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~1925 BCE·Old BabylonianETCSRI
Lipit-Eštar 08
(1) When I, Lipit-Eštar, the king of Sumer and Akkad, established justice in Sumer and Akkad, then I dedicated this (eye-stone) for Ninlil, lady of the gods, the Inana who created me, my mother who bore me, for my well-being.
Writing & LiteratureReligion & Myth~1925 BCE·Old BabylonianETCSRI
Lipit-Eštar 10add
(i 1) When I, Lipit-Eštar, the humble shepherd of Nibru, the true farmer of Urim, ceaseless provider of Eridug, the en priest suitable for Unug, king of Isin, king of Sumer and Akkad, the favourite of Inana, established justice in Sumer and Akkad, then for Nanaya, the beloved child of Inana, my lady, I built the E-me-urur, her beloved storehouse in Isin.
Writing & LiteratureReligion & Myth~1925 BCE·Old BabylonianETCSRI
Šu-ilišu 1
(1) When Šu-ilišu, the powerful man, king of Urim, brought home (the statue of) Nanna from Anšan to Urim, then for Nanna, the most outstanding among the Anuna gods, his master, he built the Dublamah, his place of rendering judgement. He installed for him a decorated two-wing door, and dedicated it to him for his well-being. (19) Whoever gives order to perform a misdeed against this (door), transfers it to a storehouse, or makes another man raise his hand against it on account of this curse, may Nanna, my master, and Ningal, my lady, curse him!
Writing & LiteratureReligion & Myth~1925 BCE·Old BabylonianETCSRI
Šu-ilišu 3
(1) Because of his great love for Ninisina, Šu-ilišu, the powerful king, king of Sumer and Akkad, built a great city wall whose fearsome radiance silences everyone in order to make the scattered people of the south and highlands secure in their dwellings around Isin. The name of this city wall is “Šu-ilišu is the beloved of Eštar.”
Writing & LiteratureReligion & Myth~1925 BCE·Old BabylonianETCSRI
Zambiya 2add
(1) For Ninisina, his lady, Zambiya, the powerful king, king of Isin, king of Sumer and Akkad, built the pure E-niĝar for her joyful festival.
Writing & LiteratureReligion & Myth
~1922 BCE·Old BabylonianEditorial
OB Contracts, pl. A1 no. 1
Catalogue entry from CDLI (Early Old Babylonian (ca. 2000-1900 BC)) — OB Contracts, pl. A1 no. 1. No scholarly translation has been published; the transliteration is from the ATF (CDLI's Atf-Friendly format). [year-name] Dated to Ur-Ninurta y2 — Year after: Ur-Ninurta became king based on canonical…
Law
~1900 BCE·Old BabylonianOur engine
Šamši-Adad I 02
Claims the Emašmaš temple in Nineveh as a restoration of a structure built by Maništušu of Agade, asserting Assyrian dynastic continuity across seven generations of post-Akkadian history.
Writing & LiteratureReligion & Myth
~1900 BCE·Old BabylonianRIAo
Šamši-Adad I 11
Attests Šamši-Adad I's self-presentation as temple-builder of Aššur, anchoring his reign within the city-god's cult at the moment Assyria first emerged as a territorial kingdom.
Writing & LiteratureReligion & Myth~1900 BCE·Old BabylonianRIAo
Puzur-Sin 1001
(1) When Puzur-Sîn, vice-regent of the god Aššur, son of Aššur-bēl-šamê, destroyed the evil of Asīnum, offspring of Šamšī-[Adad (I)], who was ... of the city Aššur, and instituted proper rule for the city Aššur, (at that time), [I (Puzur-Sîn) removed] ... a foreign plague, (who was) not of the flesh of [the city] Aššur. (15) The god Aššur justly ... [with] his pure hands and I, by the command of (the god) Aššur himself, my lord, destroyed that improper thing that he had worked on, (specially) the wall and palace of Šamšī-Adad (I), his grandfather, (who was) a foreign plague (and) not of the…
Writing & LiteratureReligion & Myth~1900 BCE·Old BabylonianRIAo
Šamši-Adad I 01
(1) Šamšī-Adad (I), king of the world, builder of the temple of the god Aššur, pacifier of the land between the Tigris River and the Euphrates River, by the command of the god Aššur, who loves him, (and the one) whom the gods Anu and Enlil called by name for greatness among the kings who came before (him). (18) (As for) the temple of the god Enlil, which Erišum (I), the son of Ilu-šūma, had built, it had become dilapidated and I abandoned it. Then, I built the temple of the god Enlil, my lord, the fearful dais, the large chapel, the seat of the god Enlil, my lord, (all of) which were…
Writing & LiteratureReligion & Myth~1900 BCE·Old BabylonianRIAo
Šamši-Adad I 04
(1) Šamšī-Adad (I), appointee of the god Enlil, vice-regent of the god Aššur. (4) When the god Itūr-Mēr, my lord, fully entrusted to [me] the ru[le] and control [over] the land Mari and the bank(s) of the Eu[phrates] River, I prayed to hi[m a]nd (then) [I offered up (to him), [(for the splendor of his divinity,)] a throne of light-colored medlar-wood ... [...] that had been perfected with everything pertaining to the goldsmith’s art (lit. “by gold and skilled craftsmen”).
