All tablets.

WO 08, 022-036

Catalogue entry from CDLI (Neo-Assyrian (ca. 911-612 BC)) — WO 08, 022-036. No scholarly translation has been published; the transliteration is from the ATF (CDLI's Atf-Friendly format).

WO 26, 27-42

Catalogue entry from CDLI (Neo-Assyrian (ca. 911-612 BC)) — WO 26, 27-42. No scholarly translation has been published; the transliteration is from the ATF (CDLI's Atf-Friendly format).

ZA 002, 334-335

Catalogue entry from CDLI (Neo-Assyrian (ca. 911-612 BC)) — ZA 002, 334-335. No scholarly translation has been published; the transliteration is from the ATF (CDLI's Atf-Friendly format).

ZA 004, 150 K 05449a

Catalogue entry from CDLI (Neo-Assyrian (ca. 911-612 BC)) — ZA 004, 150 K 05449a. No scholarly translation has been published; the transliteration is from the ATF (CDLI's Atf-Friendly format).

ZA 004, 157 (K 04159)

Catalogue entry from CDLI (Neo-Assyrian (ca. 911-612 BC)) — ZA 004, 157 (K 04159). No scholarly translation has been published; the transliteration is from the ATF (CDLI's Atf-Friendly format).

ZA 004, 157

Catalogue entry from CDLI (Neo-Assyrian (ca. 911-612 BC)) — ZA 004, 157. No scholarly translation has been published; the transliteration is from the ATF (CDLI's Atf-Friendly format).

ZA 004, 159 9

Catalogue entry from CDLI (Neo-Assyrian (ca. 911-612 BC)) — ZA 004, 159 9. No scholarly translation has been published; the transliteration is from the ATF (CDLI's Atf-Friendly format).

ZA 018, 228, K 12000h

Catalogue entry from CDLI (Neo-Assyrian (ca. 911-612 BC)) — ZA 018, 228, K 12000h. No scholarly translation has been published; the transliteration is from the ATF (CDLI's Atf-Friendly format).

ZA 018, 229

Catalogue entry from CDLI (Neo-Assyrian (ca. 911-612 BC)) — ZA 018, 229. No scholarly translation has been published; the transliteration is from the ATF (CDLI's Atf-Friendly format).

ZA 018, 230-231

Catalogue entry from CDLI (Neo-Assyrian (ca. 911-612 BC)) — ZA 018, 230-231. No scholarly translation has been published; the transliteration is from the ATF (CDLI's Atf-Friendly format).

ZA 019, 380-381

Catalogue entry from CDLI (Neo-Assyrian (ca. 911-612 BC)) — ZA 019, 380-381. No scholarly translation has been published; the transliteration is from the ATF (CDLI's Atf-Friendly format).

ZA 019, 382-383

Catalogue entry from CDLI (Neo-Assyrian (ca. 911-612 BC)) — ZA 019, 382-383. No scholarly translation has been published; the transliteration is from the ATF (CDLI's Atf-Friendly format).

ZA 024, 169 +

Catalogue entry from CDLI (Neo-Assyrian (ca. 911-612 BC)) — ZA 024, 169 +. No scholarly translation has been published; the transliteration is from the ATF (CDLI's Atf-Friendly format).

ZA 027, 396

Catalogue entry from CDLI (Neo-Assyrian (ca. 911-612 BC)) — ZA 027, 396. No scholarly translation has been published; the transliteration is from the ATF (CDLI's Atf-Friendly format).

ZA 029,198-199

Catalogue entry from CDLI (Neo-Assyrian (ca. 911-612 BC)) — ZA 029,198-199. No scholarly translation has been published; the transliteration is from the ATF (CDLI's Atf-Friendly format).

ZA 030, 083

Catalogue entry from CDLI (Neo-Assyrian (ca. 911-612 BC)) — ZA 030, 083. No scholarly translation has been published; the transliteration is from the ATF (CDLI's Atf-Friendly format).

