Position in chronology
Sennacherib 1015
Translation · reference
High confidence(1') [... the god Aššur, my lord, encouraged] me and [I marched] to the land Ju[dah. In] the course of my campaign, [I received] a payment from the kin[gs of ... With the str]ength of (the god) Aššur, my lord, [I ...] the district [of ...-Y]aū (Hezekiah) of the land Judah like [... (5´) ...] the city Azaqâ, a place upon which he relied, which (is situated) between my ... and the land Judah, [...] is situated upon a mountain peak. Like the blade(s) of daggers, without number, they rise up high into the heavens [...] were well fortified and rival high mountains. Looking upon (them), like [...]…
Source: Grayson, A.K. & Novotny, J. 2012–2014. The Royal Inscriptions of Sennacherib, King of Assyria (704–681 BC). RINAP 3. University Park, PA: Eisenbrauns. https://oracc.museum.upenn.edu/rinap/rinap3/Q004071/
Why it matters
Attests Sennacherib's siege of Azekah and tribute exacted from Hezekiah of Judah — the Assyrian royal record that corroborates, and complicates, the biblical account in 2 Kings 18–19.
Transliteration
[...] / [...] ŠID [...] / [... daš-šur be-lí ú-tak-kil]-⸢an⸣-ni-ma a-na KUR.ia-[u-di lu al-lik ina] me-ti-iq KASKAL.II-ia man-da-at-tu šá ⸢LUGAL⸣.[MEŠ ... am-ḫur (...)] / [... ina da]-⸢na?⸣-ni šá AN.ŠÁR EN-ia na-gu-u [šá mx-x]-⸢ia⸣-a-u KUR.ia-u-da-a-a GIM x [...]1 / [...]-x URU.a-za-qa-a É tuk-la-te-šú šá ina ⸢bi-rit⸣ [(x)]-x-ri-ia u KUR.ia-u-di x [...]2 / [...] ṣe-er ŠU.SI KUR-e šá-kin GIM…
Scholarly note
Royal inscription of Sennacherib, edited by A. Kirk Grayson & Jamie Novotny (RINAP 3, 2012–2014). ORACC text Q004071.
Attribution
Image: BM — (British Museum, London, UK) — from Nineveh (mod. Kuyunjik) — Photo via Cuneiform Digital Library Initiative (cdli.mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de/artifacts, P396381). source
Translation excerpted from Grayson, A.K. & Novotny, J. 2012–2014. The Royal Inscriptions of Sennacherib, King of Assyria (704–681 BC). RINAP 3. University Park, PA: Eisenbrauns. https://oracc.museum.upenn.edu/rinap/rinap3/Q004071/.
Related tablets
Related sources
The earliest historical document in human history.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.