Theme
Religion & Myth
What we call 'mythology' today was, for the people of Mesopotamia, religion lived in daily and royal life: hymns sung to gods, prayers carved into stone, accounts of creation and the flood, journeys to the underworld, and the building of temples. Preserved in clay long before papyrus or parchment existed.
A-Ane-pada 3
(1) For Ninhursaĝa: Aya-Ane-pada, king of Urim, child of Meš-Ane-pada, king of Urim, built a temple for Ninhursaĝa.
Religion & MythWriting & LiteratureAbzu-kidu 1
(1) To Inana, A-kalam, spouse of Abzu-kidug, ruler of Nibru, dedicated this (bowl).
Religion & MythWriting & LiteratureAnam 1
(1) For Inana, the great lady of the E-ana, his lady, Anam, the true shepherd of Unug, the favourite of An and Inana, the beloved child of Inana, built the outer courtyard of the en-priest’s E-ĝipar, the dwelling that fills her heart with joy.
Religion & MythWriting & LiteratureAnam 3
(1) For An, the king of the gods, his master, for Inana, the great lady of the E-ana, his lady, when he renovated and restored their old temple, Anam, the true shepherd of Unug, the beloved child of Inana, installed a door anointed with oil.
Religion & MythWriting & LiteratureAnonymous Lagaš 26 (FAOS 05/1, AnLag 26)
(i 1') ..., whose name was proclaimed by Enlil, chosen by Nanše in the heart, who makes the foreign lands submit to Ninĝirsu, ..., (when Ninĝirsu) placed all lands in his hand, and placed the rebellious lands at his feet, ....
Religion & Myth
Anonymous Nippur 08 (FAOS 05/2, AnNip 08)
Dedicates a vessel to the goddess Ninlil on behalf of a named field surveyor's family — attesting private votive practice by a mid-level administrative official at Nippur during the Early Dynastic III period.
Religion & MythWriting & LiteratureAnonymous Nippur 32 (FAOS 05/2, AnNip 32)
(1) To Inana, Barag-ene, the spouse of Mašda, (and) Amar-ezida dedicated this (stone plate).
Religion & MythWriting & Literature
Anonymous Nippur 38 (FAOS 05/2, AnNip 38)
Dedicatory inscription naming Munus-šume, child of Ur-šubur, as donor of a vessel to Inana — one of the few Early Dynastic records attesting private dedicants by personal and patronymic name at Nippur.
Religion & MythWriting & LiteratureAnonymous Nippur 42 (FAOS 05/2, AnNip 42)
(1) To Inana, Ama-azu, spouse of Lugal-urin, the scribe, dedicated this (bowl).
Religion & MythWriting & LiteratureAnonymous Nippur 44 (FAOS 05/2, AnNip 44)
(1) Lugal-urin dedicated this (vessel) to Inana.
Religion & MythWriting & LiteratureAnonymous Nippur 47 (FAOS 05/2, AnNip 47)
(1) To Inana, Sumu, spouse of Enlil's temple administrator, dedicated this.
Religion & MythWriting & LiteratureArad-Dumuzida 1
(1) To Inana, lady of the E-ana, his lady, Arad-Dumuzida, temple administrator of Inana, dedicated this (bowl) for his life.
Religion & MythWriting & Literature
Amar-Suena 03
(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.
Religion & MythWriting & LiteratureAmar-Suena 06
(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.
Religion & MythWriting & LiteratureAmar-Suena 08
(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.
Religion & MythWriting & Literature
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.
Writing & LiteratureReligion & MythAmar-Suena 13
(1) For Inana, the lady of battle, his beloved spouse, 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, fashioned her bronze ... of the E-ĝipar. He dedicated it to her for his well-being.
Religion & MythWriting & Literature
Amar-Suena 15
Dedicatory inscription of Amar-Suena for Enki's Abzu temple at Eridu, attesting the third Ur III king's building programme and his claim to universal rule under Enlil's authority.
Religion & MythWriting & Literature
Amar-Suena 16
Records Amar-Suena's foundation of the first ĝipar (high-priestess residence) at Karzida, attesting the Ur III crown's active role in extending Nanna's cult into previously unserved cult centres.
Religion & MythWriting & LiteratureAmar-Suena 2008
(o 1) To Nungal, lady of the prisons, the life-giving lady, his lady, Puzur-ilī, the chief administrator of the E-ugti, dedicated this (stone tablet) for the well-being of 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.
Religion & MythWriting & Literature
Amar-Suena 2009
A private votive dedication by a scribe's wife to the goddess Lamma, it attests the personal piety of literate households under Amar-Suena and the role of women as independent dedicants in Ur III religious life.
Religion & MythWriting & LiteratureAmar-Suena 2039add / CDLI Seals 005909 (CDLI Seals 005909 (composite))
(i 1) Amar-Suena, the powerful man, king of Urim, king of the four quarters: Nanna-maba, the scribe, child of Unapšen, is your servant.
Writing & LiteratureReligion & MythAmar-Suena 2042add / CDLI Seals 000303 (CDLI Seals 000303 (composite))
(1) Amar-Suena, the powerful man, king of Urim, king of the four quarters, presented (this seal) to Nawir-ilum, the shepherd, his servant.
Writing & LiteratureReligion & MythAbi-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
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 & LiteratureA 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 noses (?) to the ground for you.
Religion & MythA 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 & MythA 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 cultivated fields will be rich.
Religion & MythA balbale to Inana and Dumuzid (Dumuzid-Inana A)
The brother speaks gently to his sister, Utu speaks gently to his sister, he speaks tenderly to holy Inana: "Young lady, the flax in the garden beds is full of loveliness, Inana, the flax in the garden beds is full of loveliness, like the barley in the furrows, overflowing with loveliness and delight. Sister (1 ms. has instead: Young lady), you took a fancy to a grand length of linen; Inana, you took a fancy to a grand length of linen. I will dig up the plants for you and give them to you. Young lady (1 ms. has instead: My sister), I will bring you flax from the garden beds. Inana, I will bring you flax from the garden beds."
Religion & MythDaily LifeA balbale to Inana and Dumuzid (Dumuzid-Inana B)
"My dearest, my dearest, my dearest, my darling, my darling, my honey of her own mother, my sappy vine, my honey-sweet, my honey-mouthed of her mother! "The gazing of your eyes is pleasant to me; come my beloved sister. The speaking of your mouth is pleasant to me, my honey-mouthed of her mother. The kissing of your lips is pleasant to me; come my beloved sister. "My sister, the beer of your barley is good, my honey-mouthed of her mother. The ale of your beer-bread is good; come my beloved sister. In the house, your luxuriance ......, my honey-mouthed of her mother. My sister, your luxuriance ......, my beloved ....... Your house ...... a storehouse, my honey-mouthed of her mother. You princess, my ......."
Religion & MythDaily LifeA balbale to Inana and Dumuzid (Dumuzid-Inana D)
As I was strolling, as I was strolling, as I was strolling ...... the house, as I was strolling, he caught sight of my Inana. "What did the brother say to you and speak to you? He of the loving heart and most sweet charms offered you a gift, my holy Inana. As I looked in that direction, my beloved man met you, and he fell in love with you, and he delighted in you alone! The brother brought you into his house and had you lie down on a bed dripping with honey." When my sweet precious, my heart, had lain down too, each of them in turn kissing with the tongue, each in turn, then my brother of the beautiful eyes did it fifty times to her, exhaustedly waiting for her, as she trembled underneath him, dumbly silent for him. My dear precious passed the time with my brother laying his hands on her hips.
Religion & MythDaily LifeA balbale to Inana and Dumuzid (Dumuzid-Inana E1)
unknown no. of lines missing 16 lines fragmentary or unclear The young maiden ...... ornaments. The young man ...... sword belt. Let my girlfriend ...... to the place of the festival. She rides on a beast, ...... on a beast. ...... on a lion ....... ...... on a great beast ....... unknown no. of lines missing 1 line fragmentary ...... gathers ......, ...... on her ears. She blends (?), she blends (?) ........ She blends (?) kohl. She lets down her hair which was combed up. She bathes and rubs herself with soap. She rubs herself with soap from the white bowl, she bathes with water from the…
Religion & MythA balbale to Inana and Dumuzid (Dumuzid-Inana F)
I, the queen, will look with wonder at the foliage. I, Inana, will gaze at the soft foliage. May my bridegroom speak to me ...... kindly words such as a farmer or a shepherd would speak. I, the queen, will lie on the foliage. I, Inana, will run to the foliage. May they stand at my service ....... I will meet ...... Ama-ucumgal-ana. I will sprinkle water ....... I will make ...... shine. I will make my mes tree sprout forth. I will sprinkle water in the house of Enlil. I will make ...... shine. I will make my mes tree sprout forth. I will sprinkle water ...... in E-kur. I will make my king grow like a mes tree in the courtyard. I will sprinkle water in the house of Enlil. I will make the king Ama-ucumgal-ana grow like a mes tree in the courtyard.
Religion & MythA balbale to Inana and Dumuzid (Dumuzid-Inana G)
The burgeoning one, he ...... with his own mother; the one with kindly eyes takes counsel with his father. You are our brother, you are our brother. You are our brother in charge of the palace gate, you are our captain of the barge, you are our commander of the chariot, you are our servant of the hunting chariot; you are our city father and judge, you are the son-in-law of five things, the son-in-law of ten things. Brother, you are the son-in-law of our father, you are our son-in-law supreme; our mother speaks favourably with you. Your coming here is life indeed, your entering the house is abundance; lying at your side is my utmost joy. My sweet, let us delight ourselves on the bed.
Religion & MythDaily LifeA balbale to Inana and Dumuzid (Dumuzid-Inana O)
1 line fragmentary Your name ....... As I walk, as I walk, as I pass along the banks of the august river, as I roam along the banks of the Euphrates, as I stand ...... the lord, as I pass along the gaudy streets: May you be ...... a bending reed, may you be barley in the furrows, a beautiful ......, may you be Acnan, who beautifies ......, may you be a nursing mother of the womb, may you be your mother's ......, a vine, my (1 ms. has instead:) your beloved, your personal god's ......, acting grandly (1 ms. has instead:) humanely! May "There is enough, there is enough" be your blessing, and…
Religion & MythDaily LifeA balbale (?) to Inana and Dumuzid (Dumuzid-Inana P)
...... of my ...... is holy. I am she who directs ....... ...... genitals ....... ...... is perfect for august status. Subduing ......, fixing my gaze ......, I am she who directs ....... 3 lines fragmentary ...... my genitals ......, my ...... which is seemly for a deity, ...... of my buttocks, my brightly coloured ......, ...... of my buttocks, my ...... established by ......, my ...... ordered by ......, my ...... which befits the palace, my ...... which passes the time ......, ...... is crawling. Dumuzid brings ....... I gazed over all the people, and chose Dumuzid as god of the Land. For Dumuzid, beloved by Enlil, I exalted his name and decreed his destiny. My mother cherishes him constantly, and my father speaks his praises.
Religion & MythA balbale to Inana and Dumuzid (Dumuzid-Inanna C)
"My sister, what have you been doing in the house? Little one, what have you been doing in the house?" "I was bathing, I was rubbing myself with soap. I was washing myself with water from the holy kettle, I was rubbing myself with the soap from the white stone bowl. I was anointing myself with good oil from the stone bowl, and dressing myself in the formal dress proper to Inana. That is how I was busying myself in the house. "I have put lots of kohl on my eyes, I have arranged ...... the nape of my neck. I have washed my dangling hair, I have tested my weapons that make his reign propitious.…
Religion & MythDaily LifeA balbale to Inana as Nanaya (Inana H)
"Worthy of An, ......, ...... unsurpassed in ladyship, a throne ...... a man in the house, a throne ...... a woman in the shrine, a gold ornament ...... on the dress, a ...... pin ...... the nijlam garment. "Let me ...... on your ...... -- Nanaya, its ...... is good. Let me (?) ...... on your breast -- Nanaya, its ...... flour is sweet. Let me put ...... on your navel -- Nanaya, ....... Come with me, my lady, come with me, come with me from the entrance to the shrine. May ...... for you. (ms. c adds 1 line: Come my beloved sister, let my heart rejoice.) "Your hand is womanly, your foot is…
Religion & MythA balbale to Nanna (Nanna A)
How many there are! How many cows there are! How many cattle of Suen there are! The dark ones are translucent lapis lazuli; the pale cows are the light of the risen moon. The little ones trickle down like barleycorns for you; the large ones throng together like wild bulls for you. The Glory of Heaven (Suen) has undone the halters of the numerous cows in his teeming herd. He has poured out milk from the beautiful cows at the offering table; his bright hands ever pour the milk. After my king has completed the work, Suen ...... the shining halter ...... the cows, he ...... the cows, he ...... the cows. He acts as the herder of the cows.
Religion & MythA balbale to Nanna (Nanna B)
(Ningal speaks:) "I ...... for the ....... approx. 19 lines missing The embrace of my spouse ....... The young man ....... Among his cows ....... My beloved who ....... I shall go ......! There with the lord ......." (Nanna addresses Ningal:) "My spouse, ......, Ningal who ......, ...... butter from the holy cows. Pure hands and ...... feet ....... My lovely ....... "......, the reed-beds, the playground ....... I shall ...... sharp knives to the ...... and pointed reeds. I shall ...... to the beautiful young reeds. Mistress, ...... the treasures (?) of the ubi birds. I will gather their eggs for you, and I shall ...... the nest. High priestess of Nanna, ...... the ubi birds.
Religion & MythA balbale to Nanna (Nanna C)
O eastern (?) house of Sumer, I will declare your greatness! O E-kic-nujal, whose purification rites are brilliant, o house of Nanna! O shrine Urim, I shall glorify your name. Emerging from the holy heart of the pure hills, Urim, wisdom of An and Urac, appropriate for E-temen-ni-guru! With An you bestow kingship; your majesty ...... the foreign lands. I shall glorify your name far and wide! He keeps in order the lordly purification rites ....... He has taken his seat ...... in Urim. Your name is sweet! The Prince ....... Your holy word is pleasing to An. May my En-hedu-ana excel even An. ...... the purification rites of the jipar. ...... the lordly divine powers. ...... the excellent jipar. Acimbabbar ....... probably 1 line missing 2 lines fragmentary
Religion & MythA balbale to Nanna (Nanna D)
They are as numerous, as numerous as the grasses which break through the earth. Nanna, in the ...... they are as numerous as the grasses which break through the earth. Their ...... are translucent lapis lazuli. Their ...... are the colour of the rising moon. The cows with their calves are numerous and are precious cuba stone. ...... built and ...... together. In their ...... he chooses ....... He who loves the cows herds them into the pen. ...... who loves the cows rounds up the cows. He has ...... his great cows for her, and their butter ....... Seven (1 ms. adds: small) churns resound with ...... and sweet butter for her. ...... their butter is holy butter, their milk is holy milk.
Religion & MythA balbale to Nanshe (Nanshe B)
2 lines fragmentary unknown no. of lines missing A fish is held in her hand as a staff ....... Fishes are put on her feet as sandals ....... Fishes light up the interior of the sea like fires ....... Fishes play on instruments for her like (?) sur priests. Fishes call out loudly for her like (?) oxen. She has fishes wrapped around her body as a regal garment. The runner-fish (kackac) hastens (kac) to her. The gurgur fish makes the sea surge up (gurgur) for her. The flash-fish (jiri) makes the sea sparkle (jir) for her. She heaps up fish spawn so that ...... fishes will grow for her in the sea. Fishes fly around for her like swallows.
Religion & MythA balbale to Ninazu (Ninazu A)
O king, you are the ...... shepherd of the city which thrives like cattle! Ninazu, you are the ...... shepherd of the city which thrives like cattle! My lord Ninazu, you are the ...... shepherd of the city which thrives like cattle! You are the reed-worker of the ......, ...... like a shining mat! You are the herdsman of them that dwell like sheep in a sheepfold, you who exude the allure of the high hills, lord Ninazu! Lord Ninazu, may Nanna rejoice over you, because an emplacement for you has been created there. Powerful and of great intelligence, you were engendered by Nanna. May Acimbabbar…
Religion & MythA balbale to Ningishzida (Ningishzida A)
Hero, lord of field and meadow, lion of the distant mountains! Ninjiczida, who brings together giant snakes and dragons! Great wild bull who, in the murderous battle, is a flood that ......! Beloved by his mother, he to whom Ninjirida gave birth from her luxurious body, who drank the good milk at her holy breast, who sucked in lion's spittle, who grew up in the abzu! August icib priest who holds the holy ecda vessels, checker of tablets, who secures justice ......! King, wild bull with tall limbs (?), who directs speech aright, and who hates wickedness! Mighty power, whom no one dare stop when he spreads confusion! Mighty Ninjiczida, whom no one dare stop when he spreads confusion!
Religion & MythA balbale to Ningishzida (Ningishzida B)
Lord with holy dignity, imbued with great savage awesomeness! My king, lord Ninjiczida, imbued with great savage awesomeness! Hero, falcon preying on the gods, my king -- dignified, with sparkling eyes, fully equipped with arrows and quiver, impetuous leopard, murderous, howling muchuc, ...... (1 ms. has instead: ......), dragon snarling (?) in the lagoon, raging storm reaching (1 ms. has instead: covering) all people! Lofty-headed prince, resting in the midst of the mountains, ...... smashing heads! Lord, your mouth is that of a pure magician (1 ms. has instead: a snake with a great tongue,…
Religion & MythA balbale to Ninurta (Ninurta F)
Good semen, good seed, King chosen by Enlil! Very good semen, very good seed, Ninurta, chosen by Enlil! My king, I shall call upon your name. Ninurta, I am your man, your man; I shall call upon your name. My king, ewes give birth to lambs, ewes give birth to lambs, the sheep of the fold are born; I shall call upon your name. My king, goats give birth to kids, goats give birth to kids, buck goats are born; I shall call upon your name. My king, cows give birth to calves, cows give birth to calves, cows and breed-bulls are born; I shall call upon your name. My king, she-asses give birth to foals, she-asses give birth to foals, donkeys ...... are born; I shall call upon your name. My king, humans give birth to children, humans give birth to children. Ninurta, king .......
Religion & MythA balbale to Shara (Shara A)
29 lines missing 1 line fragmentary ...... great radiance ....... Cara, the song praising you befits you. Cara, your divine powers are most precious; father An, who has engendered you ....... Your own mother, holy Inana, has let you sit with her on the holy ....... ...... she is the Mistress. She has let you ....... She has called you by a good name. ...... joyfully in your ....... ...... dwells ......; the lord shines forth in its midst. 1 line fragmentary Cara, you ......, praying in the good and holy ....... ......, the princely son, grandiloquent ...... holy ......, coming forth like the sun from the shrine E-mah.
Religion & MythA hymn of Inana for Ur-Ninurta (Ur-Ninurta A)
......, when she augustly appears, no one can keep pace with her, ...... glowing in the night, ...... with awe-inspiring splendour. The great gods are filled with fear at her ....... Her ...... utterances are as grand as those of An, and as weighty as those of Enlil. Inana is supreme, with multifarious divine powers surpassing the other divine ladies. She perfected the divine plans of kingship, so as to re-establish it, and she made up her mind and truly yearned to provide justice for the black-headed and to give them stable governance. From among the numerous people she summoned Ur-Ninurta…
Religion & MythA hymn to Asarluhi (Asarluhi XA)
5 lines missing ...... new ....... ...... august words. Enki has named you with the name Id-lu-rugu (i.e. River of the ordeal, an epithet of Asarluhi), the sublime course ....... You cleanse the just man like gold, and you hand over the wicked to extinction. Nourished on the good milk of intelligence, advice and reason, his voice resounds loudly. August sage, firstborn son of Enki, he gives ...... to all who are born. Profoundly intelligent, as wise as his father, possessed of understanding, Asarluhi penetrates everything. Nothing ...... him. Lordly son of the abzu, endowed with holy wisdom, he is Marduk, the bringer of counsel. Tall in stature, he can survey all the divine powers of heaven and earth.