ZA 04, 252-255

Catalogue entry from CDLI (Neo-Assyrian (ca. 911-612 BC)) — ZA 04, 252-255. No scholarly translation has been published; the transliteration is from the ATF (CDLI's Atf-Friendly format).

ZA 040, 086

Catalogue entry from CDLI (Neo-Assyrian (ca. 911-612 BC)) — ZA 040, 086. No scholarly translation has been published; the transliteration is from the ATF (CDLI's Atf-Friendly format).

ZA 045, 042-046

Catalogue entry from CDLI (Neo-Assyrian (ca. 911-612 BC)) — ZA 045, 042-046. No scholarly translation has been published; the transliteration is from the ATF (CDLI's Atf-Friendly format).

ZA 054, 080-081

Catalogue entry from CDLI (Neo-Assyrian (ca. 911-612 BC)) — ZA 054, 080-081. No scholarly translation has been published; the transliteration is from the ATF (CDLI's Atf-Friendly format).

ZA 054, 088 DT 106

Catalogue entry from CDLI (Neo-Assyrian (ca. 911-612 BC)) — ZA 054, 088 DT 106. No scholarly translation has been published; the transliteration is from the ATF (CDLI's Atf-Friendly format).

ZA 054, 245

Catalogue entry from CDLI (Neo-Assyrian (ca. 911-612 BC)) — ZA 054, 245. No scholarly translation has been published; the transliteration is from the ATF (CDLI's Atf-Friendly format).

ZA 073, 236 04

Catalogue entry from CDLI (Neo-Assyrian (ca. 911-612 BC)) — ZA 073, 236 04. No scholarly translation has been published; the transliteration is from the ATF (CDLI's Atf-Friendly format).

ZA 073, 250 02

Catalogue entry from CDLI (Neo-Assyrian (ca. 911-612 BC)) — ZA 073, 250 02. No scholarly translation has been published; the transliteration is from the ATF (CDLI's Atf-Friendly format).

ZA 073, 250 03

Catalogue entry from CDLI (Neo-Assyrian (ca. 911-612 BC)) — ZA 073, 250 03. No scholarly translation has been published; the transliteration is from the ATF (CDLI's Atf-Friendly format).

ZA 073, 251 05

Catalogue entry from CDLI (Neo-Assyrian (ca. 911-612 BC)) — ZA 073, 251 05. No scholarly translation has been published; the transliteration is from the ATF (CDLI's Atf-Friendly format).

ZA 076, 251

Catalogue entry from CDLI (Neo-Assyrian (ca. 911-612 BC)) — ZA 076, 251. No scholarly translation has been published; the transliteration is from the ATF (CDLI's Atf-Friendly format).

ZA 082, 121

Catalogue entry from CDLI (Neo-Assyrian (ca. 911-612 BC)) — ZA 082, 121. No scholarly translation has been published; the transliteration is from the ATF (CDLI's Atf-Friendly format).

Zukunftsbewältigung 538

Catalogue entry from CDLI (Neo-Assyrian (ca. 911-612 BC)) — Zukunftsbewältigung 538. No scholarly translation has been published; the transliteration is from the ATF (CDLI's Atf-Friendly format).

Zukunftsbewältigung 542

Catalogue entry from CDLI (Neo-Assyrian (ca. 911-612 BC)) — Zukunftsbewältigung 542. No scholarly translation has been published; the transliteration is from the ATF (CDLI's Atf-Friendly format).

Zukunftsbewältigung 543

Catalogue entry from CDLI (Neo-Assyrian (ca. 911-612 BC)) — Zukunftsbewältigung 543. No scholarly translation has been published; the transliteration is from the ATF (CDLI's Atf-Friendly format).

Zukunftsbewältigung 544

Catalogue entry from CDLI (Neo-Assyrian (ca. 911-612 BC)) — Zukunftsbewältigung 544. No scholarly translation has been published; the transliteration is from the ATF (CDLI's Atf-Friendly format).

Zukunftsbewältigung 549

Catalogue entry from CDLI (Neo-Assyrian (ca. 911-612 BC)) — Zukunftsbewältigung 549. No scholarly translation has been published; the transliteration is from the ATF (CDLI's Atf-Friendly format).