Writing & LiteratureReligion & Myth~1900 BCE·Old BabylonianRIAo
Šamši-Adad I 05
(1) [Šamšī-Adad (I), appointee of the god Enlil, vice-regent of the god Aššur]. (4) Wh[en] the god Itūr-Mē[r] heard my pray[e]rs and petitions and fully entrusted to me the land Mari, the bank(s) of the Euphr[ates] River, and its domains, I prayed to him and (then) I offered up (to him), for the splendor of his divinity, a great ebony throne that had been methodically made with everything pertaining to the goldsmith’s art (lit. “by gold and skilled craftsmen”).
Writing & LiteratureReligion & Myth~1900 BCE·Old BabylonianRIAo
Šamši-Adad I 06
(1) For the goddess Ištar-šarrum, the controller of all of heaven and netherworld, the one who favorably receives his prayers (and) goes at his right hand: (6) Šamšī-Adad (I), strong king, king of Agade, conqueror of all of his enemies, dedicated a bronze kettledrum with good sound (and) befitting his being a warrior.
Writing & LiteratureReligion & Myth~1900 BCE·Old BabylonianRIAo
Šamši-Adad I 07
(1) [Šam]šī-[Adad (I)], strong king, appointee of the god [Enlil], vice-regent of the god Aššur, beloved of the god Dagān, pacifier of the land between the Tigris River and the Euphrates River, ruler of [Mar]i, king of Ekallātum, (and) governor of Šubat-Enlil. (12) [I ...] twin (vases) for the god Dagān and the banquet of [...] the god Aššur fo[r [...]. (r 1) (No translation possible)
Writing & LiteratureReligion & Myth~1900 BCE·Old BabylonianRIAo
Šamši-Adad I 08
(1) Šamšī-Adad (I), king of the world, appointee of the god Enlil, worshipper of the god Dagān, vice-regent of the god Aššur, builder of Ekisiga — “His Silent Temple,” the temple of the god Dagān in Terqa.
Writing & LiteratureReligion & Myth~1900 BCE·Old BabylonianRIAo
Šamši-Adad I 09
(1) Šamšī-Adad (I), vice-regent of the god Aššur, son of Ilā-kabkabī, builder of the temple of the god Aššur.
Writing & LiteratureReligion & Myth~1900 BCE·Old BabylonianRIAo
Šamši-Adad I 10
(1) Šamšī-Ad[ad (I)], beloved of the god Aššur, vice-regent of the god Aššur, [son of] Ilā-kabkabī.
Writing & LiteratureReligion & Myth~1900 BCE·Old BabylonianRIAo
Šamši-Adad I 1001
(i' 1) ... [By] command of [the god] Enlil and [...] my attack [in Arra]pḫa [...] seventh day [...] and [I] sacrificed, ...] and (ii' 1) I entered his fortress. I kissed the feet of the god Adad, my lord, and reorganized that land. I installed my governors everywhere and, (at) the Festival of Heat, I sacrificed to the gods Šamaš and Adad, in Arrapḫa itself. (ii' 12) (In) Addaru (XII), on the twentieth day, I crossed the (Lower) Zab (Zaiba) and made a razzia in the land Qabra. I struck down the harvest of that land and, in the month Magrānum, I captured the fortified cities of the land Arbela…
Writing & LiteratureReligion & Myth~1900 BCE·Old BabylonianRIAo
Šamši-Adad I 12
(1) Šamšī-[Adad (I)], king of [the world].
Writing & LiteratureReligion & Myth~1900 BCE·Old BabylonianRIAo
Šamši-Adad I 2001
(1) The name of this lion is “The Sealer of the Enemy of Šamšī-Adad (I) by the Command of the Goddess Ištar.”