Religion & MythA hymn to Bau's Beneficent Protective Goddess (Bau A)
3 lines fragmentary Let us ...... praise (?) you, the Beneficent Protective Goddess of Bau. 3 lines fragmentary She does not ....... She does not go to the rich ...... nor ....... She does not ....... The barge of Suen as it proceeds -- lady, is not yours as beautiful? The joyous symbol of Inana -- Protective Goddess, is not yours as attractive? Let us ...... praise (?) you, the Beneficent Protective Goddess of Bau. 8 lines missing or fragmentary ......, daily ...... at her feet. My lady, at his right side you ...... your good ...... towards him. ...... full of glory -- lady, is not yours as beautiful? ...... magnificently in the Land -- Protective Goddess, is not yours as attractive? Let us ...... praise (?) you, the Beneficent Protective Goddess of Bau.
Religion & MythA hymn to Enki for Ishme-Dagan (Ishme-Dagan X)
Lord who among the gods makes the clever decisions, most prominent among them from the south to the uplands; who holding a staff in his hand determines their destinies as the Anuna gods come to him; who possessing all the divine powers is alone surpassing; a great lord, who ...... the living things; who alone is proclaimed as their god -- you are their ....... You, whose utterances make justice flourish, strengthen the divine powers of heaven and earth. You, who examine the ordinances and carry them out correctly, are proclaimed as their great prince. Lord, who has made the seed of mankind…
Religion & MythA hymn to Enlil for Samsu-iluna (Samsu-iluna F)
O king, foremost one of An, chosen in his holy heart, Samsu-iluna, king, foremost one of An, chosen in his holy heart, ...... rites ...... august, ......, joyful, supreme, assiduous, with head high on the gold-decorated throne of ...... kingship, who sits majestically ...... in its midst in heroic strength, Samsu-iluna: An, the mighty king of heaven, the august judge, has assigned you a great destiny, and has made you to pass your life with a secure crown. He is the man to whom Enlil has given ...... and the shepherdship over the widespread people, the beloved (?) shepherd of Nibru, the…
Religion & MythA hymn to Enlil for Samsu-iluna (Samsu-iluna H)
...... offerings ......, he brought (?) them into E-kur. In the E-kur, the house of Enlil, Samsu-iluna, the mighty king whose ...... awesomeness covers all people (An Akkadian gloss has: whose splendour covers all people) 1 line unclear (An Akkadian gloss has: reach ......) 3 lines fragmentary 1 line fragmentary (An Akkadian gloss has: by saving ......) The foreign lands ...... has wisely (?) made decisions (?) (An Akkadian gloss has: ......; who has inflicted defeat ...... on all hostile lands). Samsu-iluna, the good hero, lordly one of his Land (An Akkadian gloss has: Samsu-iluna, the good hero, lordly one of his land)! O Samsu-iluna, it is sweet to praise you!
Religion & MythA hymn to Haia for Rim-Sin (Rim-Sin B)
Lord, perfect in august wisdom and recognised for his mighty counsel, Haia, who holds the great tablets, who enriches wisdom with wisdom! Accountant of Hal-an-kug, having the final overview of the arts of Nisaba's house of wisdom; palace archivist of heaven and earth, who keeps count of every single assignment, who holds a holy reed-stylus and covers the great tablets of destiny with writing! Wise one, who prompts holy An with words and attention at the appropriate times; seal-holder of Father Enlil! He who brings forth the holy objects from the treasure-house of E-kur; ornament of the abzu shrine, wearing his hair loose for lord Nudimmud!
Religion & MythWriting & LiteratureA hymn to Hendursanga (Hendursanga A)
5 lines missing or fragmentary ...... wise ......; Hendursaja, you have great divine powers, more than anyone could require. ...... who gives advice on the rooftops (?); you who among powerful lords are ......, who among rulers hold the staff, a shepherd who oversees the teeming people; ......, who strides about the city's squares by night at the middle of the watch; you who open the gates at daybreak, who make their doors stand open onto the street: Hendursaja, you have great divine powers, more than anyone could require. You are the accountant of Nindara, king of Nijin in its spacious…
Religion & MythA hymn to Inana for Hammu-rabi (Hammu-rabi F)
Lady who perfects the august divine powers, ...... his destiny grandly! O Inana, to whom An has ...... manliness in heaven and earth! Foremost among the gods, manifest, ...... his destiny! Inana, without whom An and Enlil cannot make a decision in the Land, proud one among the Anuna gods, ...... self-esteem and ......! Inana, good wild cow of the great princes, respected among ladies ......, your greatness shines forth to heaven and earth, your divine powers are ...... powers. When you speak it is the command of An, ...... named by An ....... Your divinity is pre-eminent in the throne-hall (?), your great ways are ....... With An, you give judgment on earth; with Enlil .......
Religion & MythA hymn to Inana (Inana C)
The great-hearted mistress, the impetuous lady, proud among the Anuna gods and pre-eminent in all lands, the great daughter of Suen, exalted among the Great Princes (a name of the Igigi gods) , the magnificent lady who gathers up the divine powers of heaven and earth and rivals great An, is mightiest among the great gods -- she makes their verdicts final. The Anuna gods crawl before her august word whose course she does not let An know; he dares not proceed against her command. She ../changes her own action, and no one knows how it will occur. She makes perfect the great divine powers, she holds a shepherd's crook, and she is their magnificent pre-eminent one. She is a huge shackle clamping down upon the gods of the Land. Her great awesomeness covers the great mountain and levels the roads.
Religion & MythA hymn to Inana (Inana F)
My father gave me the heavens and he gave me the earth. I am Inana! Which god compares with me? Enlil gave me the heavens and he gave me the earth. I am Inana! He gave me lordship, and he gave me queenship. He gave me battles and he gave me fighting. He gave me the stormwind and he gave me the dust cloud. He placed the heavens on my head as a crown. He put the earth at my feet as sandals. He wrapped the holy ma garment around my body. He put the holy sceptre in my hand. The gods are small birds, but I am the falcon. The Anuna mill about, but I am the good wild cow, I am the good wild cow of father Enlil, his good wild cow which walks in front.
Religion & MythA hymn to Ishkur for Ur-Ninurta (Ur-Ninurta F )
Hero of abundance, joyously (?) rumbling, father Ickur, great storm, you ....... barsud Inundation, mighty tempest, raging wind, whose noise ......, ...... in heaven and earth ......, Ickur ...... wind ......, flashing lightning, ...... 1 line fragmentary unknown no. of lines missing 1 line fragmentary A second time he ...... a mighty tempest and a raging wind. A third time ...... a destructive wind of heaven. A fourth time he addressed (?) the dense clouds in the heavens. Fine barley stood in the fertile fields, and the corn joyously ....... Ickur organised everything; he ...... the harvest…
Religion & MythA hymn to Kusu
O angry great butting bull! O torch! O great bull of Enki, standing aggressively, coming forth from the abzu, the pure place! O Gibil the god of fire, ...... the palace ......, as he radiates great awesomeness, his countenance ......! O Nun-bar-ana, angry avenger (?) ......, bringing forth the great torch from the abzu, lifting his head with the noble divine powers! O antler-like horn of a mountain goat! Cedar, cypress, juniper and boxwood, white wool and black wool, white birch and black birch, a string of apples tied to a long string of figs, butter flowing from the holy cattle-pen and sheepfold ...... in the oven and purified by the torch, ...... reeds are tied up and lit ....... 2 lines fragmentary
Religion & MythA hymn to Marduk for Abi-Eshuh (Abi-Eshuh A)
King who gathers up the divine powers of heaven and earth, foremost son of Enki, Marduk, mighty lord, perfect hero, foremost of the Great Princes (a name for the Igigi gods) , strong one of the Anuna, the great gods who have given him justice and judgment! Great prince, descendant of holy An, lord who decides destinies, who has everything in his grasp (?), wise, august knower of hearts, whose divinity is manifest, who shows concern for all that he looks upon! Your ancestor An, king of the gods, has made your lordship effective against the armies of heaven and earth. He has given you the…
Religion & MythA hymn to Martu (Martu B)
...... watching over ......, gathering together ...... the divine powers, ...... peerless dragon, ...... named in heaven and earth with an august name, ......, engendered by great An and brought up on his holy knees, ......, born by Urac, 1 line unclear cherished and granted a favourable destiny by the Great Mountain Enlil, ......, not wearying of ...... its beauty. Proud one among the great gods, ...... hearts, ...... pure ......, shining purification rites, his conduct ....... His words ...... cannot be undone (?), his intelligence and counsel ......, ...... distant ......, ...... leader ...... at least 26 lines missing
Religion & MythA hymn to Nanna (Nanna E)
Princely son, you are radiant as you come forth from the sacred bathing chamber (?), ....... ...... the mountain of pure divine powers, the abzu shrine, ....... ...... the majestic foundation platform, ....... Bringing terrifying radiance from the marshes, you ...... a fearsome ....... Lifting your head in your goodness, greatness and majesty, majestically you extend your arm in order to determine destinies: great An has liberally bestowed on you your kingship over heaven and earth, and Enlil has perfected for you your great and noble filial status and lordship. Enlil has made majestic…
Religion & MythA hymn to Nanna (Nanna G)
Nanna, ......, lord, son of Enlil, ......, Nanna, lord, ......, lord, son of Enlil, ......! Lord, sweet wonder ......! The woman perfect in beauty ....... Nanna, lord, sweet wonder ......! The woman perfect in beauty ....... Ninhursaja ......, the great mother Ninhursaja ....... Nanna, ......, the great mother Ninhursaja ....... 1 line fragmentary you ....... Nanna, ......, you ....... 1 line fragmentary unknown no. of lines missing 1 line fragmentary ...... you have shown your attractiveness to me. May your beauty cover my body like a ...... garment. Nanna, ...... you have shown your attractiveness to me. May your beauty cover my body like a ...... garment.
Religion & MythA hymn to Nanna (Nanna M)
...... in leadership, great lord of heaven ......! In the city which like the sea inspires awe! Far-seeing Suen, ruler of Urim! O Suen, ...... in leadership, great lord of heaven ......! In the city which like the sea inspires awe! Far-seeing Suen, ruler of Urim! Born in the mountains and coming forth in joy, he is an irresistible force, a lion, a dragon, a mighty lord -- Suen, mouth like a dragon's, ruler of Urim! Nanna, born in the mountains and coming forth in joy, is an irresistible force, a lion, a dragon, a mighty lord -- Suen, mouth like a dragon's, ruler of Urim! In the jipar (?)…
Religion & MythA hymn to Nanna (Nanna N)
Luminous (?) brilliance that fills the holy heavens, an adept (?) exuding radiance (?), Nanna, your divine powers (?) are holy! Unique lord, luminous lord who ...... the heavens, shining in the high heavens, ......, adviser in heaven and on earth, ......, you are the god who ....... 2 lines fragmentary ...... as you come forth, ...... you rise in radiance. The ...... is holy and purifies. O, it has come forth for my king like the good sunlight! Nanna, ...... as you come forth, ...... you rise in radiance. The ...... is holy and purifies. O, it has come forth for my king like the good sunlight!
Religion & MythA hymn to Nanna (Nanna O)
4 lines missing 1 line fragmentary You possess ......! An, Enlil, Enki and Ninhursaja treat you with deserved affection in your place of creation. Exalted Nanna ......, adviser in heaven and on earth ......! An, Enlil, Enki and Ninhursaja treat you with deserved affection in your place of creation. Youthful Suen, as you move the Anuna gods stand in attendance. In the four quarters of the world the black-headed people raise their eyes to you, the first-born son of Enlil. Nanna, youthful Suen, as you move the Anuna gods stand in attendance. In the four quarters of the world the black-headed people raise their eyes to you, the first-born son of Enlil.
Religion & MythA hymn to Nanshe
There is a city, there is a city whose powers are apparent. Nijin is the city whose powers are apparent. The holy city is the city whose powers are apparent. The mountain rising from the water is the city whose powers are apparent. Its light rises over the secure temple; its fate is determined. There is perfection in the city; the rites of mother Nance are performed accordingly. Its lady, the child born in Eridug, Nance, the lady of the precious divine powers, is now to return. She is beer mash (?), the mother is yeast (?), Nance is the cause of great things: her presence makes the…
Religion & MythA hymn to Nergal for Shulgi (Shulgi U)
Nergal who ......, ...... great awe, who ...... the underworld -- its awesome radiance ...... the battle-net, its awesomeness has filled heaven and earth. 2nd cagbatuku. Hero, wild bull with thick horns, ...... like a cow, your terrifying name lets loose awe and fear. You fall on the rebel lands like the south wind. You are a bolt on the broad extent of the mountains. When you sit in E-meclam, your desires are joyously fulfilled (?). The people assemble at your feet. 2nd barsud. Meclamta-eda, your supremacy in the rebel lands! You have encircled the rebel lands, O youth. Nergal, your supremacy in the rebel lands!
Religion & MythA hymn to Nergal (Nergal B)
Hero, majestic, awe-inspiring son of Enlil, battering like a storm and roaring against the rebel lands! Immense at his front, at his rear surging as a flood, after he ......, ...... this place; lord Meclamta-eda inspiring terrifying awe, his magnificent strength not releasing the hostile land, his luxuriant horn ...... in the Land, struck ...... with weapons. ......, sired by Enlil, great ......, ...... flood ......; he has placed you ......, he has positioned you in your heroic strength. Raising his head, authoritative with a ringing voice, knowing the divine powers of the gods, ...... of the Land, he travels through heaven and organises everything.
Religion & MythA hymn to Nibru and Ishme-Dagan (Ishme-Dagan C)
Shrine of Nibru, shrine surpassing the abzu, shining E-kur; your prince is the Great Mountain, Enlil, who surpasses the Prince (i.e. Enki) . Your great lady is the good woman, mother Ninlil, excelling in refinement. Your caretaker is one whose vigour is surpassing, the hero Ninurta. The chief minister (i.e. Nuska) , who is worthy of your fair copper vessels, who makes your bedchamber exceedingly pleasant, is also the guardian watching over your honourable divine powers; he is the shepherd watching over your honourable divine powers. Your provider, who was engendered by the Great Mountain and was born by Ninlil -- Icme-Dagan, who was engendered by the Great Mountain, and was born by Ninlil, he who has achieved a high reputation among his numerous people, throws himself at your feet.
Religion & MythA hymn to Nibru and Ishme-Dagan (Ishme-Dagan W)
City whose terrifying splendour extends over heaven and earth, whose towers are exceptionally grand, shrine Nibru! Your power reaches to the edges of the uttermost extent of heaven and earth. Of all the brick buildings erected in the Land, your brickwork is the most excellent. You have allowed all the foreign lands and as many cities as are built to receive excellent divine powers. Your name is as excellent as your excellent divine powers. Your soil is soil as good as your name. City, your name towers (1 ms. has instead: your divine powers tower) over heaven and earth. You are the pillar (?)…
Religion & MythA hymn to Ningishzida (Ningishzida C)
...... to you. ...... a flood-wave in the river, sweeping over everything like a destructive flood. My king, from your ....... King, from your birth you have ...... in abundance. Ninjiczida, your praise is sweet ....... 1st kirugu. Lord Ninjiczida, ...... 1 line fragmentary Hero, ...... beloved of holy An, ...... born in the shining great mountains, lord ...... with sparkling eyes, with the attractiveness of a young man, great hero, the king's right arm on the battlefield, lord Ninjiczida, your praise is sweet. They praise you in song. 2nd kirugu. Hero, as you wander on the earth, Ninjiczida,…
Religion & MythA hymn to Nininsina for Ishbi-Erra (Ishbi-Erra D)
The great gods elevated ......, and made ...... perfect. 2 lines unclear Your garment is an exalted garment; Enlil has ....... You were brought up sitting on the knees of An the king, and the great gods elevated ....... Woman whose name inspires awe, Gula, ....... You go against all the foreign lands, lady who, for all her pleasantness, fearsomely and mightily ......, who lifts her head in great and elevated divinity. Nininsina, your father established you in ladyship over the Land. In awe at you, never altering the fearsomeness ......, holy Nininsina, lady Gula, Nininsina, in the Egal-mah, founded by An -- bring joy to Icbi-Erra, the beloved of your heart.
Religion & MythA hymn to Nininsina (Nininsina D)
Lady, surpassing with august divine powers, with head high, full of awesomeness, beloved daughter of great An! Nininsina, born of Urac, from the great womb ...... a great destiny, grandiloquent counsellor of her own father, good stewardess of E-kur! Beautiful ......, glory of the holy throne-dais, merciful, ...... of the black-headed! Holy Nininsina, making everything manifest! My lady, ...... in a white garment and cloak! The impressive course of your outstandingly great deeds, which surpass description, is praised. Your own father ...... holy An has assigned to you supreme divine powers…
Religion & MythA hymn to Ninkasi
Given birth by the flowing water ......, tenderly cared for by Ninhursaja! Ninkasi, given birth by the flowing water ......, tenderly cared for by Ninhursaja! Having founded your town upon wax, she completed its great walls for you. Ninkasi, having founded your town upon wax, she completed its great walls for you. Your father is Enki, the lord Nudimmud, and your mother is Ninti, the queen of the abzu. Ninkasi, your father is Enki, the lord Nudimmud, and your mother is Ninti, the queen of the abzu. It is you who handle the ...... and dough with a big shovel, mixing, in a pit, the beerbread with sweet aromatics. Ninkasi, it is you who handle the ...... and dough with a big shovel, mixing, in a pit, the beerbread with sweet aromatics.
Religion & MythDaily LifeA hymn to Ninshubur (Ninshubur B)
The servant (cubur), the wise suppliant, ...... the servant, the wise suppliant, the ...... of Akkil, the wise suppliant has taken her seat in her city Akkil. The servant has taken her seat in Akkil. The servant ......, Nincubur, ...... Nintud, the servant ......, Nincubur ...... to An. For father Enlil, lord of all the lands; for Ninlil, lady of Ki-ur, the majestic place; for Enki, the bull of Eridug; for the good woman, ...... Damgalnuna; for Acimbabbar in Urim; for Ningal in her holy chamber; ...... the Great Mountain, Enlil; for ......, Ninurta, for ...... Ninhursaja, for youthful Utu in the shrine of E-babbar ......, for ...... Nergal, for Inana in Zabalam, Enlil ...... the great gods .......
Religion & MythA hymn to Ninurta (Ninurta C)
1 line fragmentary ....... ......, lordly son of Enlil, ....... ......, hero who appears in glory, who ....... ...... in Enlil's house ....... ...... no one ....... ...... of E-kur, the rebel lands ....... ......, lord ....... ......, captain, ....... ...... king of Urim, ....... ......, king of Adab ....... ......, king of ....... ...... E-kur ....... 1 line fragmentary ...... of Ninlil ....... ...... to the ...... of Enlil ....... ...... heaven and earth, the mother who bore ....... ...... Enlil ....... ...... of the hero ....... 1 line fragmentary ...... Zababa ....... ...... hero ....... 20 lines missing
Religion & MythA hymn to Nisaba (Nisaba A)
Lady coloured like the stars of heaven, holding (3 mss. have instead: perfectly endowed with) a lapis-lazuli tablet! Nisaba, great wild cow born by Urac, wild sheep nourished on good milk among holy alkaline plants, opening the mouth for seven ...... reeds! Perfectly endowed with fifty great divine powers, my lady, most powerful in E-kur! Dragon emerging in glory at the festival, Aruru (mother goddess) of the Land, ...... from the clay, calming ...... (1 ms. has instead: the region with cool water), lavishing fine oil (3 mss. have instead: plenty) on the foreign lands, engendered in wisdom by the Great Mountain (Enlil)! Good woman, chief scribe of An, record-keeper of Enlil, wise sage of the gods!