British Museum Cuneiform planisphere K8538

Tablet image sourced from Wikimedia Commons (CC0). No scholarly translation referenced in source metadata. Source description: Part of a circular clay tablet with depictions of constellations (planisphere); the reverse is uninscribed; restored from fragments and incomplete; partly accidentally vitrified in antiquity during th

Cuneiform cylinder- inscription of Esarhaddon MET ss86 11 55

Tablet image sourced from Wikimedia Commons (CC0). No scholarly translation referenced in source metadata. Source description: Assyrian; Cuneiform cylinder; Clay-Tablets-Inscribed

Cuneiform cylinder- inscription of Sennacherib describing his third campaign MET ME86 11 197

Tablet image sourced from Wikimedia Commons (CC0). No scholarly translation referenced in source metadata. Source description: Assyrian; Cuneiform cylinder; Clay-Tablets-Inscribed

Cuneiform prism- inscription of Esarhaddon MET ME86 11 277

Tablet image sourced from Wikimedia Commons (CC0). No scholarly translation referenced in source metadata. Source description: Assyrian; Cuneiform prism; Clay-Tablets-Inscribed

Cuneiform prism- inscription of Esarhaddon MET ME86 11 278

Tablet image sourced from Wikimedia Commons (CC0). No scholarly translation referenced in source metadata. Source description: Assyrian; Cuneiform prism; Clay-Tablets-Inscribed

~695 BCE·Neo-AssyrianEditorial

Sennacherib's Annals (Taylor Prism)

One of the rare cuneiform texts that explicitly cross-references the Hebrew Bible: the same historical event narrated by both sides. The Taylor Prism gives us the Assyrian view of a moment the biblical authors framed as divine deliverance. It is also a masterpiece of imperial propaganda — the prismatic shape allows the text to be read on six faces, the cuneiform is meticulous, the rhetoric calibrated to terrify potential rebels.

Writing & LiteratureLaw

~670 BCE·Neo-AssyrianOur engine

SAA 08 001. Thunder in Ab, King Ill (RMA 257) [weather]

1. In the month of Ab, if the Storm-god raises his voice and the sky is overcast, the sky pours down rain, lightning flashes, [and] waters are held back in the underground spring — 1. If in a day without clouds the Storm-god cries out, darkness: ditto. Famine will be in the land. Because of this unfavorable body-sign, the king, my lord, should not speak from his heart [i.e., speak out / act on impulse]. This illness belongs to that year. As many of the people as are ill — all [will be] well. Turn back [to favor], O king my lord: he who fears the gods, those [gods] day and night the gods intercede for him […]

SAA 08 002. Venus and Mercury Setting (RMA 109) [planetary]

(1) This night the moon was surrounded by a halo in Scorpius, (that is a sign) for rain [and] flood. (3) Venus (and) Mercury are about to set. (4) [......] contains (5) [......] cloud (6) [......] he will see (8) [......] Kalizi (9) [......]... (r 1) Let them [decide] about the orders and write us. (r 4) The scribe [...-nap]ištu-iddin will come [on the xth] day. [I se]nt Nabû-mušeṣi, the scribe of the temple, [as the k]ing my lord said; he is bringing the former ... (r.e. 9) From the Chief Scribe.

SAA 08 003. Eclipse of the Sun (RMA 274B) [eclipses]

(1) [Mannu-k]i-Harran [wrote me] today: "The sun was [eclips]ed on the 29th; [what day do you have] today? We have [the ...th] (5) [...] We reject this [date ......]. (Break) (r 1) The messenger who went to Marduk-[...] came (back and) reported: "We did not see the moon, there were clouds." (r 4) They did not see, we did not see; (consequently) we do not reject [the (30th) day].