Writing & LiteratureReligion & Myth~1900 BCE·Old BabylonianRIAo
Šamši-Adad I 2002
(1) The name of [this] lion is “The Drinker of the Blood of the Enemies of Ša[mšī-Adad (I)] by [the Command of] the Goddess [Ištar].” (8) (Belonging to) Eme[urur], (which means) “the temple of gathering together divine powers.”
Writing & LiteratureReligion & Myth
~1850 BCE·Old BabylonianETCSRI
Gungunum 1
Attests an en priestess of Nanna — a royal cultic office held by a king's daughter — dedicating a storehouse to Dagan in her own name, linking Gungunum's Ur III dynasty to both lunar and grain-god patronage.
Writing & LiteratureReligion & Myth
~1850 BCE·Old BabylonianETCSRI
Sumu-El 1
Attests Sumu-El's construction of a sacred storehouse for Inana at Ur, anchoring his reign within the tradition of royal temple-building that legitimised kingship across the Ur III and Isin-Larsa periods.
Writing & LiteratureReligion & Myth
~1850 BCE·Old BabylonianETCSRI
Sumu-El 2
Attests Sumu-El's construction of Nanaya's temple E-ituda at Ur, anchoring the goddess's early cultic presence in that city within the dynastic building program of an Old Babylonian king.
Writing & LiteratureReligion & Myth
~1850 BCE·Old BabylonianETCSRI
Sumu-El 2002
Dedicatory inscription naming Sumu-El as king of Ur to the moon-god's consort Ningal: one of the surviving votive texts anchoring the reign of this understudied Isin-Larsa ruler.
Writing & LiteratureReligion & Myth
~1850 BCE·Old BabylonianETCSRI
Warad-Sin 11
Warad-Sin dedicates a temple to Inana at Zabalam and names Kudur-mabuk as his father, anchoring the Elamite-origin dynasty of Larsa within the traditional Sumerian gesture of piety-for-longevity.
Writing & LiteratureReligion & Myth~1850 BCE·Old BabylonianETCSRI
Abi-sare 2006 / CDLI Seals 012801 (CDLI Seals 012801 (composite))
(1) Lugal-šuba, the scribe, child of Ur-dukuga, the slave of Abi-sare.
Writing & Literature~1850 BCE·Old BabylonianETCSRI
Abi-sare 3add
(1) For Nanna, his master, Abi-sare, the powerful man, king of Urim, built and restored the city wall of Iškun-Suen.
Religion & MythWriting & Literature~1850 BCE·Old BabylonianETCSRI
Gungunum 2
(1) For Utu, the offspring of Nanna, the heir of the E-kišnuĝal, who was born by Ningal, his master, En-ana-tuma, the zirru priestess, the en priestess of Nanna in Urim, child of Išme-Dagan, king of Sumer and Akkad, built his E-hili, built his holy storehouse, and dedicated it to him for the well-being of Gungunum, the powerful man, king of Urim, and for her (own) well-being.
Writing & LiteratureReligion & Myth~1850 BCE·Old BabylonianETCSRI
Gungunum 3
(1) Gungunum, king of Larsa, king of Sumer and Akkad, the powerful heir of Samium, fashioned both the bricks and the walls of the great wall of Larsa, its name is “Utu is the vanquisher of the rebellious lands”, in a single year.
Writing & LiteratureReligion & Myth~1850 BCE·Old BabylonianETCSRI
Gungunum 4
(1) Gungunum, king of Larsam, king of Sumer and Akkad.
Writing & LiteratureReligion & Myth~1850 BCE·Old BabylonianETCSRI
Gungunum 5add
(i 1) When An and Enlil granted the rule over Sumer and Akkad and the leadership of the Amorite lands fully to Utu in Larsam, then Gungunum, powerful man, king of Larsam, farmer of Urim, avenger of the E-babbar, king of Sumer and Akkad, powerful heir of Samium, built the great city wall of Larsa, its name is “Utu is the vanquisher of the rebellious lands”. (ii 2) By my surpassing expertise I did drain the swamps of my city. I did make its bricks and complete the great city wall in a single year. I did make the Euphrates flow right through the middle of my city. (ii 10) In those days, during…
Writing & LiteratureReligion & Myth~1850 BCE·Old BabylonianETCSRI
Rim-Sin I 2001
(1) Iltani, daughter of Ilum-bani, presented (this) dish for the well-being of Rim-Sin, king of Larsam (and) for her own well-being to Inana of Zabalam.