Religion & MythA hymn to Numushda for Sîn-iqisham (Sîn-iqisham A)
Exalted lord, for whom a favourable destiny was determined while he was still in the good womb! Numucda, exalted lord, for whom a favourable destiny was determined while he was still in the good womb! Ningal formed ...... the holy seed ...... engendered by Suen. Born amid plenty in the holy mountains, eating fruits from a green garden, named with a good name by An and Enlil, carefully cherished by the great lady Ninlil! Numucda, son of the prince, whose appearance is full of awe-inspiring radiance! Great wild bull battering the enemy country, great lord Numucda! Cagbatuku. Snarling lion…
Religion & MythA hymn to Nungal
House, furious storm of heaven and earth, battering its enemies; prison, jail of the gods, august neck-stock of heaven and earth! Its interior is evening light, dusk spreading wide; its awesomeness is frightening. Raging sea which mounts high, no one knows where its rising waves flow. House, a pitfall waiting for the evil one; it makes the wicked tremble! House, a net whose fine meshes are skillfully woven, which gathers up people as its booty! House, which keeps an eye on the just and on evildoers; no one wicked can escape from its grasp. House, river of the ordeal which leaves the just ones…
Religion & MythDaily LifeA hymn to Sadarnuna (Sadarnuna A)
The just woman dwelling among the great divine powers is the lady unsurpassed in ladyship! Sadarnuna, the just woman of far-reaching and just counsel, is the beloved of An! The great authority (?), the majestic quay, made fitting for the Ec-mah by Enul and Ninul, the just woman has erected her majestic dais in the courtyard of Enlil. As she stands in the holy storehouse Ec-mah, the ...... place, she conveys terrifying awesomeness. The beloved offspring of An the king, as she is worthy of the Pada-nunus (?), ...... the Ec-mah (?). In his E-melem-huc conveying great awesomeness, ...... fear, serving the great gods of heaven and earth, her spouse, the assembly leader Nuska, ....... 4 lines fragmentary unknown no. of lines missing
Religion & MythA hymn to Shul-pa-ed (Shul-pa-ed A)
Hero, who shines forth like moonlight over the upper city! Hero Cul-pa-ed, who shines forth like moonlight over the upper city! Eminent and famous Cul-pa-ed, who shines forth like moonlight over the upper city! Lord of great divine powers, god who appears in glory, Cul-pa-ed, of great divine powers, god who appears in glory, lordly in battle, who makes vegetation grow tall in the Land! Lord who raises his great arms, battle-club that smashes all enemies! Pre-eminent brother-in-law of father Enlil, good youth! Enlil has named your august name. Lordly with weapons in the thick of battle! Owner…
Religion & MythA hymn to Suen for Ibbi-Suen (Ibbi-Suen E)
Your divine powers ......, father Nanna, ......, ...... chose from the people ....... Youthful Suen, your holy shrine ....... An, you ...... your good crown and headdress on your head. When you take your seat on the great august dais ....... When you open your holy mouth, ...... the great ...... and the divine powers. ...... the royal crown, the holy headdress and the diadem, gathering together the throne and the divine powers, on the dais with head high ....... Mighty (?) one of the dais, ...... good seed ......, my Ibbi-Suen, ...... from holy An, lord who sanctifies the divine powers, who…
Religion & MythA hymn to Utu (Utu B)
Emerging ...... below and gazing upwards, Utu, great physician, father of the black-headed, wearing a lapis-lazuli beard in the E-babbar! Utu, great hero, focus of the assembly, king, bison running over the mountains! Utu, bison running over the mountains! A young wild cow ......, a young gazelle (?) caught in a trap, Utu, the son born with the city to Ningal in the E-nun-ana, a bull, a cedar fed with water thriving among cypresses, holy (?), patient-hearted, playful, radiating light, he is iridescent radiance! Then, as my king comes forth, the heavens tremble before him and the earth shakes…
Religion & MythA kungar to Inana and Dumuzid (Dumuzid-Inana I)
"If it were not for our mother, he would be chasing me along the dark (?) paths of the desert! If it were not for our mother, this young man would be chasing me along the dark (?) paths of the desert! If it were not for my mother Ningal, he would be chasing me along the dark (?) paths of the desert! If it were not for Ningikuga, he would be chasing me along the dark (?) paths of the desert! If it were not for father Suen, he would be chasing me along the dark (?) paths of the desert! If it were not for my brother Utu, he would be chasing me along the dark (?) paths of the desert! "Young…
Religion & MythA love song of Shu-Suen (Shu-Suen A)
It was she who gave birth to the holy one, gave birth to the holy one; the queen gave birth to the holy one, Abi-simti (i.e. Cu-Suen's mother) gave birth to the holy one, the queen gave birth to the holy one -- my cloth beam of the cloth of pleasure, my Abi-simti! My warp beam placed for weaving, my queen Kubatum (i.e. Cu-Suen's concubine)! My one suited to a mane of hair, a wonder to behold, my lord Cu-Suen, my one ...... in words, my son of Culgi -- because I uttered, because I uttered, the lord gave me a gift, because I uttered an exclamation of joy, the lord gave me a gift. The lord gave me as a gift a golden pin, a lapis-lazuli seal. The lord gave me as a gift a golden ring, a silver ring.
Daily LifeReligion & MythA love song of Shu-Suen (Shu-Suen B)
Man of my heart, my beloved man, your allure is a sweet thing, as sweet as honey. Lad of my heart, my beloved man, your allure is a sweet thing, as sweet as honey. You have captivated me (?), of my own free will I will come to you. Man, let me flee with you -- into the bedroom. You have captivated me (?); of my own free will I shall come to you. Lad, let me flee with you -- into the bedroom. Man, let me do the sweetest things to you. My precious sweet, let me bring you honey. In the bedchamber dripping with honey let us enjoy over and over your allure, the sweet thing. Lad, let me do the sweetest things to you. My precious sweet, let me bring you honey.
Daily LifeReligion & MythA love song of Shu-Suen (Shu-Suen C)
My hair is lettuce, well watered. It is the sprout of a lettuce, well watered. Its tangled coils (?) have been tightened. My nursemaid has ...... them high and made my hair stag-like. She has tightened its small combs and brought order to my charms; my charms, my hair, the lettuce, is the fairest of plants. The brother has brought me into his life-giving gaze, Cu-Suen, the ...... handsome man, has chosen me. ...... my allure is without end, 1 line fragmentary 5 lines missing You are our lord, you are our lord, of silver and lapis lazuli, you are our lord. You are our farmer who brings superb grain.
Daily LifeReligion & MythA love song of Shulgi (Shulgi Z)
"The ...... because of you does not ....... My brother, the ...... because of you does not ....... Lad (?), the ...... because of you does not ....... My beloved, the ...... because of you does not ....... My fairest of countenance, the ...... because of you does not ....... Its date clusters because of you are not placed in my hand. Its sheaves are ...... for me. Its ...... are not sweet for me. Grain ...... the silos (?)." "My sister, I would go with you to my fields. My fair sister, I would go with you to my fields. I would go with you to my large fields. I would go with you to my small fields. For my early grain irrigated with its early water, for my late grain irrigated with its late water, ...... its grain ...... sheaves .......
Daily LifeReligion & MythA man and his god
A person should steadfastly proclaim the exaltedness of his god. A young man should devoutly praise the words of his god; the people living in the righteous Land should unravel them like a thread. May the balaj singer assuage the spirit of his neighbour and friend. May it soothe their (?) hearts, bring forth ......, utter ......, and measure out ....... Let his mouth shaping a lament soothe the heart of his god, for a man without a god does not obtain food. There is a young man who does not wickedly put his efforts into evil murder, yet he spends the time in grief, asag illness and bitter…
Religion & MythDaily LifeA mythic narrative about Inana
1 line fragmentary Holy Inana ....... The hero, youthful Utu, ....... At dead of night ....... E-ana ....... Inana ....... The great (?) heavens ....... unknown no. of lines missing 1 line fragmentary ...... E-ana came forth from heaven, ...... the lady of heaven set her mind to capturing the great heavens, ...... Inana set her mind to capturing the great heavens, ...... set her mind to capturing the great heavens from the ...... of heaven, ...... youthful Utu, she set her mind to capturing the great heavens. Holy Inana spoke to her brother the hero, youthful Utu: "My brother, I want to tell you something -- pay attention to my speech. ...... Utu, my twin, I want to tell you something -- pay attention to my speech."
Religion & MythA namerima (?) for Iddin-Dagan (Iddin-Dagan D)
Great lady, majestic physician to the black-headed, holy Nininsina, daughter of An, may you be praised! Lady whose tempest, like a raging storm, ...... the interior of heaven and the trembling earth, whose upraised fierce face, like a fire, rips the bodies of the enemy; who, like a dragon, does not bring up venom in her place where ......, paws of a lion, sharpened knives, claws constantly dripping blood, ...... which prick the body with fear! When you draw through the flesh the scalpel and the lancet, knives like lion's claws -- the bodies of the black-headed people tremble because of you!…
Religion & MythA praise poem of Anam
Anam, lord, ......, ......, perfect in your broad wisdom, ......, who preserves Nibru, who prevents the city from having ......! Sweet breeze (?) of his city, father of the region of Unug, judge who ...... in his verdicts, reverent ......, who fears An and Inana! Who cherishes E-ana, who is happy there ...... in friendly words! Mighty ......, heart's desire of Inana, who reveres the ...... of the Land, ...... with head high, en priest of Inana, ......, all-knowing! ......, who batters the wrathful, ......, endowed with good looks, ...... who is fearsome; watching ......, richly endowed with…
Religion & MythDaily LifeA praise poem of Enlil-bani (Enlil-bani A)
Enlil-bani, wondrous king among the princes! Created by An, elevated by Enlil, like Utu the light of all lands, born to princedom, girded with all the divine powers, watched over by Enlil and listened to by Ninlil on account of the widespread people living at the boundary of heaven and earth! Fair of ......, lordly of limb! With the shepherd's crook you have settled innumerable people. Enlil-bani, great son of Enki, shepherd (1 ms. has instead: sage) and counsellor who guides living things, who spreads broad shade over all lands, grandiloquent prince whom great An has summoned, great mother Ninlil trusts in you.
Religion & MythDaily LifeA praise poem of Hammu-rabi (Hammu-rabi A)
1 line damaged ...... acting as its lord ...... 7 lines damaged ...... the black-headed ....... ...... the Euphrates ....... ...... the Tigris ....... ...... on the banks of the Irnina watercourse ....... King Hammu-rabi ...... Gibil (the god of fire). Enlil ....... Enki ...... heroism. Suen ....... Utu the sorcerer ...... 1 line damaged ...... his favourite ....... Ickur ...... heroism. Marduk ...... strength (?). Inana ...... divine powers. ...... reverent ...... 1 line damaged unknown no. of lines missing 5 fragmentary lines unknown no. of lines missing 1 line damaged ...... humanity ....... 5 lines damaged ...... the Great Mountain ....... 1 line damaged ...... the divine powers of kingship ....... 1 line damaged ...... Enlil ....... 1 line damaged ...... acting as its lord (?). 3 lines damaged unknown no. of lines missing
Religion & MythA praise poem of Hammu-rabi (Hammu-rabi C)
Enki has esteemed him truly in the shrine, the august place -- the king who loves purification rites and is well-suited to the pure divine powers, the king who is skilled in the precious plans, who is reverent, eloquent and deft (?), the shepherd, favourite of lord Nunamnir and beloved of mother Ninlil, who ...... great food offerings in E-kur, who delights (?) the great prince Enki, ......, who is cherished by holy Damgalnuna: the good shepherd Hammu-rabi. The king has ...... everything in the shrine E-kic-nujal. Hammu-rabi, whose ....... Daily he ...... Nanna and Ningal. The king whose joy is ...... has restored the purification rites, plans and divine powers ....... He will stand there before you ......, o youth Suen, fulfilling ...... all your requirements.
Religion & MythDaily LifeA praise poem of Iddin-Dagan (Iddin-Dagan B)
Iddin-Dagan, in his majestic location An has decided a great fate for you, has made the just crown shine for you, has raised you to shepherdship over the Land, has placed the foreign lands at your feet. Enlil has looked at you truly, Iddin-Dagan, he has spoken truly to you. Enlil has commanded you to keep firm the cosmic bond in Sumer, to keep the people on the track, to let Sumer and Akkad relax under your broad protection, to let the people eat noble food and drink fresh water. Iddin-Dagan, you are the shepherd in his heart, the one whom Enlil has spoken to truly. Enki has brought to you, Iddin-Dagan, broad understanding, knowledge of everything, wise command, a life (?) that comes from the mouth of a lion. May all the foreign lands praise you.
Religion & MythDaily LifeA praise poem of Ishme-Dagan (Ishme-Dagan AA)
From ...... he brought ...... for you. ...... the fates are decided ....... He set up grandly (?) for you ...... that befits the majestic dais and throne of gold. They lined up before it for you ...... favourable words for Sumer and Akkad. ...... in the E-kur ....... food offerings. ...... in the E-kur ....... ...... with your right arm ....... ...... Ickur ...... in the E-kur. ...... on its august throne. He ...... a huge copper ...... inspiring great awe, on your holy dais. It is to be marvelled at by the people. He ...... the main meal (?) for you in your great dining hall as a regular offering forever after.
Religion & MythA praise poem of Ishme-Dagan (Ishme-Dagan AC)
To befit heaven and earth grandly, they raised Enki, the lord, the firstborn son of holy An, to the status of junior Enlil. So that he can reveal everything (?), they bestowed sevenfold wisdom upon him as a gift. They have established eternally that he should give counsel, that he should decide great fates, that he ......, and that he should provide wisdom. The pure abzu, the house whose brickwork ......, whose façade settles the mind, ...... to place before him ....... 1 line fragmentary unknown number of lines missing They (Enlil and Ninlil) are powerful princes, lords who decides the fates; in your midst they have bestowed the divine powers on lord Ninurta. Nibru, your pure songs are most precious, surpassing all praise! I, Icme-Dagan, have made every mouth utter them forever.
Religion & MythA praise poem of Lipit-Eshtar (Lipit-Eshtar A)
I am a king treated with respect, good offspring from the womb. I am Lipit-Ectar, the son of Enlil. From the moment I lifted my head like a cedar sapling, I have been a man who possesses strength in athletic pursuits. As a young man I grew very muscular (?). I am a lion in all respects (3 mss. have instead: to the extremes (?)), having no equal. I am a gaping dragon, a source of great awe for the soldiers. I am like the Anzud bird, peering about in the heart of the mountains. I am a wild bull whom nobody dares oppose in its anger. I am a bison, sparkling with beautiful eyes, having a…
Religion & MythDaily LifeA praise poem of Sîn-iddinam (Sîn-iddinam A)
...... who worships ....... Sîn-iddinam ...... his departing boat. He provided flour, gold and grain, befitting the great lady. ...... all this choice (?) grain ...... the lapis lazuli E-kur. He transported this cargo to the Quay of Life, the quay of Urim. Joyously he brought it into the majestic house, the house of Suen. Nanna was delighted with the king, and Ningal ...... to him. Nanna was delighted with Sîn-iddinam, and Ningal ...... to him. The Anuna, the great gods, blessed him. He had brought to complete perfection the plenitude, the pure first-fruit offerings, the first-fruit offerings of the new year. (1 ms. adds 1 line: He had transported this cargo to the Quay of Life, the quay of Urim.)
Religion & MythDaily LifeA praise poem of Shulgi (Shulgi A)
I am a child born of Ninsun. I am the choice of holy An's heart. I am the man whose fate was decided by Enlil. I am Culgi, the beloved of Ninlil. I am he who is cherished by Nintud. I am he who was endowed with wisdom by Enki. I am the powerful king of Nanna. I am the growling lion of Utu. I am Culgi, who has been chosen by Inana for his attractiveness. I am a mule, most suitable for the road. I am a horse, whose tail waves on the highway. I am a stallion of Cakkan, eager to run. (1 ms.: I am a donkey of Cakkan, who loves running.) I am a knowledgeable scribe of Nisaba; I have perfected my wisdom just as my heroism and my strength(1 ms. has instead: my distinction). Reliable words can reach (?) me. I cherish righteousness but do not tolerate wickedness. I hate anyone who speaks wickedly.
Religion & MythDaily LifeA praise poem of Shulgi (Shulgi B)
To make his name famous for all time until distant days, and to transmit to posterity and the days to come the praise poems of his power, the songs of his might, and the lasting fame of his exceptional intelligence, King Culgi, king of Urim, has brought the songs' latent wisdom before the mighty son of Ninsumun. He praises his own power in song, and lauds his own superior native intelligence: I am a king, offspring begotten by a king and borne by a queen. I, Culgi the noble, have been blessed with a favourable destiny right from the womb. When I was small, I was at the academy, where I…
Daily LifeReligion & MythA praise poem of Shulgi (Shulgi C)
I am the king, a wild bull of acknowledged strength, a lion with wide-open jaws! I am Culgi, a wild bull of acknowledged strength, a lion with wide-open jaws! I am a great storm let loose from heaven, sending its splendour far and wide! I am good stock, with brindled body, engendered by a breed-bull! I am a king born from a cow, resting amid butter and milk! I am the calf of a thick-necked white cow, reared in the cow-pen! Dressed in a ...... royal robe and holding out a sceptre, I am perfect for ....... I am also the good shepherd who takes joy in justice, the scourge and stick of all evil!…
Religion & MythDaily LifeA praise poem of Shulgi (Shulgi E)
Enlil, foundation platform of heaven and earth, who holds the crook that makes the Land firm, whose beard flows over the mountains, who reveres his own divine powers -- Enlil, the everlasting shepherd of the Land, has addressed me, Culgi, king of Urim, favourably, looking at me with wide-open eyes. In the overflowing of his heart, the lord bestowed the sceptre on me. Everywhere the word of Enlil has brought benefits to me, who was specially crowned in brick-built Eridug; to me, who was invested with the lapis-lazuli diadem in Unug; to me, the beloved shepherd of Nanna, fit for the throne. When I bring firewood (?), he looks at me and speaks gladly to me.
Religion & MythDaily LifeA praise poem of Shulgi (Shulgi L)
1 line fragmentary ...... in battle and fight ....... You gave ...... to your offspring (?) ....... ...... shepherd Culgi, you spread fearsomeness over the foreign countries. ...... shepherd, your offspring (?) will praise you duly. sa-gida. You defeat ....... You impose silence on ....... You subdue the rebel lands ....... Your battle-cry ...... even the distant mountains and hills. ...... at your roaring devastate (?) ...... completely. unknown no. of lines missing 3 lines fragmentary ...... like a forest set on fire, ...... covers all the ....... ...... your fearsomeness makes ...... and the enemies tremble.
Religion & MythA praise poem of Shulgi (Shulgi O)
City worthy of the divine powers, according to its name: shrine Urim, raging storm of Sumer, battleground -- and well established! Origin of human seed, consolidating the foundations of the Land, abundance -- and well established! Lofty dais of An, pure place, holy place, provider of first-fruit offerings for An to refresh himself, dripping with syrup and wine -- and well established! Du-ur, celebrated place of Enlil, in whose interior are the assigned divine powers, place whose destiny was decreed by father Enlil, great dais -- and well established! Eridug, shrine expert in decreeing the…
Religion & MythDaily LifeA praise poem of Shulgi (Shulgi P)
1 line fragmentary ...... shining ....... He (probably Lugalbanda) spoke to her (probably Ninsun) tenderly ......: "He will accomplish precisely the fate determined for him. Your father holy An will make his branches spread as if he were a sappy cedar planted among hacur trees." Then my lady stepped up (?) to the word of An, Ninsun made a fateful decision with her spouse, holy Lugalbanda; she attended to his supplication. She went straight to holy An in the Ubcu-unkena: "My father, An, you are the king among the gods! I have looked through the land in all its extent and among its black-headed people who are as numerous as ewes, and I have elevated Culgi for me high above their head. May he be their trustworthy shepherd!
Religion & MythDaily LifeA praise poem of Shulgi (Shulgi V)
Enlil, the beaming light, ......, whose utterance is immutable, the most powerful of the Anuna gods, ......, looked (?) favourably (?) at Culgi, the fearsome dragon ......, the king, the creation of his hands. He granted (?) him great stength. His roar fills (?) the whole extent (?) of heaven and earth. In the E-kur, the great snake of the deep, ......, in Dur-an-ki, which lavishly ...... the eternal divine powers, ......, Enlil determined a great fate from the womb for the long-enduring sapling of the brickwork founded by the princely one, Culgi, who was born for a prosperous reign: "Make the people obedient, you enduring king of the multitudes!"
