Position in chronology
SAA 04 049. Will Kaštaritu Conquer Ušiši? (AGS 006) [military and political]
Translation · reference
High confidence(1) [Šamaš, great lord, give me a firm] positive answer to what I am asking you! (2) [From this day], the 6th [day] of this month, Iyyar (II), to the 12th day [of this month, Iyyar, for] these [7 da]ys and nights, [my] stipulated [term — within this stipulated term], (4) [will either Kaštar]iti with [his tr]oops, [or the troops of the Cimmerians or the troops of the Med]es, [or the troops of the Manneans ......] (Break) (r 1) (whether) [either Kaštaritu with his troops, ... or the troops of the Man]neans, or the troops of the Me[des, or any other enemy] will capture [that city, Uši]ši, [enter…
Source: Starr, I. 1990. Queries to the Sungod: Divination and Politics in Sargonid Assyria. SAA 4. Helsinki: Helsinki University Press. https://oracc.museum.upenn.edu/saao/saa04/P238983/
Why it matters
Transliteration
[dUTU EN GAL]-ú šá a-šal-lu-ka an-nam [GI.NA a-pal-an-ni] / [TA UD an-ni-i UD] 06-KÁM šá ITI an-ni-i ITI.GUD EN UD 12-⸢KÁM⸣ / [šá ITI an-ni-i ITI.GUD a-na 07] ⸢UD⸣-MEŠ 07 MI-MEŠ NE-MEŠ ši-⸢kin RI⸣-[ia i-na ši-kin RI UR₅-tú] / [lu-ú mka-áš-ta]-⸢ri⸣-ti a-di ⸢ERIM⸣-[MEŠ-šú lu-ú ERIM-MEŠ LÚ.gi-mir-ra-a.a] / [lu-ú ERIM-MEŠ LÚ.ma]-⸢da⸣-a.[a lu-ú ERIM-MEŠ LÚ.man-na-a.a] / [x x x x x x]+⸢x x⸣+[x x x x x…
Scholarly note
Extispicy query addressed to Šamaš, the sungod and patron of divination, edited by Ivan Starr (SAA 4, 1990). The king asks the deity to render a yes/no verdict on a political or military question. ORACC text P238983.
Attribution
Image: BM — (British Museum, London, UK) — from Nineveh (mod. Kuyunjik) — Photo via Cuneiform Digital Library Initiative (cdli.mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de/artifacts, P238983). source
Translation excerpted from Starr, I. 1990. Queries to the Sungod: Divination and Politics in Sargonid Assyria. SAA 4. Helsinki: Helsinki University Press. https://oracc.museum.upenn.edu/saao/saa04/P238983/.
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