Religion & Myth~1850 BCE·Old BabylonianETCSRI
Warad-Sin 30
(1) To Nanna, his lord, Warad-Sin, governor of Utu, child of Kudur-mabuk, father of the Amorite lands, dedicated this (eye-stone).
Writing & LiteratureReligion & Myth~1822 BCE·Old BabylonianOur engine
SAOC 44, 67
1 shekel of silver — as interest, 1/6 shekel and 6 grains (per shekel) will be added. From Suen, Anne-babdu received it. In the month of Bricks (Simanu) it is to be repaid. Before Suen-rabi; before Ur-dukuga. Month: NE-NE-gar (Abu). Year: Rim-Sin the king built the temple of Enki in Ur.
Law
~1808 BCE·Old BabylonianEditorial
Sumerian King List (Weld-Blundell Prism)
The single most influential Mesopotamian king list — the model for every later attempt to chronicle the deep history of the region. It transmits the political theology of divinely granted kingship, an idea that would echo through Babylon, Assyria, and into the Hebrew Bible. The Weld-Blundell prism (WB 444) at the Ashmolean is the most complete surviving copy.
Religion & MythWriting & Literature
~1800 BCE·Old BabylonianEditorial
Plimpton 322
Whatever its purpose, this single tablet shows that Babylonian mathematicians, working in base-60, had an arithmetic understanding of right triangles a millennium before Pythagoras was born.
Astronomy & Mathematics~1800 BCE·Old BabylonianOur engine
BiMes 19, 187, 244 9-02878
Ipiq-[...], son of Ili-wedeku; Imgur-Enlil, son of Enlil-abum; Ipiq-šina, son of Ilum-abum; Sipipum, son of Imgurrum; Ipiq-šina, the diviner, son of Ilum-abum.
Writing & Literature~1800 BCE·Old BabylonianOur engine
CDLI Literary 000343, ex. 056
(obverse, fragmentary) 1. [...] ... [...] 2. [When they] offer [(the river with its water)] to you, do not accept it! 3. [When they] offer [(the field with its grain)] to you, do not accept it! 4. "[Give us the corpse] hanging from the peg," say to her! 5. [One of you sprinkle the plant of] life, one [the water of life], over [her] ... 6. [...] ... [...] (remainder broken)
Religion & MythWriting & Literature~1800 BCE·Old BabylonianOur engine
CDLI Literary 000365, ex. 048
Young man, free-born son, ... [in] the mountain, what [...]? Utu, let me speak a word to you — give [your] ear to my word! Let me greet you — may you pay heed to it! In my city a man dies, and the heart is stricken; a man perishes, and [my] heart [is heavy]. I craned my neck over the city wall: corpses floating on the water ... [made the river] overflow [...]. And I too ... [...] — shall it be so for me? [Thus] it shall be. The tallest man ... [cannot stretch to heaven ...] (remainder broken)
Religion & MythDaily Life~1800 BCE·Old BabylonianOur engine
CDLI Literary 000365, ex. 053
(Beginning broken) 1. "[... if today you are going to] enter [the mountains ...], 2. [...] youthful Utu should [know about it from us]. 3. [...] the decisions concerning [the mountains are Utu's business]; 4. the decisions concerning [the mountains] of felled cedar are youthful Utu's — Utu should know about it from us." 5. [Then] Gilgamesh took hold of a white kid; 6. he clasped [a brown] kid, a sacrificial offering, [to his breast]; 7. [in his hand] he held the holy staff before his nose, 8. as he spoke to [Utu of heaven]: 9. "[Utu, I am going to] enter [the mountains] — [be my] helper! 10. […
Religion & MythDaily Life~1800 BCE·Old BabylonianOur engine
CDLI Literary 000365, ex. 058
1. [...] he set [...] toward [...] 2. [By the life of] my own mother, divine [Nin]sun(?), and my [father], holy Lugal[banda]! 3. May I [become again(?)] as if slumbering in wonder(?) on the lap of my own mother Ninsun. 4. For a [second] time he indeed said it to him: 5. By the life of my own mother Ninsun and my [father(?)], holy Lugalbanda! 6. Whether he be a [hu]man, whether he be known(?), whether he be a god [...], 7. my steps that I have set toward the mountains I shall not set back toward the city! 8. The faithful slave, who would soothe(?), who makes life seem sweet, 9. answered his mas…
Religion & MythDaily Life~1800 BCE·Old BabylonianOur engine
CDLI Literary 000561, ex. 004
obverse (fragment, three lines preserved): [A cl]od that has been bathed in water — dust has come into my eyes. A dog, when it gnaws a corpse, its chest heaves up. The great dragon (ušumgal), having smitten heads (i.e. having slain) [...] (remainder broken)
Religion & MythDaily Life~1800 BCE·Old BabylonianOur engine
CDLI Literary 000578, ex. 002
Say to my [brothers]: this is what Ilaba-tah-lugalĝa says: The journey we are going on is long, and the true king, our king, [has pressed on(?)] ... journey [has been added] to journey. We will not be able to ask after our mother. May the day not set upon our neighborhood ... deceitfully(?). 1 sila of salt, 1 [sila of gazi-spice], 1 šagadu-garment — have a courier bring (them) back to me! Our journey is long. It is urgent!