Religion & MythDaily LifeA praise poem of Shulgi (Shulgi W)
2 lines fragmentary ...... does not release ....... 1 line fragmentary ...... does not release ....... ...... the wise of the Land daily. 1 line fragmentary ...... made you pay his heavy tribute in full. 1 line fragmentary ...... his flour (?) ....... 2 lines fragmentary ...... Culgi, king of Urim. I am ....... My ....... ...... for my father. ...... Lugalbanda ....... I will rejoice ....... 6 lines fragmentary unknown no. of lines missing
Religion & MythA praise poem of Shulgi (Shulgi X)
The king sailed to Unug towards the princely divine powers. Sumer and Akkad marvelled at him as he moored the boat at the quay of Kulaba. With a large wild bull of the mountains with uplifted horns, and with a sheep led by the hand of an en priest at his right side, with a dappled kid and a bearded kid clasped to his breast, he entered before Inana in the shrine of E-ana. Culgi, the good shepherd, a heart in love, dressed himself in the ma garment and put a hili wig on his head as a crown. Inana looked at him with admiration and spontaneously struck up a song, singing the words: "When I have…
Religion & MythDaily LifeA praise poem of Shulgi (Shulgi Y)
unknown no. of lines missing 2 lines fragmentary To make my kingship longlasting, to make abundance conspicuous in my reign, Enki, the lord whose utterances cannot be altered, entered it proudly. He assigned Utu, whose words are pre-eminent, as a constable to me. Since Ninlil had given me her joyful blessing in the Land, and had caused me to be heard in the assembly, I, Culgi, the faithful shepherd of Sumer, praised her in the Ja-jic-cua, in her temple where lawsuits are decided justly, in her august temple befitting her ladyship, in her E-papah imbued with terrible awesomeness, a place admired by all the foreign countries, within .......
Religion & MythA praise poem of Ur-Namma (Ur-Namma C)
City of the finest divine powers, lofty royal throne-dais! Shrine Urim, pre-eminent in Sumer, built in a pure place! City, your well-founded great wall has grown out of the abzu! City, beautiful as the sky, endowed with beauty, colourfully decorated in a great place! Shrine Urim, well-founded jipar, dwelling of An and Enlil! Your lofty palace is the E-kic-nujal, in which the fates are determined! Your pilasters heavy with radiance tower over all the countries! Its terrace like a white cloud is a spectacle in the midst of heaven. Its ...... like flashing lightning shines (?) inside a shrine.…
Religion & MythA praise poem of Ur-Namma (Ur-Namma H)
Ur-Namma, king of the Land ....... ...... far and distant (?) ....... ...... ebony ....... 1 line fragmentary unknown no. of lines missing 1 line fragmentary ...... with silver and lapis lazuli ....... ...... like silver ...... in the Land. ...... in (?) the desert. Lion (?) and dragon ....... Ur-Namma, king of the Land, far and distant (?) unknown no. of lines missing
Religion & MythA prayer for Hammu-rabi (Hammu-rabi D)
1 line damaged ...... the reverent one, who takes care ......, 1 line damaged (The gods are addressed:) "Give him the sceptre ......! ...... the name of Babylon, the city of lordship! Make the king pre-eminent in the world ......!" O Asarluhi, ...... destiny for my Hammu-rabi! An, Enlil and Enki ...... with him. When they had decided ......, all the great gods together ...... joyfully to Marduk. (Marduk speaks to the great gods:) "You have ...... the shepherd of your hearts to exercise the lordship in the Land. Determine his destiny grandly, ...... with your holy mouths. Appoint ...... your word ...... for him, the indefatigable shepherd."
Religion & MythA prayer for Hammu-rabi (Hammu-rabi E)
37 lines missing 1 line fragmentary ...... raised his head high. ...... before him ...... rejoiced at him. ...... embraced him. Your ...... has determined the destiny. May you be their ......, exercising lordship over them. May ...... which has been bestowed on you never cease. You are well-suited for ......, and may its time be prolonged for you. A destiny has been determined for you and you have been called by name; may you have no rival!
Religion & MythA prayer for Rim-Sîn (Rim-Sîn F)
Rim-Sîn, king with princely divine powers, leader with all the divine powers, raising high your princely head! The abzu is the august holy shrine of the E-kic-nujal, a great vastness in depth and breadth, the foundation of the innermost holy pure buildings, with a pleasant odour like a forest of aromatic cedars and hachur trees. It forms the foundations (?) of the temple, within the temple, a protection for the temple; the terrifying splendour of the temple, a great corner, a holy corner within the solid interior. The design of the doorway is a magic bond: a solar disc at whose top is a standard representing a rapacious eagle, violently seizing stags which turn to the left and right. Gods stand guard over the doorway.
Religion & MythA prayer for Rim-Sin entering the gate (Rim-Sin D)
Rim-Sîn, king of abundance, august doyen of rulers, may right and justice be your helpers. May they make a good ...... for you. May they make ...... for you. Rim-Sîn, named with a name by An and Enlil, when you enter the Great Gate, the gate of Urim, may the favourable protective god and the protective goddess of peace, gatekeepers of the Great Gate, shine upon you ....... May they bring you back an answer of life and peace ...... to your greeting which they bring before Nanna and Ningal. May they cause a good ...... that brings happiness, a mood of encouragement, to issue for you…
Religion & MythDaily LifeA prayer (?) for Rim-Sin (Rim-Sin A)
May Enlil, king of heaven and earth, whose utterances are trusty and whose words are ......, ...... the shepherd Rim-Sîn, ...... my king ....... May he who gives him life-giving (?) food-offerings in Nibru stand in prayer before him. May Enlil bestow upon him grain, the benefit of mankind. May he pass his time in joy in the ...... of his country. They will ...... Rim-Sîn my king. May he strengthen for him his royal throne and extend his reign. May he decree his sceptre for the south and the uplands. May he make the king's inferiors bow down before him. The offerings of Rim-Sîn my king, small or great, at Nibru in the E-kur ....... Syrup shall drip like ghee from its fingers. I am as the son of one man, honey and ghee. My king, let offerings ...... in my joy. They give me silver .......
Religion & MythA prayer for Rim-Sin (Rim-Sin E)
......, who is fitted for holy lustration rites, Rim-Sîn, purification priest of An, who is fitted for pure prayers rites, whom you summoned from the holy womb ......, has been elevated to lordship over the Land; he has been installed as shepherd over the black-headed. The staff which strengthens the Land has been placed in his hand. The shepherd's crook which guides the living people has been attached at his side. As he steps forward before you, he is lavishly supplied with everything that he offers with his pure hands. Your attentive youth, your beloved king, the good shepherd…
Religion & MythDaily LifeA prayer for Rim-Sin (Rim-Sin G)
May lord Nanna, king of heaven and earth, your good protective deity, accept the holy food offerings that you prepare, and the holy pure drink offerings that you proffer with holy hands; the sacrifices that you bring, what you say in your heart, what you utter out loud, your reverent gestures and your holy hands raised in prayer. May the august queen Ningal, your queen of favourable signs, accept them also. O king, they who have suppressed famine, the great gods Nanna and Ningal, have conferred abundance on you, kingRim-Sîn, in the temple of the gods. O king named with a name by Enlil,…
Religion & MythA prayer for Samsu-iluna (Samsu-iluna B)
unknown no. of lines missing Life ....... Life ....... Life ....... ...... of your name ....... ...... holy life ....... Enki ....... Prince Samsu-iluna, ....... ...... terrifying splendour which spreads far and wide. Enki ...... your throne, and ...... bestow on you a sceptre of long years and days; may he ...... your crown ...... like Utu. May your kingship be as stable as heaven and earth! You are king of numerous lands and peoples! You are the people's good shepherd! You are the herdsman of the settled people! When like Utu you impart just verdicts, ...... justice, ...... you call by name ......, then you, Samsu-iluna, shall be the king of the eloquent words of Utu, and you shall be the foremost of kings.
Religion & MythDaily LifeA prayer for Samsu-iluna (Samsu-iluna C)
Lord, may you confirm your royal position by taking your seat on the throne, the lofty dais! Samsu-iluna, may you confirm your royal position by taking your seat on the throne, the lofty dais! May you strengthen the foundations of your throne by grasping the shepherd's crook of lordship! May you bring to perfect completion the princely divine powers by inspiring awe in the holy place, the pure place! When you ...... on the holy royal dais, may you lift your head high in a lordly manner! When you are embued with the terrifying splendour of royalty, ...... shining like the sun! When you…
Religion & MythDaily LifeA prayer for Samsu-iluna (Samsu-iluna D)
He causes brilliance, he ...... from his holy heart. unknown no. of lines missing
Religion & MythA prayer for Samsu-iluna (Samsu-iluna E)
My ...... of eternal fame, head lifted high in princely worth, ...... who loves righteousness and truth, ...... named with an august name, for whom Enlil ...... has determined a great destiny, and Ninlil ......! The valiant Ninurta is your helper. In the E-kur, Nuska the august minister of Enlil, the assembly leader of all lands, is your foremost palace superintendent. Throughout your life, may you carry your neck high; in princely manner may you lift your head high! "Prolong the days of his life for Samsu-iluna, of princely worth!" May An, king of the gods, look upon you favourably; the…
Religion & MythA prayer for Samsu-iluna (Samsu-iluna G)
He greeted Enki, Asalim and the son of Eridug (An Akkadian gloss has: Ea, Marduk and Asalluha), the great gods, while sitting majestically on the golden throne of kingship with head high in heroic strength in its midst (An Akkadian gloss has: on your golden throne of kingship, whose head is raised high in the strength of your heroism, may you sit majestically, Samsu-iluna, double king), the king of Urim and king of Larsa, the king of Sumer and Akkad.
Religion & MythDaily LifeA prayer to An for Rim-Sin (Rim-Sin C)
Shepherd, called by name, for whom holy An has determined in heaven a great destiny! Rim-Sîn, called by name, for whom holy An has determined in heaven a great destiny! Prince who achieved kingship when still in the true womb, you grandly exercise lordship over the numerous people. In Larsa, the ...... mountain befitting the princely divine powers, you are truly called to be shepherd of Sumer and Akkad. Great An, august in heaven and earth, lord who is wise in everything, father of the gods, has determined to fix the destinies for that place, never interrupting the uttering of weighty commands, ...... in the pure interior of heaven.
Religion & MythA prayer to Marduk (?) for Hammu-rabi (Hammu-rabi B)
May Lugalcubur place on your head the sacrosanct (?) crown of kingship! May Enki, the lord of life, ...... life, and in the E-unir, the house of the plans of heaven and earth which rides upon all the divine powers, may he cover your priestly headdress in awe and splendour! May he make the divine powers of kingship resplendent for you, and fit you up forever with the plans appropriate to the rank of en priest! May he gently recite for you live-giving incantations, bestowing in addition a long-lived destiny; may the uttering of your name delight Enki as much as the uttering of his own name! May he reward you with wisdom and intelligence! May your royal name be as something unchangeable! May father Enki prolong the years of your life, and may he grant you lordship over every one of the foreign lands. O Hammu-rabi, my king!
Religion & MythA shir-gida (?) of Ninshubur (Ninshubur A)
Lady, good seed of the Land, minister of An! Minister of An, mother Nincubur! From the interior of heaven, An bestowed upon you (?), and Enlil destined as your (?) fate, that you should take a lapis-lazuli sceptre in your hand and proceed in front of An. As if you were a fecund ewe caring for its lambs, a fecund goat caring for its kids, or a fertile bearing mother caring for her children, through your powers folds are erected and pens are fenced off. In the folds erected through your powers and in the pens fenced off through your powers, 1 line fragmentary unknown no. of lines missing "I…
Religion & MythA shir-gida to Martu (Martu A)
Hero, august youth, who completely controls the distant mountains as far as their borders! Martu, august youth, who completely controls the distant mountains as far as their borders, who possesses the strength of a savage lion, who occupies a holy dais in the mountains, the pure place! Martu, who possesses the strength of a savage lion, who occupies a holy dais in the mountains, the pure place, who is imbued with great fearsomeness, whom holy An engendered, who appears gloriously with numerous divine powers! His own mother Ninhursaja gave him enormous limbs for his form, so that no one should…
Religion & MythA shir-gida to Nininsina (Nininsina A)
...... who has taken her seat on an exalted dais, ......, imbued with awesomeness, an amazing sight, ...... Nininsina, joyously fresh, ......, gathering up the divine powers, she announces the rites. ...... Nininsina ...... with intricate skill. ......, ministering with intricate skill, she gathers up the divine powers; Nininsina, ministering with intricate skill, she gathers up the divine powers. She takes in her hands the august divine powers. She attaches the incrustations to the great garment, while speaking favourable words. She tests the surgical lancet; Nininsina sharpens the scalpel. She has made perfect the divine powers of medicine, and hands them over to her son, the king of Jirsi, the kindly Damu:
Religion & MythA shir-gida to Ninurta (Ninurta A)
The warrior, the lordly son of Enlil, Ninurta, the fierce bull, fit to be a prince, the hero manifest in E-cu-me-ca, the glory of E-kur, the rigorous judge, king, ...... of the gods, the butting bull, placing his foot on the rebel lands, Ninurta, the lord of E-cu-me-ca, has taken his seat on the throne-dais of An. Like the new moon he comes forth over the people. Like Nanna he is ...... in heaven and earth. He holds in his hand a sceptre of shining precious metal, and the true crown of An is placed on his head. Like Utu he comes forth over the cypresses; like Nanna he stands over the high mountains. The lord in the courtyard (1 ms. has instead: The lord, the king), ......, the king who was born in the women's chambers in the mountains, second in rank ...... at least 6 lines missing
Religion & MythA shir-gida to Nuska (Nuska B)
......, Enlil decreed your birth in the E-kur! Nuska, Enlil decreed your birth in the E-kur! Lord Nudimmud, the king of prosperity, honoured you in the abzu. Good minister, I shall praise you! Nuska, majestic minister of Enlil, your praise is good and most sweet. My king, I shall praise you in song! You are the light of the good shepherd Enlil, and you have been given a majestic name by Ninlil. You have been given wisdom by Enki. You were born to Enul and Ninul, and so you are united with the lordly seed. You are the E-kur's song. You are a minister fit for his king: Nuska, you are the man of Enlil's heart.
Religion & MythA shir-namgala to Meshlamta-eda and Lugal-era for Ibbi-Suen (Ibbi-Suen B)
unknown no. of lines missing 2 lines fragmentary ...... encouragement, your heart ....... Meclamta-eda, faraway ....... 4th kirugu. You of august power, my prince Ibbi-Suen! Its jisgijal. You are superlative, my master, you are superlative! Your power reaches to the outer limits of heaven. Lord Lugal-era, you are superlative, your power reaches to the outer limits of heaven. Your divine powers are artfully fashioned divine powers, incomparable divine powers! Sea with high waves, you are imbued with terrible fearsomeness! Mighty god who dwells in the Land, your great awesomeness covers heaven and earth!
Religion & MythA shir-namgala to Nanna (Nanna L)
Princely son, respected one in heaven spreading amply over the high mountains, inspiring awe as he casts a glowing radiance, majestic ......, his head reaching the sky, fixing the new moon and the months, shining forth, Nanna! Versed in numbers, may you look down graciously! Acimbabbar, great light of holy An, mighty one (?) spreading wide, you cover (?) the numerous people. Its jicgijal. ...... light, prince lifting his head with (?) the crown, not changing ......, making the Land firm forever, august ...... who ...... in abundance, ...... kingship ......, ...... with shining horns, in the sky ......, ...... the month ...... Sumer, on earth ......, ...... of (?) the E-kur, radiance ....... ...... on the other side, holy glow which he alone ......, true light, filling the wide sky, Acimbabbar ...... greatly.
Religion & MythA shir-namgala to Ninisina for Lipit-Eshtar (Lipit-Eshtar E)
He (probably Enlil) told her, Ninisina, the great daughter of An, the great daughter-in-law, ...... : "That Lipit-Ectar should be your provider -- so let it be!" Cagbatuku. Ninisina (?) paid attention to Enlil's utterance. She answered with humility: "Father Enlil, god whose name is manifest, ......, Enlil; lord ......, your divine powers are the most ......, your instructions are the most precious (?). For the trustworthy shepherd ......, ...... lord Lipit-Ectar 2 lines unclear He has settled the people ......, he (?) has made the Land feel content. You looked upon him with your life-giving gaze: now decree him a true fate!
Religion & MythA shir-namshub to Inana (Inana G)
When I go, when I go -- the mighty queen who ......, who ......; when I, the queen, go to the abzu, when I, Inana, go to the abzu, when I go to the abzu, the shrine, when I go to Eridug the good, when I go to E-engura, when I go to E-ana, the temple of Enlil, when I go to ......, when I go to where the great offering bowls stand in the open air, when I go to where the ...... pure ...... bowls, when I go to where ...... is honoured, when I go to where lord Enki is honoured, when I go to where Damgalnuna ...... is honoured, when I go to where Asarluhi ...... is honoured -- then I bring a dog with me, I bring a lion (?) with me, I bring boxwood with me, I bring halub wood with me. I, Inana, receive the little ......, when I travel there, when I travel there.
Religion & MythA shir-namshub to Inana (Inana I)
When I ...... as I travel by boat, when I ...... as I travel by boat, when I, the queen, journey to the abzu, when I enter the house of Enlil, I am indeed the queen who is pre-eminent in the mountains. When I stand before the face of Enlil, I am indeed the emanating light. When I stand in the mouth of the battle, I am indeed also the foremost one of all lands. When I stand in the thick of the battle, I am indeed also the very guts of battle, the heroic strength. When I walk about at the rear of the battle, I am indeed also the flood bearing ....... When I take my stand behind the battle, I am the woman who comes (?).
Religion & MythA shir-namshub to Nanna for Ur-Namma (Ur-Namma E)
Those who leave through your gate are an uncontrollable flood. Shrine Urim, your interior is a mountain of abundance, your exterior a hill of plenty. No one can learn the interior of the E-kic-nujal, the artfully fashioned mountain. Your place of marvel is ...... of cedar, your name makes the Land rejoice. Your lord is the one called as the beautiful lord, the child of Nin-sun, the ornament of all the lands. Urim, your great divine power is the gods's shackle on the Land. Your name be praised indeed! Your gate is the blue sky imbued with fearsomeness; only when it is open does Utu illuminate from the horizon. Your platform is where the fates are determined by the gods; you make just decisions. Your name be praised indeed!
Religion & MythA shir-namshub to Nanna for Ur-Namma (Ur-Namma F)
Imbued with allure from the shining rooftops, Urim, your foundation rests on abundance. City, your lord rides high in joy, Ur-Namma rides high indeed; the one adorned with a lapis-lazuli beard rides high indeed! He is the tallest among all the lords, appearing as the noblest among them. Those who leave through your gate are an uncontrollable flood. Shrine Urim, your interior is a mountain of abundance, your exterior a hill of plenty. No one can learn the interior of the E-kic-nujal, the artfully fashioned hill. Your temple is a shimmering mountain; your very name is merciful. Your lord is the one called as the beautiful lord, the child of Ninsun, the ornament of all the lands.
Religion & MythA shir-namshub to Nanna (Nanna K)
As remote as heaven, ...... as the earth! Lord Nanna, as remote as heaven, ...... as the earth! Lord Acimbabbar, as remote as heaven, ...... as the earth! A cowherd with his numerous cows, Suen ...... the men in (?) the pens. A ...... with his numerous calves, Suen ...... the men in (?) the pens. Suen ....... Nanna ....... 1 line fragmentary Suen ....... The spouse ....... Ningal ....... He has butter, ....... Iterda milk ....... Cheese ...... like milk. Mother Ningal addresses him: "My ...... man, my lover, .......! My ...... man, my Suen, ......! My man who has ritually bathed, ......! My ......! unknown no. of lines missing
Religion & MythA shir-namshub to Nininsina (Nininsina B)
Softened with the finest oils, softened with the finest oils -- for her let the finest oils be brought! So that she can be softened with the finest oils, let flowing oil be brought for her. For my beautiful ......, who is luxuriance, for my lady Ninsirsir, Ama-ugu-kuku, for my lady sitting in wine, for Nininsina sitting in wine, to make the fire blaze in the sky; for my lady bathing like a swallow, let cedar oil and cypress oil, and cedar oil, the aromatic which is beloved of the gods, and cimgig oil, and ...... oil, and holy cow's butter and dairy cow's milk, and ghee brought from the holy cattle-pen and milk brought from (?) the sheepfold, oils wafting up into the heart of heaven like aromatic resins, and ligidba plant oil and white cedar oil -- let them all glisten on her!
