Chapter 07 · 911 – 609 BCE
Neo-Assyrian
Empire, library, terror, scholarship.
~760 BCE · NCMI 004 — National Car Museum of Iran, Tehran, Iran
Nimrud NW Palace zzz001 = RIMA 2.0.101.023, ex. add411
In plain English
Only scraps of four lines survive, but they come from a text we know well. The king recalls the ancient city of Kalhu, founded long before him, which he rebuilt as his capital; he claims dominion over the land of Zamua in its entirety; he describes the palace of cedar he constructed there; and he mentions the beasts of the mountains and the seas — the great stone creatures he had carved and stationed at the palace gates. The beginnings and ends of every line are lost, but the parallel copies let us restore the sense.
AI-generated reading paraphrase; compare with the translation below.
“(obverse, fragmentary) [...] the anci[ent] city Kalhu [which Shalmaneser, king of Assyria, a prince who preceded me, had built ...] [...] the land Zamua to [its] full ext[ent ...] [...] a palace of cedar [...] [... be]asts of the mountains and of the sea[s (in white limestone and alabaster I fashioned and stationed at its gates) ...]”
Source: engine:claude-fable-5 (2026-07-12/v7-evolved) · claude-fable-5 · medium confidence
Read the full tablet entry~760 BCE · ROM 910.092.054 — Royal Ontario Museum of Archaeology, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Nimrud NW Palace zzz010 = RIMA 2.0.101.023, ex. add413
In plain English
What survives is the opening of a royal proclamation: '...the mighty one, king of the world, king of Assyria, son of Tukulti-Ninurta, the great king, the strong king... ruler of the four quarters of the earth, who has no rival... an overwhelming flood that nothing can withstand...' The rest of the text — presumably continuing with the king's conquests or building works — is broken away; only illegible traces remain of the fourth line.
AI-generated reading paraphrase; compare with the translation below.
“(obverse, fragmentary) [... Ashurnasirpal (II)], strong [king], king of the universe, king of Assyria, son of Tukulti-Ninurta (II), great king, [strong] king, [...] [... king of all] the four quarters, who has no rival, [...] [... mighty] flood, who has no [opponent, ...] [...] ... (traces only) [...]”
Source: engine:claude-fable-5 (2026-07-12/v7-evolved) · claude-fable-5 · medium confidence
Read the full tablet entry~760 BCE · MU 2148 — Museum of Ancient Cultures, Macquarie University, Sydney, Australia
RIMA 3.0.102.111, ex. add78
In plain English
Shalmaneser III, great king, mighty king, king of the world and king of Assyria — son of Ashurnasirpal II, who held the same great titles, himself the son of Tukulti-Ninurta II, likewise king of the world and king of Assyria. This brick belongs to the construction of the ziggurat of Kalhu. In effect, it is a builder's label: the king signs his name and pedigree on the very fabric of his temple-tower so that anyone who ever handles the brick knows who built it.
AI-generated reading paraphrase; compare with the translation below.
“[Sh]almaneser, great [king, strong king], king of the universe, king of Assyria, son of Ashurnasirpal (II), [great king,] strong king, king of the universe, king of [Assyria, son of Tukulti-Ninurta (II)], (who was) also king of the universe and king of Assyria: brick[work] of the ziggurat [of Kalhu].”
Source: engine:claude-fable-5 (2026-07-12/v7-evolved) · claude-fable-5 · high confidence
Read the full tablet entry~750 BCE · Reconstructed composite — see ORACC entry for manuscript witnesses
Aššur-nerari V 1
“(1') with scaling ladders and a siege ramp [... where] hostilities occurred [..., whom ...] the king, my ancestor, [had appointed] to be king [... I appointed] Marduk-šarru-uṣur to the governorship [of ...]. (5'b) [No one will appear in court and] protest, [not] with Aššur-nārārī (V) [...] Aššur-nārārī (V), king of Assyria, [has issued] a decree [concerning ...] which is in front of the city Tepata [...] established freedom from taxation (and) [gave it] to Zaza[... Grain and] straw taxes will not be collected [...].”
