Chapter 04 · 2112 – 2004 BCE
Ur III · Neo-Sumerian
A bureaucratic golden age, the Code of Ur-Nammu.
~2050 BCE · Reconstructed composite — see ORACC entry for manuscript witnesses
Amar-Suena 03
In plain English
Amar-Suena — whose name Enlil himself proclaimed at Nippur, steadfast supporter of Enlil's temple, powerful king of Ur and king of the four quarters of the world — built the Kura-igi-ĝ̃al, a ziggurat temple, as a devoted offering to Enlil, king of all lands and his master.
AI-generated reading paraphrase; compare with the translation below.
“(1) For Enlil, the king of all lands, his master, Amar-Suena, whose name was proclaimed by Enlil in Nibru, the steadfast supporter of Enlil's temple, the powerful man, king of Urim, king of the four quarters, built the Kura-igi-ĝ̃al, the ziggurat temple, his beloved temple.”
Source: Electronic Text Corpus of Sumerian Royal Inscriptions (ETCSRI), University of Vienna, edited by Gábor Zólyomi et al. https://oracc.museum.upenn.edu/etcsri/Q001790/
Read the full tablet entry~2050 BCE · Reconstructed composite — see ORACC entry for manuscript witnesses
Amar-Suena 05
In plain English
Amar-Suena, king of Ur and king of the four quarters — the man whose name Enlil himself proclaimed in Nippur — dedicated this door socket to Enlil, king of all lands and his master. He set it in Enlil's sacred foundation pit, a place that filled Amar-Suena with joy, as a mark of his steadfast devotion to Enlil's temple.
AI-generated reading paraphrase; compare with the translation below.
“(i 1) For Enlil, the king of all lands, his master, Amar-Suena, whose name was proclaimed by Enlil in Nibru, the steadfast supporter of Enlil's temple, the powerful man, king of Urim, king of the four quarters, installed this (door socket) at Enlil's pure foundation pit, at the place that fills Amar-Suena's heart with joy.”
Source: Electronic Text Corpus of Sumerian Royal Inscriptions (ETCSRI), University of Vienna, edited by Gábor Zólyomi et al. https://oracc.museum.upenn.edu/etcsri/Q001791/
Read the full tablet entry~2050 BCE · Reconstructed composite — see ORACC entry for manuscript witnesses
Amar-Suena 06
In plain English
Amar-Suena — chosen by Enlil at Nippur, mighty king of Ur and ruler of the four quarters of the world — built a temple for Enlil, king of all lands and his beloved master. In that temple's offering place, syrup, ghee, and wine flow without interruption.
AI-generated reading paraphrase; compare with the translation below.
“(1) For Enlil, the king of all lands, his beloved master, Amar-Suena, nominated by Enlil in Nibru, the steadfast supporter of Enlil's temple, the powerful king, king of Urim, king of the four quarters, built the temple in which syrup, ghee, and wine never cease in (Enlil's) place of offering.”
Source: Electronic Text Corpus of Sumerian Royal Inscriptions (ETCSRI), University of Vienna, edited by Gábor Zólyomi et al. https://oracc.museum.upenn.edu/etcsri/Q001792/
Read the full tablet entry~2050 BCE · Reconstructed composite — see ORACC entry for manuscript witnesses
Amar-Suena 07
In plain English
A king of Ur and of the four quarters of the world — whose name was proclaimed by a deity whose name is damaged on the surface — built the E-temen-ni-guru, his beloved temple, in Ur. He is described as the steadfast supporter of Enlil's temple and as powerful, though the word completing that phrase is lost.
AI-generated reading paraphrase; compare with the translation below.
“(o 1') ... whose name was prošlaimed by ..., the steadfast supporter of Enlilś temple, the powerful ..., king of Urim, king of the four quarterṣ built the E-temen-ni-guru, his beloved temple, in Urim.”
Source: Electronic Text Corpus of Sumerian Royal Inscriptions (ETCSRI), University of Vienna, edited by Gábor Zólyomi et al. https://oracc.museum.upenn.edu/etcsri/Q001793/
Read the full tablet entry~2050 BCE · Reconstructed composite — see ORACC entry for manuscript witnesses
Amar-Suena 08
In plain English
Amar-Suena, mighty king of Ur and of the four quarters of the world, built the Gipar-kug — the beloved temple of the goddess Ningal, his divine mistress — and dedicated it to her for his own well-being.
AI-generated reading paraphrase; compare with the translation below.
“(1) For Ningal, his lady, Amar-Suena, the powerful man, king of Urim, king of the four quarters, built the Ĝipar-kug, her beloved temple. He dedicated it to her for his well-being.”