Religion & MythA shir-namshub to Ninurta (Ninurta G)
Hero, Enlil's gatherer of the numerous divine powers, great hero, consummately your kingship is gloriously manifest! Hero Ninurta, the combs of your neck-hair are loosened! Hero Pabilsaj, the combs of your neck-hair are loosened! Hero Ninjirsu, the combs of your neck-hair are loosened; your kingship is gloriously manifest! Your kingship exists in the heavens, exists on the earth. You sit with Enki upon the holy throne-dais. The hero, devastator of the mountains, pillager of cities, batters at the rebel lands. The hero Ninurta, devastator of the mountains, pillager of cities, the hero…
Religion & MythA shir-namshub to Nisaba (Nisaba B)
...... is destroyed. ...... is destroyed. It is destroyed. ...... of Nisaba is destroyed. The house of Nisaba, her of the tablets, is destroyed. The house of ...... is destroyed. The house of Nunbarcegunu is destroyed. ......, the E-hamun is destroyed. The plants of lamentation have sprouted; the cumunda grass has sprouted. By the walls the long grass has sprouted. Amongst them, the willow trees are everywhere. As for the word of An and the word of Enlil, the angry heart of great An is everywhere, and the malign heart of Enlil is everywhere. (Nisaba speaks:) "In my house, may the moonlight in…
Religion & MythWriting & LiteratureA shir-shag-hula to Damgalnuna
The great prince Enki, ...... heaven and earth, ...... cherishes you. Bride of Enki who determines fates favourably, great wild cow, exceptional in appearance, pre-eminent forever! Your husband, the great lord Nudimmud who makes perfect the borders of the Land, the lord on whom An the king has bestowed perceptiveness; the wise adviser, the sage lord whose command is foremost, who is skilful in everything, the majestic leader who pleases (?) Enlil's heart; whose divine powers cannot be withstood, he of deep understanding, called by an auspicious name, reaching decisions ...... who is knowledgeable about giving birth, ......, unknown no. of lines missing
Religion & MythA shirgida to Nuska (Nuska A)
2 lines missing or fragmentary You who bundle together the divine powers, ...... the divine powers, articulate ...... house of the king ......, who give instruction throughout the breadth of heaven and earth, adviser of the Land, Nuska! The Great Mountain Enlil has summoned you to his divine powers. He has made long life issue gloriously in heaven and earth for you who were fathered by lord Nunamnir; you are his beloved lord. He has entrusted the princely divine powers of the E-kur, the august shrine, the holy divine powers, the august and most complex divine powers, the divine powers of the…
Religion & MythA shirnamshub to Inana (Dumuzid-Inana M)
1 line unclear Belonging to Inana ....... Belonging to the gatherer (?) of divine powers ....... Belonging to my good woman ....... My good young woman ....... Plenty ...... Dumuzid ....... Ucumgal-ana ....... Belonging to the lady ....... Ninegala ....... 1 line fragmentary approx. 6 lines missing 4 lines fragmentary A cirnamcub. A cirnamcub of (?) .......
Religion & MythA song of Inana and Dumuzi (Dumuzi-Inana W)
4 lines missing 2 lines fragmentary May my sheep eat my ...... which is growing in the fields, my plants, my camel-thorn. May my sheep eat my ......, my plants, my winnowed barley. May my sheep eat my life of the Land which is growing in the fields, my plants, my stubble. May my sheep eat my support of orphans and sustenance of widows, my plants, my cakir plants. May my sheep eat my string of clay balls (?) which is growing in the fields, my plants, my colocynth. May my sheep eat my beer wort mixed with honey, my plants, my marsh reeds. May my sheep eat my calves going together with their bulls, my plants, my reed shoots. May my sheep eat my blossoming garden of apple trees, my plants, my rising reeds.
Religion & MythDaily LifeA song of Inana and Dumuzid (Dumuzid-Inana B1)
It was in the days of abundance, it was in the nights of plenty; it was in the months of luxuriance, it was in the years of rejoicing. In those days the shepherd, the shepherd Dumuzid decided in his holy heart to make his heart joyful, to go to the cattle-pen, to brighten its mood, to make the holy sheepfold shine like the day. He of decision and resolve spoke to the queen of heaven, the queen of earth. Ama-ucumgal-ana addressed words to her: "Wife, I am going to bring flowing water to the arid (?) place. I am going to look after my spacious cattle-pen. I am going to find out the condition of the holy sheepfold. I am going to feed my sheep. I am going to seek out the ...... of fresh water for drinking."
Religion & MythA song of Inana and Dumuzid (Dumuzid-Inana C1)
2 lines fragmentary Ninegala, your wedding ushers are lords! ...... like someone cracking eggs ....... Inana, your ushers are lords! ...... is first, ...... is second, 1 line fragmentary the fowler ......, and the fisherman from the depths of the reed-beds. "I will send a messenger to the shepherd: let him treat me to the best butter and the best milk! I will send a messenger to my farmer: let him treat me to ...... and wine! I, the lady, will send a messenger to the fowler, whose bird-nets are spread out: let him treat me to fine birds! I, Inana, will send a messenger to the fisherman too whose nets are set up in the reed-beds: let him treat me to fat carp!"
Religion & MythDaily LifeA song of Inana and Dumuzid (Dumuzid-Inana D1)
The ...... of E-temen-ni-guru, the organisation of the house of Eridug, the radiance of the house of Suen, and the erected banners of the E-ana were all given as gifts to the house. My good house floats like a cloud; its name too is a favourable omen. He who excels at the ceremonies of queenship has lined with his straw the flowered couch, inlaid with lapis lazuli, which Gibil has purified for you in the Iri-gal shrine and, in the house which he has sanctified for you with his sweet reeds, he is performing the purification rites for you. On the day of the moon's disappearance, the day appointed (?), the day when the couch will be inspected, the day when the lord will make love, grant life to the lord and give the staff and the crook to the lord!
Religion & MythDaily LifeA song of Inana and Dumuzid (Dumuzid-Inana F1)
...... my side. ...... on a bed dripping with honey. ...... his hand in my hand. ...... his foot by my foot. ...... my lips on his mouth. 2 lines fragmentary ...... like a bracelet on my hand. ...... lapis lazuli on my neck. ...... like silver ...... of my bridegroom. The brother ...... in his garden. ...... stand ...... his standing tree. ...... lie down ...... his recumbent tree. He laid me down ....... ...... dates. The ...... spoke to me among the apple trees. My precious sweet ...... my head. The ...... spoke to me among the fig trees. My precious sweet ...... my ....... The ...... spoke to me among the willow (?) trees. My precious sweet ....... The ...... spoke to me ....... My precious sweet ...... my .......
Religion & MythA song of Inana and Dumuzid (Dumuzid-Inana J)
"...... beloved sister of Dumuzid, beloved ...... of Durtur, ...... seed implanted into the womb by a good bull, my lady, born to ladyship! With her aid the cattle-pen was filled with butter and cream, with her aid the sheepfold was long provided with milk. On the high plain, my ......, you are Jectin-ana. O girl, ...... indeed! Your little ones ...... indeed! Unug ...... indeed! Kulaba ...... indeed! ...... you are ......." Because of her brother, the girl lacerated her eyes and lacerated her mouth; she lacerated her buttocks, the place not spoken of to men. She made her way towards the tavern of the palace. The girl questioned a minister who was coming out of the palace.
Religion & MythA song of Inana and Dumuzid (Dumuzid-Inana L)
My valiant Nanna, who ......, my dear one, you love me; joy ....... ...... Bau loves you. 3 lines fragmentary unknown no. of lines missing
Religion & MythA song of Inana and Dumuzid (Dumuzid-Inana R)
Maiden, glossy mane, lovely beauty, Inana, glossy mane, lovely beauty! Maiden, mane of the ibex, ...... red deer, ...... red deer, Inana, mane of the ibex, ...... red deer, ...... red deer! Maiden, colourful as a pile of grain, fit for the king, Inana, colourful as a pile of grain, fit for Dumuzid! Maiden, you are a shock of two-row barley, fully developed in loveliness, Inana, you are a shock of two-row barley, fully developed in loveliness! I am the queen, I am the queen, I am ...... full of loveliness! I am the maiden, I am the queen, I am ...... full of loveliness! I am the queen, seed engendered by An, I am ...... full of loveliness! I am good oil, good oil, ...... sweet perfume! ...... may he moor the boat ....... ...... may he moor the boat .......
Religion & MythA song of Inana and Dumuzid (Dumuzid-Inana T)
...... he who cools, who cools ....... He who uproots the grass for holy Inana, who uproots ....... He who gathers the dates, ...... the date palm. He who gathers the dates for holy Inana, ...... the date palm. Let him bring her water, let him bring her water, and black emmer seeds. With the water let him bring Inana a heap, and white emmer seeds. The man brings, the man brings, he brings a heap of stones to choose from. The man brings to the maiden Inana, he brings a heap of stones to choose from. He gathers the lapis lazuli from the top of the heap. He gathers the lapis lazuli for Inana from the top of the heap.
Religion & MythA song of Inana and Dumuzid (Dumuzid-Inana V)
The young lady, the king's kohl, Inana, Dumuzid's kohl, full of joy, adorned with loveliness, goes to the shepherd in the sheepfold, goes to Dumuzid in the cattle-pen. There on the the road she ...... the shepherd, the maiden Inana meets him on the path. Dumuzid comes forth like the daylight. ...... extended his hand to ......; ...... extended his hand to ....... ...... extended hand. 1 line fragmentary ...... enfolded in numerous buds, ...... sprouted branches, ...... heart .......
Religion & MythA song of Inana and Dumuzid (Dumuzid-Inana Z)
My own mother gave birth to me for your sake, my Ningal gave birth to me for your sake. ......, my beloved heart will come. ......, my beloved heart will come there. May ...... come to me (?), and I will rejoice over him. May Dumuzid come to me (?), and I will rejoice over him. 1 line unclear Dumuzid ...... 1 line fragmentary unknown no. of lines missing 1 line fragmentary Let us embrace, my bridegroom! Come, let us rejoice in play! Let us embrace, my Ama-ucum! Come, let us rejoice in play! Friend of An, lord, my heart's desire, cheering the mood, gladdening the heart: may you be our sun god! I will go to the lord, I will talk with him, I will say to the lord of my heart:
Religion & MythA song of Inana and Dumuzid (Dumuzid-Inanna Y)
5 lines missing 1 line fragmentary ...... his father like a messenger. 1 line fragmentary (Utu speaks:) "Our brother-in-law, the daytime will pass; our brother-in-law, night will come. Then I shall make the moonlight enter its house, I shall make the stars become dimmed in their house. Our brother-in-law, when the daytime has passed, our brother-in-law, when the night comes, and after the moonlight has entered its house, after the stars have become dimmed in their house, I shall draw the bolt from the door for you ......." 5 lines missing "My elder sister! ......." "My sweet! ......." "My…
Religion & MythA song of Inana for Ishme-Dagan (Ishme-Dagan J)
Lady, going to the sweet-voiced cows and gentle-voiced calves in the cattle-pen, young woman, when you arrive there, Inana, may the churn sound! May the churn of your spouse sound, Inana, may the churn sound! May the churn of Dumu-zid sound, Inana, may the churn sound! The rocking of the churn will sing (?) for you, Inana, may it thus make you joyous! The good shepherd, the man of sweet songs, will loudly (?) sing songs for you; lady, with all the sweetest things, Inana, may he make your heart joyous! Lady, when you enter the cattle-pen, Inana, the cattle-pen will indeed rejoice over you. Mistress, when you enter the sheepfold, Inana, the sheepfold will indeed rejoice over you. When you enter the feeding-pen, healthy ewes will spread out their wool for you.
Religion & MythA song of Ningishzida (Ningishzida D)
Holding ...... high, lordly one of holy An, holding ...... high on the lofty throne-dais, ......, lord Ninjiczida, lord ......! ...... the Anuna gods, gods of the earth ....... Ninjiczida, the Anuna gods, gods of the earth ....... An has given power to you, princely son, ....... An has given power to you, Ninjiczida, ....... ...... the Anuna gods ...... unknown no. of lines missing
Religion & MythA song to Ninimma (Ninimma A)
You are the seal-holder of the treasury of the ....... You are the caretaker of the great gods, you are ....... Ninimma, you are the lady of all the great rites in the E-kur. Lady, you are the ...... of Enlil, you are the heavenly scribe. You ...... the tablet of life. 1 line fragmentary You, who bring the best corn, are the lady of the E-sara. The surveyor's gleaming line and the measuring rod suit you perfectly. You can hold your head high among the great princes. You are ....... You are ......, the cherished one. 1 line fragmentary ......; you are exceptional in wisdom. ...... joy .......…
Religion & MythA tigi of Enki for Ur-Ninurta (Ur-Ninurta B)
Lord of complex divine powers, who establishes umderstanding, whose intentions are unfathomable, who knows everything! Enki, of broad wisdom, august ruler of the Anuna, wise one who casts spells, who provides words, who attends to decisions, who clarifies verdicts, who dispenses advice from dawn to dusk! Enki, lord of all true words, I will praise you. Your father, An the king, the lord who caused human seed to come forth and who placed all mankind on the earth, has laid upon you the guarding of the divine powers of heaven and earth, and has elevated you to be their prince. An, king of the…
Religion & MythA tigi to Bau for Gudea (Gudea A)
My lady, gracious woman, child of holy An, adorned with attractiveness, Enlil's beloved one, who is imbued with great fearsomeness and issues from the interior of heaven, the cherished lady of the gods. Bau, gracious woman, child of holy An, adorned with attractiveness, Enlil's beloved one, who is imbued with great fearsomeness and issues from the midst of heaven, the cherished lady of the gods. My lady, you have brought the divine powers from the interior of heaven. Your own father, An, the king, has presented you with perfect divine powers, so you inspire respect among the Anuna gods. Bau, you have brought the divine powers from the midst of heaven. Your own father, An the king, has presented you with perfect divine powers, so you inspire respect among the Anuna gods.
Religion & MythA tigi to Enlil for Ur-Namma (Ur-Namma B)
Exalted Enlil, ...... fame ......, lord who ...... his great princedom, Nunamnir, king of heaven and earth ......, looked around among the people. The Great Mountain, Enlil, chose Ur-Namma the good shepherd from the multitude of people: "Let him be the shepherd of Nunamnir!" He made him emanate (?) fierce awesomeness. The divine plans of brick-built E-kur were drawn up. The Great Mountain, Enlil, made up his mind, filled with pure and useful thoughts, to make them shine like the sun in the E-kur, his august shrine. He instructed the shepherd Ur-Namma to make the E-kur rise high; the king made…
Religion & MythA tigi to Inana and Dumuzid (Dumuzid-Inana H)
While I, the lady, was passing the day yesterday, while I, Inana, was passing the day yesterday, while I was passing the day, while I was dancing, while I was singing songs all day until evening, he met me, he met me. The lord, the friend of An, met me; the lord took me in his hands, Ucumgal-ana embraced me about my neck. "......, let me go, so that I can go to our house! Friend of Enlil, let me go, so that I can go to our house! What lie can I offer to my mother? What lie can I offer to my mother Ningal?" "Let me teach you, let me teach you! Inana, let me teach you the lies of women: "My…
Religion & MythA tigi to Inana (Inana E)
Lady whom Ningal has joyously made attractive with beauty, destruction has been given to you as to a dragon. Inana whom Ningal has joyously made attractive with beauty, destruction has been given to you as to a dragon. Riding on the south wind, you are she who has received the divine powers from the abzu. You have seated King Ama-ucumgal-ana upon your holy dais. Inana, riding on the south wind, you are she who has received the divine powers from the abzu. You have seated King Ama-ucumgal-ana upon your holy dais. Goddess, you have provided ...... to the hero and made your divine powers excel…
Religion & MythA tigi to Nanaya for Ishbi-Erra (Ishbi-Erra C)
Lady of the princely powers, emerging brilliantly like the daylight, chosen forever for her virtuous beauty! Nanaya, ornament of E-ana, worthy of the Lady! Wise one, correctly chosen as lady of all the lands by the Mistress: Nanaya, you instruct the Land, bestowing wisdom in E-ana. Barsud. As fine as An, woman with a holy (?) head, made perfect by the ...... lady! Nanaya, properly educated by holy Inana, woman who is as bright as the stars, wise lady who is available for everything, righteous sympathetic woman, lady who is always available on request, counselled by holy Inana, beloved by the Mistress! Nanaya, great judge, deity who occupies the high throne of Unug!
Religion & MythA tigi to Nanna (Nanna I)
My king ...... in his reed marshes. He ...... in the silent (?) reed marshes. He extended his house over a huge reed marsh, over a ...... reed marsh. Its ...... is green (?); he has built ...... by the water. He called his city the shrine Urim. In his city, the lord of the long days, Suen, founded a dwelling-place. In Urim, the city chosen in his heart, bull-like the house gives praise. My king's splendid place is indeed an august place, a most precious place. Suen ...... his beloved city, the shrine Urim, the pure divine powers ...... his city. My king ...... the holy dais. Lord Acimbabbar .......
Religion & MythA tigi to Nergal (Nergal C)
Lord who inspires awe in heaven and on earth, who is resplendent in the Land, engendered for kingship by your father, your awesomeness weighs upon the black-headed. The Anuna, the great gods, cower together before your awesomeness and radiance. Nergal, lord who inspires awe in heaven and on earth, who is resplendent in the Land, engendered for kingship by your father, your awesomeness weighs upon the black-headed. The Anuna, the great gods, cower together before your awesomeness and radiance. Hero, after your father begot you, your father Enlil bestowed on you the mountain of the earth and…
Religion & MythA tigi to Nintud-Aruru (Nintud A)
Lady Aruru of the house Kec, born in the mountains, the pure place! Nintud, supreme mother of all lands, mother Nintud, lady Aruru of the house Kec, born in the mountains, the pure place! Nintud, supreme mother of all lands, has appeared with the hair-raising fearsomeness of a lion. She has given birth to the en priest, has given birth to the lagar priest. On the holy throne-dais, Nintud has given birth to the king. Nintud has appeared with the hair-raising fearsomeness of a lion. She has given birth to the en priest, has given birth to the lagar priest. On the holy throne-dais, Nintud has given birth to the king.
Religion & MythA tigi (?) to Ninurta for Shu-Suen (Shu-Suen D)
Ancient warrior, greatly respected and forceful, with the strength of a full-grown lion! Ninurta, ...... flood, great lion, fierce opponent in battle! Mighty one, who ...... the enemy peoples, destroyer of cities, who turns the settlements into dust! Ninurta, great wild bull, a battering ram who ...... great walls! Barsud. A flood which frightens the rebel lands, without rival! Ninurta, deathly hush, ...... bolt of lightning (?), ...... (the other ms. has instead: imbued with fearsomeness, ......, ...... the enemy). You have made the name of king Cu-Suen known among the widespread people.…
Religion & MythA tigi to Ninurta for Shulgi (Shulgi T)
Lord, perfect warrior, beloved by ....... Ninurta, mec tree with a broad shining canopy, ....... Weapon striding into battle, ...... foreign countries. A dragon with a terrifying face, venomous snake who ...... its venom against the rebel lands. ...... overpowering ......, foremost lion ....... Ninurta, who ...... with the great prince Enki. My king, in your city, shrine Nibru, ....... E-cumeca, where ...... for you. Lord, the kingship is perfect with you ....... Adviser, the dragon of the Land, ....... Ninurta, the great wall of Nibru, ....... My king, whose divine powers cannot be scattered, warrior ....... Forceful lion, ....... King with the broad wisdom of heaven and earth, ....... Exalted sceptre rising above the Land, ....... Ninurta, who ...... the enemy, .......
