digital Library Initiative (cdli.mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de/artifacts, P237786). source
Translation excerpted from Novotny, J. & Jeffers, J. 2018–. The Royal Inscriptions of Ashurbanipal (668–631 BC), Aššur-etel-ilāni (630–627 BC) and Sîn-šarra-iškun (626–612 BC), Kings of Assyria. RINAP 5. University Park, PA: Eisenbrauns. https://oracc.museum.upenn.edu/rinap/rinap5/Q007632/.
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