Source: Royal Inscriptions of Assyria online (RIAo), Munich Open-access Cuneiform Corpus Initiative (MOCCI), Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München; in association with the RINAP Project, University of Pennsylvania. https://oracc.museum.upenn.edu/riao/Q006692/
Read the full tablet entry~735 BCE · Reconstructed composite — see ORACC entry for manuscript witnesses
Tiglath-pileser III 01
“Beginning of the Annals missing (1) Precious scion of Baltil (Aššur), beloved of the god(dess) [(DN and) Šē]rūa, ..., creation of the goddess Ninmena, who [(...)] ... for the dominion of the lands, (...) who grew up to be king, ... [(...)] governor, [(...)] ..., the one who increases voluntary offerings for ..., ... [(...)] of emblems, (5) powerful male, light of all of his people, lord of [(...) all] rulers ..., the one who overwhelms his foes, valiant man, the one who destroys [(...)] enemies, who cuts (straight) through interlocking mountains like a (taut) string and ... [...] ... Continued in text no. 2”
Source: Tadmor, H. & Yamada, S. 2011. The Royal Inscriptions of Tiglath-pileser III (744–727 BC) and Shalmaneser V (726–722 BC), Kings of Assyria. RINAP 1. University Park, PA: Eisenbrauns. https://oracc.museum.upenn.edu/rinap/rinap1/Q003414/
Read the full tablet entry~735 BCE · Reconstructed composite — see ORACC entry for manuscript witnesses
Tiglath-pileser III 02
“Continued from text no. 1 (1) warrio[r ... who made ... bow down at his] feet [..., who] pu[t ... to the sword (lit. “weapon”), ...] circumsp[ect ...], (5) (No translation possible) Continued in text no. 3”
Source: Tadmor, H. & Yamada, S. 2011. The Royal Inscriptions of Tiglath-pileser III (744–727 BC) and Shalmaneser V (726–722 BC), Kings of Assyria. RINAP 1. University Park, PA: Eisenbrauns. https://oracc.museum.upenn.edu/rinap/rinap1/Q003415/
Read the full tablet entry~735 BCE · Reconstructed composite — see ORACC entry for manuscript witnesses
Tiglath-pileser III 03
“Continued from text no. 2 (1) [... he] made [...] kiss [his feet ... mo]untains [... in/of] battle [... he (a god) made my weapon/rule greater than all of those/the kings who] sit on (royal) daises, (5) [... ci]rcumspect [..., ... exalted lio]n-dragon, [...] inhabited world. Continued in text no. 4”
Source: Tadmor, H. & Yamada, S. 2011. The Royal Inscriptions of Tiglath-pileser III (744–727 BC) and Shalmaneser V (726–722 BC), Kings of Assyria. RINAP 1. University Park, PA: Eisenbrauns. https://oracc.museum.upenn.edu/rinap/rinap1/Q003416/
Read the full tablet entry~735 BCE · Reconstructed composite — see ORACC entry for manuscript witnesses
Tiglath-pileser III 04
“Continued from text no. 3 (1) At the beginning of my reign, in my first palû, in the fifth month after I sat in greatness on the throne of kingship, (the god) Aššur, my lord, encouraged me and [I marched] against (the Aramean tribes) Ḫamarānu (Ḫamrānu), Luḫuʾātu, Ḫatallu, Rubbû, Rapiqu, Ḫīrānu, (5) Rabbi-ilu, Naṣīru, Gulūsu, Nabātu, Liʾtaʾu, Raḫīqu, Kapīri, Rummulītu (Rummulūtu), Adilê, Gibrê, Ubūdu, Gurūmu, After gap, continued in text no. 5”
Source: Tadmor, H. & Yamada, S. 2011. The Royal Inscriptions of Tiglath-pileser III (744–727 BC) and Shalmaneser V (726–722 BC), Kings of Assyria. RINAP 1. University Park, PA: Eisenbrauns. https://oracc.museum.upenn.edu/rinap/rinap1/Q003417/
Read the full tablet entry