Religion & MythA tigi to Ninurta (Ninurta D)
"I will fell trees, I will strike down forests. Let my mother know it. I, Ninurta, will fell trees, I will strike down forests. Let my mother know it. I will clear them away like an ...... axe. Let my mother know it. I will strike down ...... walls like a huge axe. Let my mother now it. I will make their troops tremble like ....... Let my mother know it. I will devour them like storm and flood. Let my mother know it." The warrior, ...... in furious battle, smashes heads. The Lord curses the disobedient, rebellious lands: "I will ...... battering ram, I will ...... your venom. I will destroy…
Religion & MythA tigi to Suen for Ibbi-Suen (Ibbi-Suen A)
Lord whose divine powers cannot be dispersed, who emits an awe-inspiring radiance, great crown! Youthful Suen, light elevated by Enlil to shine forth in the firmament, wide-spreading majestic light, floating over the deep (?), born of Ninlil, god whose appearance is ......, ...... in the assembly of the lands! The moonlight ......, my Ibbi-Suen, ....... His princely divine powers embrace the heavens; his ...... is splendid, reaching the earth. Acimbabbar ......, my Ibbi-Suen, to be canal inspector in the Land among the widespread people. Nanna has made the righteous crown shine forth radiantly. Acimbabbar has ...... you the sceptre ....... My Ibbi-Suen, among the widespread people .......
Religion & MythAmar-Suena and Enki's Temple (Amar-Suena A)
...... protective deity ....... Amar-Suena ...... his heart. He who ...... the temple with an axe ....... Amar-Suena ...... the abzu shrine. ...... built with gold, and decorated with lapis lazuli. He applied himself to building the temple; king Amar-Suena applied himself to building the temple. The people turned against the king, and the foreign countries ....... In the first year the temple remained in ruins, and he did not restore it. Amar-Suena ...... the divine powers of kingship. In the second year it remained in ruins, and he did not restore it. Amar-Suena ...... his royal garments for…
Religion & MythAn adab for Shu-ilishu (Shu-ilishu C)
...... august divine powers ....... May ...... prolong ...... for Cu-ilicu. Its uru. An adab of ....... (ll. 3 and 4 written as one line in source)
Religion & MythAn adab of Inana for Rim-Sin (Rim-Sin H)
...... beloved of An ...... 1 line fragmentary Nintud is delighted at your creation, and has determined a great destiny for you. She has made your brow attractive, ....... Your limbs ......, your form spectacular. barsud. You have been decreed femininity, you are full of charm, Inana, glory of the pure heavens, fitted to be a queen, 4 lines fragmentary or unclear unknown no. of lines missing 2 lines fragmentary You have perfected the just, and made them speak with one voice; may you exercise your role as shepherd for years of abundance and sweet days of rejoicing. Rim-Sîn, you have perfected the just, and made them speak with one voice; may you exercise your role as shepherd for years of abundance and sweet days of rejoicing.
Religion & MythAn adab of Inana for Ur-Ninurta (Ur-Ninurta D)
Goddess who excels the Anuna gods, who has gathered together all the divine powers! Your gaze is lordly as it surveys all the foreign lands in heaven and earth. Inana, lioness shining in the heavens, your divine powers are most complex, your cultic ordinances are unalterable, and your divine plans are influential. barsud. Your ideas are as profound as the abzu; no one is known to have perceived them. Your actions are very great, and there is no god to rival you. You fetched your divine powers on a favourable day, and none of them escaped you. You have secured the kingship, and nothing escapes from your hand. You have equal rank with An the king, and you decide destinies with him. Your utterances are as well-established as those of Enlil. Grandiloquent Inana, you have no rival in heaven or on earth.
Religion & MythAn adab of Ninurta for Ur-Ninurta (Ur-Ninurta C)
Hero, terror-inspiring dragon of exceptional fearsome terror, powerful Ninurta! Rising hurricane, ......, mighty possessor of august strength, who lets no foreign land escape! Fitted for heroism from the womb, unrivalled! barsud. You who treat as hostile the cities as well as the unsettled areas, the rebel lands -- Ninurta, as you pass by, like a terrifying fierce lion (?) you make heaven and earth tremble from east to west. When in judgment, like a hero possessing great strength, you batter a rebel land, by day you thrust, by night you rear up, and you leave the rebel land lying prone. If you merely lift your gaze, you make the great hills tremble (?) together.
Religion & MythAn adab to An for Lipit-Eshtar (Lipit-Eshtar C)
The august lord, pre-eminent, with the most complex divine powers, almighty grandfather of all the lords -- barsud. -- head high, surpassing everyone, breed-bull, who makes the seeds sprout, whose name is respected, spreading great terror, whose august commands cannot be countermanded, who is imbued with awesomeness on the mountain of pure divine powers, who has taken his seat on the great throne-dais, An, the king of the gods -- cagbatuku. -- has looked at him with long-lasting favour, has looked at prince Lipit-Ectar with favour. He has bestowed on him a long life, he has bestowed on prince Lipit-Ectar a long life. The words of what An says are firmly established; no god would oppose them. At the place of where the destinies are to be decided, all the Anuna gods gather around him.
Religion & MythAn adab to An for Shu-Suen (Shu-Suen E)
unknown no. of lines missing Warrior from birth ....... Cagbatuku. Wise Cu-Suen ....... 1 line fragmentary ...... dais ....... ...... the beauty and ornament ....... 2nd (?) barsud. An ....... Cu-Suen ....... 2 lines fragmentary unknown no. of lines missing 1 line fragmentary Cu-Suen ...... rising ....... Sa-gida. 1 line fragmentary Jicgijal of the sa-gida. As An determined the fates ....... Holy An determined the fates, ...... the shrine Urim ....... Like the sunlight An ...... for Cu-Suen. Its uru. An adab of An.
Religion & MythAn adab to An for Ur-Ninurta (Ur-Ninurta E)
An the powerful, great among the gods, An the respected, brilliantly manifest god! In fixing a great fate for the king, An has laid his hand truly upon Ur-Ninurta. barsud. As he passes, alone, as far as the border of the foreign lands, he is indeed the guardian of the Anuna. He seizes all the great divine powers, and places his feet upon the numerous divine powers. The very wise god, the prince who decides destiny, has truly spoken to him; An has truly spoken to Ur-Ninurta. He has made him the mightiest in the Land; An has made Ur-Ninurta the mightiest in the Land. He has bestowed upon…
Religion & MythAn adab to Bau for Ishme-Dagan (Ishme-Dagan B)
Lady, imbued with fearsomeness, whose greatness is recognised in heaven and on earth, perfect in nobility! Mother Bau, foremost among ladies, warrior ......! Powerful goddess, who perfectly controls the august divine powers, proud one, ...... great intelligence! ......, true woman, wise lady who has been made knowledgeable from birth! Daughter of An, expert, eloquent, who holds everything in her hand! Lady, great doctor of the black-headed people, who keeps people alive, and brings them to birth. Cuhalbi, incantation priestess of the numerous people, ......! Merciful, compassionate one of the Land, lady of justice!
Religion & MythAn adab to Bau for Luma
Child of An, he has chosen you in his holy heart in the great sky and on the great earth and made you worthy of the ladyship of the Land. Bau, child of An, he has chosen you in his holy heart in the great sky and on the great earth and made you worthy of the ladyship of the Land. Enlil has looked at you with favour, young woman, mother Bau, from the shining E-kur, and made you eminently fit for lord Ninjirsu. The Great Mountain Enlil has looked at you with favour, young woman, mother Bau, from the shining E-kur and made you eminently fit for lord Ninjirsu. In the E-tarsirsir, founded for you…
Religion & MythAn adab to Dagan (?) for Ishme-Dagan (Ishme-Dagan U)
In the E-kur, the house ....... The great gods ...... to your upraised hands. ...... holy lap for your exceedingly pleasant life. ...... for its good reign ....... Icme-Dagan, the son of Enlil ....... ...... joy (?) in the Egal-mah, your ladylike house. ...... the prince ...... mec tree with shining branches ....... ...... to make his life pleasant ...... Icme-Dagan ....... ...... holy ...... the child of An ....... 2 lines fragmentary ...... brick-built E-kur ....... Sa-jara. Dagan, you have ...... the shepherd Icme-Dagan, the son of Enlil, with a royal garment. Jicgijal of the sa-jara. The lofty lord, ...... the divine powers of heaven and the divine powers of the earth; Dagan, the august lord, ...... the divine powers of heaven and the divine powers of the earth. He has chosen Icme-Dagan in the Land, he .......
Religion & MythAn adab to Enki for Ishme-Dagan (Ishme-Dagan D)
Great lord, prominent (?) among the gods, your judgments are clever and powerful! Father Enki, respected one, supreme dragon, who determines the fates firmly, who has taken his seat upon the numerous divine powers in colourful brilliance (?), great prince, the guardian of the gods, ...... of holy An! 2 lines fragmentary The fates you determine are firm; you are the junior Enlil. You (?) distribute the divine powers for the Anuna, the great gods. You establish for them a habitation, a holy dwelling place; you are their proud lord. Your greatness is unapproachable ....... You (?) ...... in a pure place the abzu, the mountain built with princely divine powers; ...... Eridug, the shrine, which extends over huge marshes, marshes of snakes.
Religion & MythAn adab to Enlil for Bur-Suen (Bur-Suen B)
...... who alone surpasses heaven and earth, the exalted one, prominent among the Anuna gods, whose utterances cannot be overturned! Nunamnir, whose decisions cannot be altered, proud one imbued with terrifying awesomeness, who alone is exalted (1 ms. has instead: who alone is eminent, the foremost one) among the Great Princes, has taken his seat in the shrine of Nibru, in Dur-an-ki, in E-kur, the temple where the fates are determined, in the holy shining temple. When mother Ninlil, who is equal in rank with the Great Mountain, embraces him ......, ...... says to ......: "...... chosen in the heart by ......." unknown no. of lines missing
Religion & MythAn adab to Enlil for Ishme-Dagan (Ishme-Dagan H)
...... the prince of gods ...... seated upon all the divine powers, Nunamnir, the lord of just decrees, who possesses fully the great divine powers, father Enlil, made your fearsomeness manifest in heaven and on the earth. He made the gods of heaven stand by in heaven (?), and gave them (?) auspicious names. ...... its king ....... 1 line fragmentary The Anuna, its great gods, line up before you. Enlil, they pay attention to your holy words and august statements. Nunamnir, you alone are elevated in the entirety of heaven and earth. ...... of the Anuna gods, august shackle on all the lands,…
Religion & MythAn adab to Enlil for Shulgi (Shulgi G)
Enlil, the eminent one, the sovereign lord, whose utterance is trustworthy; Nunamnir, the eternal shepherd of the Land, who hails from the great mountain; the great counsellor, the first and foremost in heaven and on earth, who is in control of all the divine powers; lord, who is imbued with great fearsomeness in accordance with his nobility, a perfected heavenly star, who takes good care of the primeval and choice divine powers, who alone is the lofty god; lord, life-giving light, who leads the people all over the world along one track; huge net spread over heaven and earth, rope stretched over all the lands! Who ever instructed Enlil, who ever rivalled him?
Religion & MythAn adab to Nanna for Gungunum (Gungunum A)
1 line missing ...... of the gods, ...... light! Attractive great ......, ...... radiance! Barsud. ...... in princeship. Ruler, leader of the Anuna deities, prince of the just decision, lord Acimbabbar, An and Enlil have made you perfect for the sky. Beloved of the king, making the good crown sparkle, coming forth on high, you come forth like bright sunlight, whether at noon or in the night. Youthful Suen, lord, ...... son of the Great Mountain and born of Ninlil, given a good destiny by his grandparents Enki and Ninki -- they have given ...... to him, the just lord of the sky. Cagbatuku. ......, you care for them! ......, beloved ......, on the great dais ....... 2 lines fragmentary
Religion & MythAn adab to Nanna for Ishme-Dagan (Ishme-Dagan M)
1 line fragmentary ...... what he orders is faithfully executed, ...... endowed with beauty in the E-kur, ...... among the great gods, the great and august lord ...... in the heavens, ...... whose seat (?) no other god ......! August ......, lord whose abode is the mountains, father Nanna ......, ...... fixes the months and the new moon according to a cord (?), establishes the year ......, ...... life for the multitudes ......, ...... who puts all the lands in order, ...... who makes the Tigris and the Euphrates bring flowing water ......, ...... fine grain ......, ...... lush vegetation in the spacious land ......, 1 line fragmentary ...... lord Icme-Dagan ...... 1 line unclear august ...... bestowed upon father Nanna by An and Enlil ......
Religion & MythAn adab to Nanna (Nanna H)
Righteous lord who determines destiny! Born to Ninlil, Suen, beloved son of Ninlil, Suen, having no rival in the E-kur, the house of Enlil: your divine powers are majestic divine powers granted by An! Your father, holy An, has bestowed upon you divine powers to which other gods cannot aspire. Enlil has decreed them to you in destiny. The lord of the holy lustration rites, An, has established them. ......, sacred lion of the gods, justly honoured, you are the light of heaven. 1 line fragmentary unknown no. of lines missing O house of ...... in ......, city founded by An! O house of ...... in ......, city founded by An! O house of Lugalbanda in ......, city founded by An! O house of ...... in ......, city founded by An! O house of Inana in Zabalam, city founded by An!
Religion & MythAn adab to Nergal for Shu-ilishu (Shu-ilishu A)
Lord, furiously raging storm, confusing the enemies and unleashing (?) great terror over the Land, Nergal, mighty quay of heaven and earth, who ...... all living things, lord who guards (?) the teeming people when he looks up furiously, turning (?) his weapons against the wicked: Nergal, powerful in heaven and earth, who ...... the people in heaps! Barsud. Lord, mighty storm, raging with your great powers, south storm which covers the Land, Nergal, who smites the enemy whom he has cursed ......, exalted lord, strong one with a powerful wrist, whom no one can withstand, Nergal, rising broadly, full of furious might, great one praised for his accomplishments, pre-eminent among the great youthful gods, whose valour is ...... of valour, Nergal, whose greatness covers heaven and earth to their uttermost limits!
Religion & MythAn adab to Ningublaga for Iddin-Dagan (Iddin-Dagan C)
The lord, a furious angry storm against the enemy, ......, strong ......., my lord who brings life to the people, whose own father ......, a great storm, a mighty ......, has ...... a battle-cry -- the lord whose manliness is impressively strong, ......! Barsud. Hero, with a battle-cry you have angrily piled up skulls in the rebel lands. You have terrified their brick buildings and scattered their chaff heavenward. Rampant wild bull, with a battle-cry you have angrily piled up skulls in the rebel lands. You have terrified their brick buildings and scattered their chaff heavenward. Divine…
Religion & MythAn adab to Nininsina (Nininsina E)
I will praise the greatness of the ...... who was engendered vigorous by great An -- holy Nininsina, who brought youthful power from the womb, who was brought up sitting on the holy knees of Urac; who was copiously given divine powers of ladyship, and who is girded with fearsomeness and awesome radiance: Nininsina. I will praise the greatness of ...... my Nininsina, who was engendered vigorous -- holy Nininsina, who brought ladyship from the womb, who was brought up sitting on the holy knees of Urac; who was copiously given divine powers of ladyship, and who is girded with fearsomeness and awesome radiance: Nininsina.
Religion & MythAn adab to Ninlil (Ninlil A)
Ninlil, comprehensively replete with numerous divine powers! Equal to the Great Mountain; deciding destinies with lord Nunamnir; suited to the Great Lion; pre-eminent over heaven and earth! Joyous princess (?), lady with the princely divine powers; conveying terror; wise with advice! Mother Ninlil, whose speech is a storm (?), you are a pleasure to Enlil's heart -- he has embraced you! Overseeing everything, lord Nunamnir loves (?) you. You occupy a holy dais, mother Ninlil; you provide the ...... of prosperity. All the great lords and sovereigns have paid homage to you. Riding in princely style under a broad shelter in coolness, mother Ninlil, you are the goddess who provides the divine powers of joy and prosperity.
Religion & MythAn adab to Ninurta for Bur-Suen (Bur-Suen A)
......, lord, whom the Great Mountain engendered, whose magnificence has no equal. Ninurta, magnificent in heaven and earth, surpassing among the Anuna gods. ......, foremost among the gods, support of An. ...... imbued with ......, who roars like a storm, who growls in battle. ......, who butts like a huge wild bull, who destroys the fortresses of the rebel lands. ...... of Enlil: no foreign land can escape from his grasp. ...... by Nunamnir, whose words are firmly established. ......, fit for princeship, the counsellor of Ekur. ...... cannot be scattered, the neckstock of the gods. approx.…
Religion & MythAn adab (?) to Ninurta for Ishme-Dagan (Ishme-Dagan O)
Great hero, strongest in heaven and earth! Ninurta, who controls perfectly the fifty divine powers in the E-kur! ...... governor for his father, rising raging storm, who extends terror ...... towards the foreign countries. ...... roaring ......, who casts fear upon the people, who has no rival! Ninurta, surpassing in vigour! ...... great and majestic strength ......, ...... of Enlil, ...... of Enlil, ornament of the august shrine! ...... whose radiance ......! 1 line fragmentary ...... the neck-stock of the gods. 1 line fragmentary ...... among the Anuna gods. ...... exceptionally mighty…
Religion & MythAn adab (?) to Ninurta (?) for Ishme-Dagan (Ishme-Dagan P)
3 lines fragmentary Great warrior, ....... Brave ....... His radiance ....... 1 line fragmentary ...... the cities and settlements. Roaring lion ...... to ....... Ninurta. Uta-ulu ....... Sa-gida. Lord ....... Jicgijal of the sa-gida. 2 lines fragmentary ...... in the Ubcu-unkena. ...... the status of Enlil ....... ...... the power of the Great Mountain, Enlil ....... ...... my man ....... Prince Icme-Dagan ....... ...... Ninurta ....... ...... fifty-headed battle-mace ....... ...... Icme-Dagan ....... 1 line fragmentary ...... great copper throne ....... 1 line fragmentary unknown no. of lines missing
Religion & MythAn adab to Ninurta for Lipit-Eshtar (Lipit-Eshtar D)
Hero, mightiest of the Anuna gods, who comes forth from the E-kur! Ninurta, lord Nunamnir created you like a great storm ......, he commanded you to achieve triumphs for him. Barsud. For you Nintud has opened wide her creative hands; she has breast-fed you from her sweet breasts; she has fed you with the milk of vigour. As if you were a spectacular wild bull, she has made your figure strong (?), she has made your limbs massive. She has fitted you out with ...... appearance, awesome radiance and heroism. Your mother, Nintud, held you by the right wrist as she led you before your father in E-kur, the august shrine. Then she said: "Decide a great fate for the son who is your avenger!"
Religion & MythAn adab to Nuska for Ishme-Dagan (Ishme-Dagan Q)
unknown no. of lines missing 1 line fragmentary The Anuna, the great gods, ...... the holy palace, the dwelling-place. Lord Nunamnir has appointed you as his chief minister; he has firmly put the holy sceptre in your hand, and made your name glorious. You are perfectly suited to perform the ordinances of the E-kur in all their complexity, to teach the proper execution of the lustrations and the august rites, to purify and clean, and to make grandly manifest the numerous divine powers, the surpassing divine powers; indeed, to give command with grandeur is now consummately and irrevocably yours. Moreover, you are indeed Nuska, the prince and the counsellor of the E-kur! In the entire extent of heaven and earth, in all the countries, you alone are mighty.
Religion & MythAn adab to Suen for Ibbi-Suen (Ibbi-Suen C)
...... of heaven and earth, renewing his light, ...... just prince who comes forth, Suen, whom the Great Mountain engendered to be a princely lord, 1 line fragmentary He is forceful, he is the king of heaven and earth! The lord Acimbabbar, renewing his light! Suen, renewing his light! ......, renewing his light! The god of light, renewing his light! He is forceful, he is the king of heaven and earth! He ...... in the pure sky, he shines forth towards the earth. On the basis of the decisions of great An, he gives important advice. He brings forth all the divine powers, to keep ...... in good order. Youth elevated to be prince, my Ibbi-Suen! He calls him to a long and prosperous reign.