Daily LifeWriting & Literature~1800 BCE·Old BabylonianOur engine
CDLI Literary 000584, ex. 003
Say to Lugal-ibila: this is what Inim-Inanna says: Do not neglect the Sumerian language! (lit. "do not let your neck fall away from Sumerian") For the second time I am sending someone to you concerning the correct (use of the) language. The youngster who sits before you — do not let him go out of the tablet-house (school)! And furthermore, let no one deceive you with lies. Should he say to you, "Let me go to his (i.e. my) father," until I and you have exchanged word about the agreed sign, [I will keep] sending a man to you. [...] (remainder broken)
Writing & LiteratureDaily Life~1800 BCE·Old BabylonianOur engine
DWJ 2, 019-021
(obverse) To Sîn-magir speak: thus (says) Lugal-gubbani: May Enlil keep you in good health! May the scattered be gathered! The one who(?) had ceased(?) (work) for 2½ ... [broken] ... [illegible] ... (seal legend / closing lines) Lāqīpum(?), gudu-priest of Enlil, the king's contract-agent(?), son of Ninurta-nīšu, servant of Abī-ēšuḫ.
Daily LifeEconomy~1800 BCE·Old BabylonianOur engine
OB Contracts, pl. G7 no. 69
(obverse) ... [...] (illegible) Enlil-...-[...] (personal name) in Nippur [...] and Isin [...] the bala-service (rotational duty) performed, Ali-[...] he shall not raise a claim [...] he sw[ore] by the name of the king. [Before] Nūr-iya, the nigdaba (requisition) official, ... [...] [Before] ...-ummuhu, the merchant, son of [...] [...] ... (traces; remainder lost)
Law~1800 BCE·Old BabylonianETCSL
A balbale of Inana (Inana A)
Great fierce storm, ...... radiance! Inana, emitting fearsomeness and radiance in battle! (1 ms. adds: Inana, playing (?) in battle! Inana, emitting fearsomeness and radiance in battle! ) Where Enlil has commanded it, you make a lion's body and lion's muscles rise up. ...... in the south and in the uplands ...... like grass. Like Ickur ....... Like their proud mighty heroes, you ...... (1 ms. has instead: may they ...... for you) their noses (?) to the ground. May the great (1 ms. has instead: proud) warrior of kings and queens restore for you the shrine Kec. May he make them ...... their nose…
Religion & Myth~1800 BCE·Old BabylonianETCSL
A balbale to Enki for Ishme-Dagan (Ishme-Dagan E)
1 line missing ...... in the holy heart ......, ......, whose words are powerful, who ...... decisions. ...... foremost of the gods, omniscient ....... ...... Enki, counsellor of holy An, adviser of the Great Mountain ....... ...... foremost of the gods, omniscient ....... ...... Enki, counsellor of holy An, adviser of the Great Mountain ....... Adviser, whose statements cannot be countermanded, whose ways ...... fearsomeness. Patient-hearted, who rides upon all the divine powers, who ...... like Enlil. Nudimmud ...... holy dais ....... Lord imbued with fearsomeness, borne by An and Urac,…
Religion & Myth~1800 BCE·Old BabylonianETCSL
A balbale to Enlil for Ur-Namma (Ur-Namma G)
6 lines missing Enlil ...... to Ur-Namma. He bestowed on him (?) early floods, grain and speckled barley. Ur-Namma, may the people flourish in prosperity under your rule. You (?) ...... the plough and good barley, and your cultivated fields will be rich. You (?) ...... trees, seeds, good barley, the plough, and the fields. You (?) ...... the plough and good barley ....... King, cultivate the fields with oxen, and your cultivated fields will be rich; Ur-Namma, cultivate the fields with them, and your cultivated fields will be rich. The oxen will make (?) your cultivated fields fertile; your cul…
Religion & Myth