Position in chronology
Esarhaddon 101
Translation · reference
High confidence(r 1') [...] ... [...]. I am mighty, I am almighty, I am lordly, I [am] proud, [I am strong], I am [important], I am glorious, (and) [I have no] equ[al] among all the kings. [Ch]osen by the gods Aššur, Nabû, (and) Marduk; called by the god Sîn, favorite of the god [Anu, (rev. 5′) beloved] of the queen — the goddess Ištar, goddess of every[thing] — (and) the merciless [weapon] that makes the ene[my] land tremble, [am I. A king, expe]rt in battle and war, the one who slaughters the set[tlements of his enemies, the one who kills] his [foe]s, the one who dissolves [his] ad[versaries, [the one who…
Source: Leichty, E. 2011. The Royal Inscriptions of Esarhaddon, King of Assyria (680–669 BC). RINAP 4. Winona Lake, IN: Eisenbrauns. https://oracc.museum.upenn.edu/rinap/rinap4/Q003330/
Why it matters
Esarhaddon's self-presentation as chosen simultaneously by Aššur, Nabû, Marduk, Sîn, Anu, and Ištar reflects his calculated effort to legitimise rule across both Assyrian and Babylonian religious traditions after his controversial succession.
Transliteration
[...] (traces) [...]1 / ⸢dan-na-ku⸣ dan-dan-⸢na⸣-ku e-tel-la-ku ⸢šit-ra-ḫa⸣-[ku geš-ra-ku] / ⸢kab-ta⸣-ku šur-ru-ḫa-ku ina gi-⸢mir LUGAL⸣.MEŠ šá-⸢ni-na⸣ [ul i-šá-ku] / [ni]-⸢šit⸣ AN.ŠÁR dMUATI d⸢ŠÚ? ni-bit d⸣30 ⸢mi-gir⸣ d[a-nim]2 / [na]-⸢ram šar-ra-ti diš-tar⸣ i-lat kal ⸢gim⸣-[ri] / [GIŠ.TUKUL] ⸢la⸣ pa-⸢du-ú mu-<<ú>>-rib⸣ KUR nu-kúr-⸢ti⸣ [a-na-ku-ma] / [LUGAL le]-⸢ʾe-um⸣ qab-li u ⸢ta-ḫa-zi⸣ ša-giš…
Scholarly note
Royal inscription of Esarhaddon, edited by Erle Leichty (RINAP 4, 2011). ORACC text Q003330.
Attribution
Image: BM — (British Museum, London, UK) — from Nineveh (mod. Kuyunjik) — Photo via Cuneiform Digital Library Initiative (cdli.mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de/artifacts, P397406). source
Translation excerpted from Leichty, E. 2011. The Royal Inscriptions of Esarhaddon, King of Assyria (680–669 BC). RINAP 4. Winona Lake, IN: Eisenbrauns. https://oracc.museum.upenn.edu/rinap/rinap4/Q003330/.
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