Religion & MythAn adab (?) to Suen for Shu-Suen (Shu-Suen F)
...... from the distant radiance, ...... in heaven, 1 line fragmentary Suen, ......, ...... Cu-Suen. Nanna has elevated ....... Barsud. The beauty of heaven, the prince of earth, youthful Suen, the immense, the light of heaven and earth, who makes years of prosperity and good ...... last permanently, Nanna, the lord who is born each month, sired my Cu-Suen. Cagbatuku. Mighty one, great power among the great gods, father Nanna, your judgments are ingenious decisions -- deciding great destinies with Nunamnir, his beloved youth Acimbabbar decides destiny for my Cu-Suen. 2nd barsud. The light which sweetens the night and structures the year, Nanna, the crown of the holy heavens, ...... my Cu-Suen, 2 lines fragmentary
Religion & MythAn adab to Utu for Shulgi (Shulgi Q)
Youthful Utu ......, ...... from Urac; brilliant light, great lion, ......, hero emerging from the holy interior of heaven, storm whose splendour covers the Land and is laden with great awesomeness; Utu, king of justice that befits the true offspring, made Culgi, the trustworthy shepherd, glorious in the battle. The great wild bull, youthful Utu, who like a torch illuminates the Land from the holy heavens; the wise one of all the countries, the fearsome radiance of (?) Urac, the just god among the Anuna gods, the long (?), holy dragon, the first-born son cherished by Suen, the lord born to command -- Utu bestowed the kingship of the Land on Culgi.
Religion & MythAn elegy on the death of Nannaya (Elegy 1)
A father sent a message to his son, to a far-off place; at that time the son, having gone to a distant place, was far away. The city-dwelling father was stricken with illness. He, precious brilliance found in a distant mountain (?), was stricken with illness. He, attractive in ......, a man who made words pleasing, was stricken with illness. He who had a tall figure, and altogether was powerful, was stricken with illness. He, wise in divine plans and an ornament of the assembly, was stricken with illness. He who was a man of truth, god-fearing, was stricken with illness. He, not eating, was…
Daily LifeReligion & MythAn elegy on the death of Nawirtum (Elegy 2)
An evil day ...... upon the maiden in her ....... Upon the fair woman, the well-favoured maiden, the evil eye ....... Upon the fledgling overstepping its nest, a net has ....... The fecund mother, the mother of children, is ...... by a snare. The yellow cow, the fertile (?) wild cow, ...... like a gakkul vessel. Nawirtum, the fertile (?) wild cow, ...... like a gakkul vessel. She who never said "I am sick" was not cared for. She who did not ...... did not ...... the divine place. Like their resting-place, their hurled ...... was not ....... Nibru is covered in fog (?); in the city .......…
Daily LifeReligion & MythAn ululumama to Nanna (Nanna J)
Lord, glory of heaven, suited to ......, Nanna, whose appearance in the high heavens is adorned with radiance! King, glittering light, crown of Urim, Nanna, glittering light, crown of Urim! Great lion of holy An, first-born of Enlil, seed of a bison, beloved of the gods, great strength inspiring awe in the Land, with the just crown and the shining sceptre, sparkling over the high mountains, ...... of Enlil filled with princely divine powers, ...... in the centre of Nibru, highly skilled at examining ......, 7 lines fragmentary Butting ...... aggressively, ......, never tiring, ...... in…
Religion & MythAn ululumama to Suen for Ibbi-Suen (Ibbi-Suen D)
Great lord, light holding his head high in the vault of the sky, ...... brilliance, Suen, powerful dragon from the high mountains shedding light on the people, light of the remote heavens, crown ......, joy of the father who begot him! Impressive son born of Ninlil, respected in the E-kur, visible even at noontime, youthful Suen, ...... light of heaven, whose majestic radiance is visible even at noontime, light who illuminates the black-headed people, father Nanna, emerging from the remote (?) ......, understanding well how to make the night pleasant! Respected prince who, when he appears, is the glorious radiance of the heavens!
Religion & MythArik-din-ili 1
(1) Arik-dīn-ili, strong king, king of Assyria, the one who built the temple of the god Šamaš — the exalted shrine — for posterity, son of Enlil-nārārī, king of Assyria, son of Aššur-uballiṭ (I), (who was) also king of Assyria. (14) When I planned to build that temple so that the harvest of my land might prosper, at the sanctuary of the god Šamaš, the high place where the decisions of the land had been previously made, but now it was becoming a mound of dirt and around it the “shrines” of the people, which they had taken and settled in, I destroyed (that sanctuary). I laid its foundation(s)…
LawReligion & MythArik-din-ili 2
(1) Arik-dīn-ili, legitimate ruler, strong king, king of Assyria, builder of the temple of the god Šamaš — the exalted shrine. (5) (As for) whoever erases my inscribed name or removes my inscription, may the god Šamaš, my lord, overthrow his kingship and afflict his land with famine.
Writing & LiteratureReligion & MythArik-din-ili 3
(1) [Arik-dīn-ili, vice-regent of the god Aššur], son of [En]lil-[nārārī, vice-regent of] the god Aššur, [son of] Aššur-[uballiṭ (I)], (who was) also vice-regent of the god Aššur. (7) [For his life and the well]-being of his city: [...] ... [... from] its [foundations to] its [crenellations]. (12b) When [... becomes dilapidated and] old
LawReligion & MythArik-din-ili 4
(1) [Ar]ik-dīn-[ili, vice-regent of the god Aššur], son of Enlil-nārārī, vice-regent [of the god Aššur], son of Aššur-uballiṭ (I), [(who was) also vice-regent of the god Aššur]. (4) [...] ... [... b]uilt fr]om [its] foundation[s to its crenellations]. (6b) [...] my [...]
LawReligion & MythArik-din-ili 5
(1) [Ar]ik-dīn-i[li, vice-regent of the god Aššur, son of E]nlil-nārārī, [vice-regent of the god Aššur, son of Ašš]ur-uball[iṭ (I), (who was) also vice-regent of the god Aššur]. (4) [...], it had become dila[pidated and ...]
LawReligion & MythArik-din-ili 6
(1) [Ar]ik-dīn-[ili, vice-regent of the god A]ššur, [son of Enlil-nārārī, vice-regent of] the god Aššur, [son of Aššur-uballiṭ (I), (who was) also vice-regent of the god Aššur].
LawReligion & MythArik-din-ili 7
(1) Palace of Arik-dīn-ili, king of Assyria, son of Enlil-nārārī, king of Assyria, son of Aššur-uballiṭ (I), king of Assyria.
LawReligion & MythArik-din-ili 8
(1') [...] ... he brought [...], 100 of their sheep, 100 of their oxen [...] to (his) city, Aššur. (4'b) At that time, [...] ... 7,000 storage-containers, in their mouths/by their command, in front of [...] ... a large battering-ram, he made. Arik-dīn-ili [...] … he gave his gift to the goddess Ištar [... for] his life [...]. (9') [...] powerful, Arik-dīn-ili carried off the harvest of Esini [...]. He killed Esini, 33 chariots of ... [...] with the .... Arik-dīn-ili led in [...] ... of his chariots. The chariots [... the city Ar]nuna of the land Nigimḫi, the fortress of the land ... [...] he…
LawReligion & MythAššur-rabi I 1
(1) Aššur-rabi (I), vice-regent of the god Aš[šur, son of] Enlil-nāṣir (I), [(who was) also] vice-regent of the god [Aššur]. (3) [For] his life and the well-being of [his] city: [(As for) the temple of the god Enl]il, which former rulers [...] had built [and] deposited [their clay cones in] (its) foundation(s), [it had become dilapidated and I built (it) from its foundation(s) [to its crest. I deposited my clay cone (therein)].
LawReligion & MythAššur-reša-iši II 1
(1) Monument of [Aššur-r]ēša-iši (II), king of Assyria, [son of Aš]šur-[r]abi (II), king of Assyria.
LawReligion & MythAššur-reša-iši II 2001
(1) I, Bēl-ēriš, vice-regent of [...], lover of the god Sa[mnuḫa ...], at the time of Aššur-rabi (II), [king of Assyria, son of Ashurnasirpal (I) (I)], [N]+3 years [... (5) Aš]šur for delineation [...], at that time, the god Sa[mnuḫa ...] the bank(s) of the Ḫābūr River, from [... to ...] he took possession. [...] the bank(s) of the Ḫābūr River, the vice-[regent ...]. (10) At that time, the god Samnu[ḫa ...] with his exalted strength, 3,000 [...]. The abandoned canal, which [goes] from the land [... to ...] (and) in which [water] no longer flowed, [...] I constructed a facing for (the quay…
LawReligion & Myth
Adad-narari I 01
Lists the cities and peoples — Kassites, Gutians, Lullumê, Šubareans — subjugated by Adad-nārārī I, documenting Assyria's territorial expansion toward the Euphrates and into Mitanni's former heartland around 1300 BCE.
LawReligion & MythAdad-narari I 02
(36) (As for) the one who erases my inscribed name and writes his (own) name, or discards my commemorative inscriptions, hands (them) over for destruction, consigns (them) to oblivion, covers (them) with earth, burns (them) with fire, throws (them) into the water, puts (them) in a Taboo House where there is no visibility, or because of these curses he incites a stranger, a foreigner, a malignant enemy, (a man who speaks) another language, or anyone else (to do any of these things), or conceives of and does anything (injurious), (48) may the god Aššur, the exalted god, the one who dwells in…
Religion & MythWriting & LiteratureAdad-narari I 03
(1) Adad-nārārī (I), king of the world, strong king, king of Assyria, son of Arik-dīn-ili, king of Assyria, son of Enlil-nārārī, (who was) also king of Assyria. (4) When Šattuara, king of the land Ḫanigalbat, rebelled against me and committed hostilities, I seized him by the command of (the god) Aššur, my lord, the one who comes to my aid, and the great gods who decide in my favor, and I brought him to my city, Aššur. I made him take an oath and allowed him to return to his land. Annually, as long as (he) lived, I regularly received his audience gift within my city, Aššur. (15) After his…
LawReligion & MythAdad-narari I 04
(37) At that time, the ... of the city Taidu had become dilapidated and I removed its dilapidated section(s). I restored it. I built (it) from its foundations to its crenellations. Moreover, I deposited my commemorative inscriptions (therein). (42b) In the future, may a future ruler, when that building becomes old and dilapidated, renovate its dilapidated section(s) (and) return my inscribed name to its place. [(The god) Aššur] will (then) listen to his prayers. (46) (As for) the one [who alters] my inscription and [my] name, may Aššur, my lord, [overthrow] his kingship. May the [goddess]…
LawReligion & MythAdad-narari I 05
(12) At that time, (as for) the wells [in] uncultivated [fields], which [...] before three wells [...] I added [...]. Beside [..., I built (it) from its [foundations to its crenellations. Moreover, I deposited my] commemorative inscriptions (therein).
LawReligion & Myth
Adad-narari I 06
A building inscription of Adad-nārārī I dedicating a standard to Ištar and invoking Aššur's favour for any future ruler who restores the monument — an early attestation of the Assyrian royal restoration formula that would persist for centuries.
LawReligion & MythAdad-narari I 07
(35) At that time, the Step Gate of the temple of the god Aššur, my lord, which is opposite the Gate of the Oath of the God of the Land and the Gate of the Judges, (and) which was built (some time) ago, had become dilapidated, sagged, and shook. I cleared that site (and) reached its foundation pit. I built (it) with limestone and mortar from the city Ubasê. I restored it. Moreover, I deposited my monumental inscription (therein). (45) In the future, may a future ruler, when that site becomes old and dilapidated, renovate its dilapidated section(s) (and) return my monumental inscription (and) my inscribed name to their (text “its”) places. The god Aššur will (then) listen to his prayers. (80) Muḫur-ilāni, twentieth day, eponymy of Šulmānu-qarrād.
Writing & LiteratureReligion & MythAdad-narari I 08
(24) (As for) the facing (of the quay wall), which faces the (Tigris) River from the entrance of the upper city, at the Ea-šarru Gate, to the entrance of the lower city, at the Tigris Gate, which through the (action of the river’s) water had become dilapidated and whose limestone and baked brick flood(s) had eroded away, I repaired that facing using bitumen and baked brick. I made (it) the thickness of four and one half bricks. I faced the back of it using limestone and mortar from the city Ubasê. Moreover, I deposited my monumental inscription (therein). (32) In the future, may a future…
LawReligion & MythAdad-narari I 09
(1) Adad-nārārī (I), king of the world, strong king, king of Assyria, son of Arik-dīn-ili, king of Assyria, son of Enlil-nārārī, (who was) also king of Assyria. (5) (As for) the facing (of the quay wall), which faces the (Tigris) River, which through the (action of the river’s) water had become dilapidated and flood(s) had eroded away its limestone and baked brick, I repaired that facing using bitumen and baked brick.I made (it) the thickness of four and one half bricks. I faced the back of it using limestone and bitumen mortar. [I deposited my commemorative inscriptions (therein]. (15b) May…
LawReligion & MythAdad-narari I 10
(35) At that time, (as for) the wall of the New City, which faces the (Tigris) River, which is opposite the tisaru-district, which Puzur-Aššur (III), my ancestor, a king who came before me, had previously built, it was two and one half bricks thick and thirty layers of brick high, had become dilapidated, was in ruin, and eroded by flood(s). I cleared its site (and) reached its foundation pit. I made (it) the thickness of ten bricks using my large brick mold. I laid its foundations on solid bedrock. I built (it) from its foundations to its crenellations. (44b) (As for) the sewers that drain…
LawReligion & Myth
Adad-narari I 1001
Attests Adad-nārārī I's campaign into the Lullumê highlands, placing Assyrian military reach into the Zagros within the generation that transformed Assyria from a vassal into an imperial power.
LawReligion & MythAdad-narari I 11
(1') [At that time], (as for) the facing (of the quay wall), [which (stretches) from] the palace complex [to] the processional avenues, [which] Aššur-uballiṭ (I), my ancestor, had previously built, a ... wadi had broken through and beyond it in the middle, at the top of the orchards of the Inner City. In order to quiet down the rage of the mighty waters, I faced (the area of) the ... wadi using baked brick and bitumen. I installed three drains to carry off the water. I altered (the course of) the water and kept (it) away with baked brick and bitumen ... On the opposite bank ... I widened ...…
LawReligion & MythAdad-narari I 12
(r 1') Moreover, [I deposited] my commemorative inscriptions (therein). (r 2') [May] a future ruler, when he renovates that facing (when) it becomes dilapidated or (when he repairs it when) it is eroded by flood(s), renovate its dilapidated section(s) (and) [return my] inscribed [name] and my commemorative inscriptions [to their places]. (l.e. 1') (No translation possible.)
LawReligion & MythAdad-narari I 13
(29) At that time, (as for) the great wall of the New City, which (was built on) a mound facing the [open country], which (stretches) from the great wall of the Inner City by the entirety of [the New City], as far as the (Tigris) River, (and) which Puzur-Aššur (III), my ancestor, a king who came before me, had previously built, Aššur-bēl-nišēšu, (who was) also my ancestor, applied a façade to that wall, (but) it again became dilapidated, and Erība-Adad (I), the vice-regent of the god Aššur, (who was) also my ancestor, a king who came before me, applied a facing and façade in different places,…
LawReligion & MythAdad-narari I 14
(1) Adad-nārārī (I), appointee of the god Enlil, vice-regent of (the god) Aššur, son of Arik-dīn-ili, appointee of the god Enlil, vice-regent of (the god) Aššur, son of Enlil-nārārī, (who was) also appointee of the god Enlil (and) vice-regent of (the god) Aššur. (4) At that time, (as for) the wall of the Inner City, which my ancestors, the kings who came before me, had previously built (and) which is opposite the large new ziggurat of the god Aššur, my lord, which Arik-dīn-ili, my father, had built, that wall had become dilapidated and I removed its dilapidated section(s) (and) reached its…
LawReligion & MythAdad-narari I 15
(1) Adad-nārārī (I), appointee of the god Enlil, vice-regent of (the god) Aššur, son of Arik-dīn-ili, appointee of the god Enlil, vice-regent of (the god) Aššur, son of Enlil-nārārī, (who was) also appointee of the god Enlil (and) vice-regent of (the god) Aššur. (5b) At that time, (as for) the temple of the Assyrian Ištar, my lady, which Ilu-šūma, the vice-regent of (the god) Aššur, my ancestor, the son of Šalim-aḫum — (who was) also vice-regent of (the god) Aššur — had previously built and completed, that temple became dilapidated and Sargon (I), the vice-regent of (the god) Aššur, the son…
LawReligion & MythAdad-narari I 16
(33) At that time, (as for) the palace of my city, Aššur, which Aššur-nādin-ahhē (II), the choicest among my ancestors, a king who came before me, had previously built, the wall at the top of the door of the chapel that is opposite the terrace (and) that is inside that palace, inside of which the dais of the god Aššur, my lord, was built and annually the god Aššur, my lord, proceeds to that dais to take up residence, that wall had become dilapidated and I clear away its dilapidated section(s). I (then) renovated (and) restored it. Moreover, I deposited my commemorative inscription (therein).…
LawReligion & MythAdad-narari I 17
(1) Adad-nārārī (I), appointee of the god Enlil, vice-regent of the god Aššur, son of Arik-dīn-ili, appointee of the god Enlil, vice-regent of the god Aššur, son of Enlil-nārārī, (who was) also appointee of the god Enlil (and) vice-regent of the god Aššur. (4) At that time, the storehouses of the Gate of the Gods Anu and Adad, my lords, and their [doors], which had been built previously, had become dilapidated. I built th(os)e storehouses from their foundations to their crenellations. I made new magnificent double doors of fir, fastened (them) with bronze bands, (and) installed (them) for…
LawReligion & MythAdad-narari I 18
(1') I built that wall anew. I removed the weak (and) old beams, supports, and lashings (and) installed new beams, supports, and lashings. I made (them) reach between the wall [and] the door. I built the wall of the bakehouse from its foundations to its crenellations. [I] restored it. Moreover, I deposited my monumental inscription (therein). (11') In the future, may a future ruler, when he renovates that wall (when) it becomes dilapidated, return my monumental inscription and my inscribed name to its place. The god Aššur will (then) listen to his prayers. (15') (As for) the one who erases my inscribed name and writes his (own) name or discards my monumental inscription, may the god Aššur, the exalted god, the one who dwells in Eḫursagkurkurra, [...] ...
Writing & LiteratureReligion & MythAdad-narari I 19
(4'b) At [that time, (as for) the wall of the temple of the god Aššur], my lord, which is next to [the towers ...] in which there is a drainage opening, [which is before the orchards] of the upper ... [(...) which flood(s)] had eroded (and) which the kings, [my ancestors who came] before me, previously [... had] built, that wall, [which had been built with] baked brick and bitumen, [(...) had become] dilapidated. I built its foundations [with baked brick] and bitumen. [I ... and] strengthened [...] from its foundations to [its] crenella[tions]. I deposited my commemorative inscriptions and…
Religion & MythWriting & LiteratureAdad-narari I 20
(r 1') [...] ... [...] I built [...] with baked brick and bitumen. I strengthened [... from] its foundations [to its crenellations]. I deposited [my commemorative inscriptions and foundation inscriptions (therein)]. (r 7') [May a future ruler], when that wall [becomes dilapidated and] eroded [by flood(s), renovate its dilapidated section(s) (and) return my commemorative inscriptions and] inscribed name to [their places. The god Aššur] will (then) listen to [his prayers].
LawReligion & MythAdad-narari I 21
(5'b) At that time, the wall [...], which previously [...] before Enlil-nār[ārī ...] ... [... with the] mighty [weapons] of (the god) Aššur, [my] lord, [... I mustered] my troops with [... and fought against Nazi-Maruttaš, the king] of Karduniaš (Babylonia), in [the city Kār-Ištar] ... [...] that camp [...] mighty, I/he brought [...]. (15'b) [At that time, the ziggu]rat of (the god) Aššur, my lord, [...] the location of which [... had destroyed ...]