Source: Electronic Text Corpus of Sumerian Royal Inscriptions (ETCSRI), University of Vienna, edited by Gábor Zólyomi et al. https://oracc.museum.upenn.edu/etcsri/Q000983/
Read the full tablet entry~2050 BCE · Reconstructed composite — see ORACC entry for manuscript witnesses
Amar-Suena 09
In plain English
From the earliest times, the Dubla-maḫ had never had a proper temple — only a reed hut serving as an offering-place. Amar-Suena, beloved of Nanna and proclaimed by Enlil in Nippur, steadfast supporter of Enlil's temple and king of Ur and the four quarters, changed that. He built a true temple for the Dubla-maḫ in honor of his master Nanna — a structure the whole land marveled at, described as Amar-Suena's place of judgment and a net from which no enemy of his could escape. He made it gleam, decorating it with gold, silver, and lapis lazuli. The inscription breaks off there.
AI-generated reading paraphrase; compare with the translation below.
“(1) Since the dawn of time no temple has been built for the Dubla-maḫ except for an offering-place, where a reed hut was erected, (but now) for Nanna, his beloved master, Amar-Suena, the beloved of Nanna, whose name was proclaimed by Enlil in Nibru, the steadfast supporter of Enlil's temple, the powerful man, king of Urim, king of the four quarters, built a temple for the Dubla-maḫ, the building marvelled at by the Land, his place of rendering judgements, his net, the one from which no enemy of Amar-Suena may escape. He made it shining, decorated it with gold, silver, and lapis lazuli. In…”
Source: Electronic Text Corpus of Sumerian Royal Inscriptions (ETCSRI), University of Vienna, edited by Gábor Zólyomi et al. https://oracc.museum.upenn.edu/etcsri/Q000984/
Read the full tablet entry~2050 BCE · Reconstructed composite — see ORACC entry for manuscript witnesses
Amar-Suena 10
Dedicatory curse clause invokes Nanna and Ningal against anyone who displaces the statue, preserving the standard Ur III formula for protecting royal monuments through divine sanction rather than human enforcement.
In plain English
Amar-Suena speaks in the first person: chosen by Enlil at Nippur, steadfast supporter of Enlil's temple, powerful king of Ur and of the four quarters of the world. The statue bears the name 'Amar-Suena is the beloved of Ur.' Anyone who removes the statue from its place or tears out its base will be cursed by Nanna, king of Ur, and by Ningal, mother of Ur — and his entire lineage will be wiped out.
AI-generated reading paraphrase; compare with the translation below.
“(i 1) I am Amar-Suena, whose name was proclaimed by Enlil in Nibru, the steadfast supporter of Enlil's temple, the powerful king, king of Urim, king of the four quarters. (i 10) The name of this statue is "Amar-Suena is the beloved of Urim". (i 13) Whoever removes this statue from the place it was set up, tears out its socle, may Nanna, king of Urim, (and) Ningal, the mother of Urim, curse him! May they put an end to his lineage!”
Source: Electronic Text Corpus of Sumerian Royal Inscriptions (ETCSRI), University of Vienna, edited by Gábor Zólyomi et al. https://oracc.museum.upenn.edu/etcsri/Q000985/
Read the full tablet entry~2050 BCE · Reconstructed composite — see ORACC entry for manuscript witnesses
Amar-Suena 11
In plain English
Amar-Suena — whose name was proclaimed by Enlil in Nippur, steadfast supporter of Enlil's temple, powerful king of Ur, king of the four quarters — erected a statue bearing the inscription: 'He whose name was proclaimed by Suen is the beloved of Ur.' What follows is a copy of a baked brick found in the excavated rubble of Ur: Sîn-balāssu-iqbi, military governor of Ur, discovered it while searching for the foundations of the E-kiš-nu-ĝal temple, and Nabû-šuma-iddin, son of Iddin-Papsukkal and lamentation-priest of Sîn, read and copied it so others could see it. The inscription ends with a curse or warning directed at whoever does something — the surface breaks off before that clause is complete.
AI-generated reading paraphrase; compare with the translation below.
“(1) Amar-Suena, whose name was proclaimed by Enlil in Nibru, the steadfast supporter of Enlil's temple, the powerful king, king of Urim, king of the four quarters, erected the statue (with the name) "It is him whose name was proclaimed by Suen who is the beloved of Urim". (1) Copy of a baked brick from the excavated debris of Urim, the work of Amar-Suena, king of Urim, that Sîn-balāssu-iqbi, military governor of Urim, found while looking for the ground-plan of the E-kiš-nu-ĝal. Nabû-šuma-iddin, son of Iddin-Papsukkal, the lamentation-priest of Sîn, read and copied it for viewing. (14) Whoever…”
Source: Electronic Text Corpus of Sumerian Royal Inscriptions (ETCSRI), University of Vienna, edited by Gábor Zólyomi et al. https://oracc.museum.upenn.edu/etcsri/Q001794/
Read the full tablet entry