SAA 08 004. Eclipse of the Moon in the Morning (RMA 271) [eclipses]

(1) [If] there is an eclipse in Sivan (III) on the 14th day, and the (moon) god in his eclipse becomes dark on the east side above, and clears on the west side below, the north wind rises during the evening(!) watch and touches the middle watch: you observe his eclipse and keep the north wind in mind; thereby a decision is given for Ur and the king of Ur: the king of Ur will experience famine; deaths will become many; as for the king of Ur, his son will wrong him, but Šamaš will catch the son who wronged his father, and he will die in the mourning-place of his father; a son of the king who…

SAA 08 005. Evening Last of Venus (RMA 206) [planetary]

(1) Venus se[t] in the west. (2) If Venus in [Tebet (X)] from the 1st to the 30th day disappears in the west: the harvest of the land will prosper. (5) If Venus keeps a stable position: the days of the ruler will be long; there will be truth in the land. (8) If Venus moves in the path of Ea and sta[nds: the god]s will have peace for the Westland. (r 2) If the moon is surrounded by a halo and the Pleiades stand in it: in that year, women will give birth to male children. (r 4) If ditto, and the Old Man star s[tand]s in it: in that year, fall of peop[le]; it will not affect cattle and sheep. (r 7) From Issar-šumu-ereš.

SAA 08 006. Jupiter and Cancer in Lunar Halo (RMA 093) [planetary]

(1) If the moon is surrounded by a halo, and Jupiter stands in it: the king of Akkad will be shut up. (4) If the moon is surrounded by a halo, and Cancer stands in it: the king of Akkad will extend the life. (r 1) From Issar-šumu-ereš.

SAA 08 007. Evening Last of Mars at Month’s End (RMA 021) [planetary]

(1) If the moon becomes visible on the 1st day: reliable speech, the land will become happy. (3) If the day reaches its normal length: a reign of long days. (5) Twice or thrice we watched for Mars today (but) we did not see (it), it has set. Maybe the king my lord will say as follows: "Is there any (ominous) sign in (the fact) that it set?" (I answer): "There is not." (r 5) From Issar-šumu-ereš.

SAA 08 008. Earthquakes in Adar and Nisan (RMA 264) [weather]

(1) Concerning the earthquake about which the king [my lo]rd wrote to me, this [is its interpretation]: (3) If the earth keeps [quaking]: attack of [an enemy]. (5) If the earth quakes at night: wo[rry for the land, variant: abandonment of the land]. (6) Because i[t quaked] on the 5th day (and) it happened to quake in the night o[f the 6th day], therefore I cit[ed] "the earth ke[pt quaking]" (omen). (r 1) If the earth quakes in Nisan (I): His land will [defect] from the ruler. (r 3) Had it not begun (in) Adar (XII), rai[n ...]; now [its] interpretation is this: because it quaked in Adar (XII)…

SAA 08 009. New Moon on 1st Day (RMA 031) [lunar]

(1) If the moon be[comes visible] on the 1st day: reliable speech, the land will become happy. (3) If the moon is bright at its appearance: the land Akkad will live in brightness; my troops will s[ee] plenty. (6) If the moon's horns at its appearance are very point[ed]: the king of Akkad will rule the land wherever he int[ends]. (r 1) If the day reaches [its] normal [length]: reigns of [long] days. (r 3) If the days reach [their] normal [length]: the years of the king in [......], variant: [......]. (r 6) These omens are now very [appropriate] to ci[te] in that the first days [became long] after eac[h other] regularly. (r 10) From Issar-šumu-e[reš].

SAA 08 010. New Moon on 1st Day (RMA 007) [lunar]

(1) If the moon becomes visible on the 1st day: reliable speech; the land will become happy. (3) If the day reaches its normal length: a reign of long days. (5) If the moon at its appearance wears a crown: the king will reach the highest rank. (7) From Issar-šumu-ereš.

SAA 08 011. New Moon on 30th Day (RMA 074) [lunar]

(1) If the moon becom[es visible] on the 30th day: there will be frost, variant: rumor of the enemy. (4) If (the moon) becomes visible in Kislev (IX) on the 30th day: the king of the Westland will fall in battle. (r 1) The Westland [......; the] sign concerns th[em]. Should it be re[pea]ted (in Tebet), it would [concern] us. (r 5) From the Chief Scribe.