Position in chronology
RINAP 5/1 Ashurbanipal 003, ex. 084 ?
Translation — curated editorial
EditorialEditorial entry — translation cited from: CDLI raw catalogue, no published translation. P-number P392147.
Transliteration
[...]-a# _lugal gal lugal_ dan-nu [...]-szar2 _lugal_ kib-rat _limmu2_-ti [...]-szar2#-pap-asz _lugal kur_ asz-szur [...] _lugal# kur eme-gi7_ u _uri#_ [x] [...]-su# _lugal szu2 lugal kur_ an-szar2# [x] [...]-nu# szi#-mat _saga#_-[x]
Scholarly note
Catalogue entry from CDLI (Neo-Assyrian (ca. 911-612 BC)) — RINAP 5/1 Ashurbanipal 003, ex. 084 ?. No scholarly translation has been published; the transliteration is from the ATF (CDLI's Atf-Friendly format).
Attribution
Image: Oriental Institute, University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, USA (P392147) — Photo via Cuneiform Digital Library Initiative. source
Translation excerpted from CDLI raw catalogue, no published translation. P-number P392147..
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Marks the boundary between proto-writing and writing. We can see signs being used systematically — but not yet phonetically. The leap to recording speech itself comes a few centuries later.
The earliest historical document in human history.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.