LawReligion & MythAdad-narari I 22
(55) When I saw the deserted (and) uncultivated areas of ... the city Ta[idu ...] ..., I delineated its area (and) founded a pala[ce insi]de it. I built (it) from its foundations to its crenellations. Moreover, I deposited my commemorative inscriptions (therein). (61) In the future, may a future ruler renovate its dilapidated section(s) (and) return my inscribed name to its place. (The god) A[ššur] will (then) listen to his [p]rayers.
LawReligion & MythAdad-narari I 23
(1') [In the future, may a future ruler, when he renovates] that wall [(when) it becomes dilapidated, return my commemorative inscriptions and inscribed name] to their places. [The gods Aššur ...] will (then) listen to [his prayers]. (3'b) [(As for) the one who erases my inscribed name and writes his (own) name or] discards my [commemorative inscriptions, may the gods Aššur ... destroy] him, his army, [and his seed ...].
LawReligion & MythAdad-narari I 24
(1') [...] time [...] its [he]ight, from [...] I piled up [ear]th. [...] the summit of the zi[ggurat ...] I deposited [m]y [commemorative inscriptions (therein)]. (4'b) [In the future, may a future ruler, when that ... becomes dilapidated, ... restore my commemorative inscriptions and] my inscribed name to their places. [...]
LawReligion & Myth
Adad-narari I 25
Labels booty taken from Naḫur, placing the city within Adad-nārārī I's documented conquests and anchoring his western campaigns in the archaeological record of early Middle Assyrian expansion.
LawReligion & MythAdad-narari I 26
(1) Palace of Adad-nārārī (I), king of the world, son of Arik-dīn-ili, king of Assyria, son of Enlil-nārārī, (who was) also king of Assyria: booty from the city Taidu (var. Ir[ridu]).
LawReligion & MythAdad-narari I 27
(1) Belon[ging to the temple of the god Aššur]. Belonging to the tākultu (that took place) at the beginning of the reign of Adad-nārārī (I), the overseer.
LawReligion & MythAdad-narari I 28
(1) Belonging to the temple of the god Aššur. Adad-nārārī (I), king of Assyria, made (it) during his third (var. fourth) tākultu.
LawReligion & MythAdad-narari I 30
(1) Palace of Adad-nārārī (I), king of the world, son of Arik dīn-ili, king of Assyria, son of Enlil-nārārī, (who was) also king of Assyria: (brick) belonging to the courtyard of the goddess Bēlet-ekallim.
LawReligion & Myth
Adad-narari I 31
Stamps Adad-nārārī I's ownership of a labūnu-house forecourt: one of the earliest Assyrian royal building inscriptions asserting the "king of the world" titulary that would define imperial rhetoric for centuries.
LawReligion & MythAdad-narari I 33
(1) Palace of Adad-nārārī (I), king of the world, son of Arik-dīn-ili, king of Assyria, son of Enlil-nārārī, (who was) also king of Assyria: (brick) belonging to the house of the red šudutinnu.
LawReligion & Myth
Adad-narari I 35
Records Adad-nārārī I's renovation of the processional avenue at Aššur's temple, anchoring the physical expansion of Assyrian royal piety to a specific monarch at the dawn of the Middle Assyrian kingdom.
Religion & MythWriting & LiteratureAdad-narari I 36
(1) Palace of Adad-nārārī (I), king of the world, son of Arik-dīn-ili, king of Assyria, son of Enlil-nārārī, (who was) also king of Assyria: [...] of the Abaru (Forecourt).
LawReligion & MythAdad-narari I 37
(1) Palace of Adad-nārārī (I), king of the world, son of Arik-dīn-ili, king of Assyria: (brick) belonging to the temple of Bēlet-šamê.
LawReligion & MythAdad-narari I 41
(1) Palace of Adad-nārārī (I), king of the world, son of Arik-dīn-ili, king of Assyria, son of Enlil-nārārī, (who was) also king of Assyria.
LawReligion & MythAdad-narari I 42
(1) Adad-nārārī (I), vice-regent of (the god) Aššur, refaced the drainage openings of the wall of the temple of the god Aššur, his lord, which (is) before the gardens of the upper ...
LawReligion & MythAdad-narari I 43
(1) Palace of Adad-nārārī (I), overseer, son of Arik-dīn-ili, overseer: (brick) belonging to the city Ša-ama...
LawReligion & Myth
Adad-narari I 44
A palace inscription of Adad-nārārī I asserting the title 'king of the world' — early epigraphic evidence of Assyrian kings adopting the universal-sovereignty rhetoric previously claimed by Babylonian and Akkadian rulers.
LawReligion & MythAdad-narari I 45
(1) Palace of Adad-nārārī (I), overseer, son of Arik-dīn-ili, (who was) also overseer.
LawReligion & MythAdad-narari I 46
(1) Palace of Adad-nārārī (I), king of the world.
LawReligion & MythAdad-narari I 47
(1) Adad-nārārī (I), vice-regent of (the god) Aššur.
LawReligion & MythAdad-narari I 48
(1) [Belong]ing to Adad-[nār]ārī (I), the king.
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal I 1
(1) Palace of Ashurnasirpal (I), king of the world, king of Assyria, son of Šamšī-Adad (IV), (who was) also king of Assyria.
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal I 1001
(1') [... vice-regent] of (the god) Aššur, son of Šamšī-[Adad (IV), (who was) also appointee of the god Enlil (and) vice-regent of (the god) Aššur, dedicated (this) for] his [life], the well-being of his seed, [...].
LawReligion & Myth
Aššur-bel-kala 01
Attests Aššur-bel-kala's campaign against the land Ḫimme, preserving early Assyrian royal rhetoric of total destruction — flaying, mass deportation, corpse-mounds — that would define the empire's self-presentation for centuries.
LawReligion & MythAššur-bel-kala 02
(i 1') (Too broken for translation) (i 2') [Son of Aššur]-rēša-iš[i (I), king of the world, strong king, king of Assyria], subduer of [the insubmissive ...]; (i 4') [Son of] Mutakkil-Nusku, [(who was) also king of the world, strong king, king of Assyria], his priestly progeny [...] the king of kings, the lord of lords, [...], the eternal royal seed, [...]. (i 8') In my accession year [(and) in my first regnal year, after I sat on the thro]ne of [(my) royal majesty in a grandiose manner], with the exalted strength [of (the god) Aššur, my lord, who goes before me, with the ... of the god…
LawReligion & MythAššur-bel-kala 03
(1') [...] I fought [...] I made [a col]ossal [statue of my royal majesty (and) wrote] thereon (a description of) the victories of my royal majesty. [...] I traversed [Mount Ḫirua, conquered and burned with fire] the city Uruniaš of the land Ḫimme. I made a statue of my royal majesty (and) [wrote thereon (a description of)] the victories of [my] royal maje[sty. I made (another) statue of my royal majesty (and) erected (it) in Eš]arra, the house of my succor, before (the god) Aššur, [my] lo[rd. ...] On numerous [campaigns against the Ar]ameans, the enemies of (the god) Aššur, who in the land…
LawReligion & MythAššur-bel-kala 04
(1) Aššur-bēl-kal[a, great king, king of the] world, king of Assyria, unrivalled king, [king of all four quarters (of the world)], the one provides for Ekur, select of the god Aššur, appointee of the lord of the lands (Enlil), [(the one) who] acts [with the support of the god Aššur] in laying low his enemies, [whose] deeds the gods Aššur (and) Enlil [...], the unconquerable attacker, [the one to whom was entrusted] dominion of Assyria, the one who disintegrates [all of the enemy] lands [with the fire of] the god Gīra, the controller [of the insubmissive] who breaks up [the forces of the…
LawReligion & MythAššur-bel-kala 05
(1') (Too broken for translation) (2') [In my accession year (and in my first regnal year) after I sat on the thron]e of (my) ro[yal majesty in a grandiose manner, with the exalted strength of (the god) Aššur, my lord, who goes before me, with the ...] of the god Ninu[rta, who goes at my right hand, with the martial spirit of the god Adad, who goes at] my left hand, [I mustered my] chariots [and troops. Difficult roads ... which for the] passage of my chariots and troops [were not suitable, routes which were impassable, whose barriers even the] winged birds of the sky [could not pass, the…
LawReligion & MythAššur-bel-kala 06
(1') [...] ... [...] (2') [He dispatched merchants (and) they acquired burḫiš, dromedaries, (and)] tešēnus. [He formed (herds) of dromedaries, bred (them), (and) displayed] herds of them [to the people of his land]. (4') [The king] of Egypt sent a large [female monkey], a crocodile, [(and) a “river-man,” beasts of the Great Sea. He displayed (them) to the people of his land]. (6') [By the] command of the gods Aššur, Anu, and A[dad, the great gods, my lords, ...] in pursuit of the Arameans, which twice in one year [I crossed the Euphrates River]. I brought about their [defeat from the city…
Religion & MythAššur-bel-kala 07
(i 1) [The god Aššur, the great lord], the king of all of the great gods; [the god ...], the king of destinies, the father of the gods, [...]; the god Ea [...], the king of the apsû, [...], the lofty gods, [...]: (i 12) [Aššur-bēl-kala ..., (the one) who acts] with the support of [the god Aššur, ...] people [...] Marduk-nādin-aḫḫē, the king of Akkad, [...] (ii 1) 1,000 troops of the land [...] he uprooted 4,000 hostages from them and brought (them) down into Assyria [...] to the land [...] and [...] Kislīmu (IX) [...]. (ii 11) In that (same) year, in Duʾūzu (IV), the city [...] of the land…
LawReligion & Myth
Aššur-bel-kala 08
Attests Aššur-bēl-kala's titulature and genealogy — anchoring his reign within the Tiglath-pileser I dynasty — though heavy damage leaves his specific deeds and the presiding eponym unrecoverable.
LawReligion & Myth
Aššur-bel-kala 09
Records Aššur-bel-kala crossing the Euphrates twice in one year on goatskin rafts to pursue Aramean and Sutean groups near Mount Lebanon — early evidence of Assyrian military pressure on these semi-nomadic peoples.
LawReligion & MythAššur-bel-kala 10
(1) Palace of Aššur-bēl-[kala, king of the world, strong king, king of As]syria, son of Tiglath-pileser (I), king of [the world], strong [king, king of Assyria], son of Aššur-rēša-iši (I), (who was) also king of the world, [strong king, king of] Assyria. (4) I made these sculptures in the provinces, cities, and garrisons for titillation. (6) (As for) the one who removes my inscriptions and my name, the Sebetti, the gods of Amurru, will afflict him with snake-bite.
LawReligion & MythAššur-bel-kala 2001
(1) To the god Šamaš, the king of heaven and netherworld, [his] king: Tukultī-Mēr, the king of the land Ḫana, [son] of Ilī-iqīša, the king of the land Ḫana, dedicated (this object) for the well-being of his land and the protection of his reign.
LawReligion & MythAššur-bel-kala 2002
(1) Belonging to Ibašši-ilu, the chief vizier. He made (this object) for the life of his eldest daughter, whom he loves. (Property) of the gods Aššur, Enlil, (and) Mullissu, the gods of Baltil (Aššur). No one must covet (it), take (it) away, (or) swear (falsely) by god and king and take possession of (it).
LawReligion & MythAššur-bel-nišešu 1
(1) Aššur-bēl-nišē[šu], vice-regent of the god Aššur, son of Aššur-nārārī (II), (who was) also vice-regent of the god Aššur. (4) For his life and the [well-being] of his city: (As for) the great wall of the New City, which Puzur-Aššur (III), (a) ruler (who came before me), my ancestor, had built, I built a new wall next to that wall. From the great wall of the Inner City as far as the (Tigris) River, I applied a facing to it in [its] entirety. I built it from its foundations to its crest. Moreover, I deposited my clay cone (therein). (11) (When) a future ruler builds that wall when it becomes dilapidated, the gods Aššur and Adad will (then) listen to his prayers. Moreover, may he return my clay cone to its place.
LawReligion & MythAššur-bel-nišešu 1001
(1') I sought [and the ... {of}] the city with/in [...] I built (it) from its foundations t[o its crest. Moreover, I [deposited my clay] cone (therein). (5') (When) a future ruler builds [that …] w[hen] it becomes dilapidated, the gods [Aššu]r (and) Adad [will (then) listen to] hi[s] prayers. [Moreover], may he return my [cl]ay cone to [its] place.
LawReligion & MythAššur-dan I 1
(1) [Palace of Aššur-d]ān (I), [king of] Assyria, [son of Ninurta-ap]il-Ekur, (who was) also [king of] Assyria.
LawReligion & MythAššur-dan I 2001
(1) For the goddess Ištar, the great lady, the one who dwells in Egašankalamma, the lady of Arbela, [his] lady: (4) For the life of Aššur-dān (I), the king of [Assyria], his [lord], Šamšī-bēl, the temple scribe, the son of Nergal-nādin-aḫi, (who was) also the (temple) scribe, dedicated and devoted (this) copper statue weighing ... minas. (10b) The name of that statue is “O Ištar, My Ear (Is Directed) to You!”
LawReligion & MythAššur-dan II 1
(1) [Aššur-dān (II)], strong [king], king of the world, king of Assyria, designate of (the god) Aššur, [whose] name (the god) Aššur called [... from] of old, into [whose] grasp [(the god) Aššur] placed [a just scepter and] an exalted crown, [whom (the god) Aššur ...] grandly established [for kingship over] Assyria; (5) [son of Tiglath-pileser (II), king of the world, king of As]syria, son of Aššur-rēša-iši (II), (who was) also king of the universe (and) king of Assyria. (6) [In my accession year (and) in] my [fir]st regnal year, when [I sat on] the throne of my royal majesty [in a grandiose…
LawReligion & MythAššur-dan II 2
(1') [had sold] all [their sons and daughters]. By the command [of (the god) Aššur, my lord, I took prisoners]. I inflicted [upon them a] major [defeat] (and then) I carried off [their] booty, [possessions, property, herds, (and) flocks] and [brought them to my city, Aššur. ...]. (6') The land Uluzu...[..., which previously had paid tribute] to my ancestor(s), [... they captured …] for themselves; [(...) by the command/with the support] of (the god) Aššur, my lord, [I mustered] (my) chariots [(and) troops. ... I inflicted] upon them a major defeat. I destroyed, devastated, (and) [burned with…
LawReligion & MythAššur-dan II 3
(1) Aššur-dān (II), strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria, son of Tiglath-pileser (II), strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria, son of Aššur-rēša-iši (II), strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria, son of Aššur-rabi (II), (who was) also strong king, king of the world, (and) king of Assyria. (5) When this Craftsman’s Gate — which, in the past, Tiglath-pileser (I), vice-regent of (the god) Aššur, son of Aššur-rēša-iši (I), vice-regent of (the god) Aššur, son of Mutakkil-Nusku, (who was) also vice-regent of (the god) Aššur, a ruler who had come before me, had built —…
LawReligion & MythAššur-dan II 4
(1) To the god Aššur, the father of the great gods, his lord: Aššur-dān (II), appointee of the god Enlil, vice-regent of the god Aššur, son of Tiglath-pileser (II), appointee of the god Enlil, vice-regent of (the god) Aššur, son of Aššur-rēša-iši (II), appointee of the god Enlil, vice-regent of the god Aššur, [son of Aššur-ra]bi (II), [(who was) also] appointee of the god Enlil (and) vice-regent of the god Aššur. (6) [I dedicated (this) for my life] so that my days might be long, [my years be many], (and for) the well-being of my seed [(and) my land].
Religion & MythWriting & LiteratureAššur-dan II 5
(1) Palace of Aššur-dān (II), strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria, son of Tiglath-pileser (II), strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria, son of Aššur-rēša-iši (II), strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria, son of Aššur-rabi (II), (who was) also strong king, king of the world, (and) king of Assyria.
LawReligion & MythAššur-dan II 6
(1) Palace of Aššur-dān (II), great king, strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria, son of Tiglath-pileser (II), (who was) also king of the world (and) king of Assyria.
LawReligion & Myth
Aššur-nadin-ahhe II 1
Attests the title 'vice-regent of the god Aššur' under a mid-14th-century king, anchoring the ideological formula of divine stewardship that would define Assyrian royal self-presentation for centuries.
LawReligion & MythAššur-nadin-ahhe II 2
(1) [(Palace of) Aššur-nādin-aḫ]ḫē (II), [(...) vice-regent of the god A]ššur, [(...), ...]
LawReligion & MythAššur-nadin-apli 1
(1) Aššur-nādin-apli, appointee of the god Enlil, vice-regent of the god Aššur, strong king, king of all of the people, ruler, king of kings; the faithful shepherd to whom the just scepter was given by the command of the gods Aššur, Enlil, and Šamaš and whose important name was called for the return of the land; the king under the protective hand of the god Anu and select of the god Enlil, chosen of the gods Aššur and Šamaš, am I; son of Tukultī-Ninurta (I), appointee of the god Enlil, vice-regent of the god Aššur; (and) son of Shalmaneser (I), (who was) also appointee of the god Enlil (and)…
LawReligion & MythAššur-narari I 01
(1) Aššur-nārārī (I), vice-regent of the god Aššur, son of Išme-Dagān (II), vice-regent of the god Aššur, builder of the temple of the god Bēl-ibrīya.
LawReligion & MythAššur-narari I 02
(1) Aššur-nārārī (I), vice-regent of the god Aššur, son of Išme-Dagān (II), (who was) also vice-regent of the god Aššur, the one who renovated of the Abaru Forecourt.
LawReligion & MythAššur-narari I 03
(1) [A]ššur-nārārī (I), [vice]-regent of the god Aššur, [son of] Išme-Dagān (II), builder of the temple of the gods Sîn [and] Šamaš.
LawReligion & MythAššur-narari I 04
(1) [Aššur-nā]rā[rī (I), vice-regent of] the god A[ššur, son of Išme]-Da[gān (II), (who was) also vice]-regent of the god A[ššur, (5) built] the upper and lower wall of the Step Gate [for] his [life] and the well-being of [his city. (I deposited my clay cone (therein))]. (8b) [May] a f[uture rul]er [...]
LawReligion & MythAššur-narari I 05
(1) [Aššur-nārārī (I)], vice-[regent of the god Aššur], son of Iš[me-Dagān (II), (who was) also] vice-regent [of the god Aššur, (5) built] the wall of [...] for [his] life [and the well-being of his city].
LawReligion & MythAššur-narari I 06
(1) [Aššur]-nārārī (I), vice-regent of the god Aššur, [son of Išme]-Dagān (II), [vice-regent of] the god Aššur, (5) built a wall [for his life] and the well-being of [his city]. I deposited [my clay cone (therein)].
LawReligion & MythAššur-narari I 07
(1) [Aššur-nārā]rī (I), [vice-regent of] the god Aššur, [son of Išme]-Dagān (II), (who was) also [vice regent of the god] Aššur, (5) [...] ...
LawReligion & MythAššur-narari I 08
(1) [Aššur-nārā]rī (I), [vice-regent of the god Ašš]ur, [son of Išme-D]agān (II), (who was) also [vice-regent of the god] Aššur,
LawReligion & MythAššur-narari I 09
(1) Palace of Aššur-nā[rārī (I), vice-regent of] the god A[ššur, son of Išme-Dagān (II)],
LawReligion & MythAššur-rem-nišešu 1
(1) Aššur-rêm-nišēšu, vice-regent of the god Aššur, son of Aššur-nārārī (II), vice-regent of the god Aššur, son of Aššur-rabi (I), vice-regent. (5) (As for) the wall that Kikkia, Ikūnum, Sargon (I), Puzur-Aššur (II), (and) Aššur-nārārī (I), son of Išme-Dagan (II), my ancestors, had built, it had become dilapidated and I built (it) from its foundations to its crest, for my life and the well-being of my city. Moreover, I returned its clay cones to their places. (12) When a future ruler builds that wall when it becomes dilapidated, the gods Aššur (and) Adad will (then) listen to his prayers. May he return its clay cones to their places.
LawReligion & Myth
Aššur-reša-iši I 01
Asserts divine election from the womb by Anu, Enlil, and Ea: an early Assyrian articulation of the theological framework that would anchor royal legitimacy for the next six centuries.
LawReligion & Myth
Aššur-reša-iši I 02
Records Aššur-rēša-iši I's construction at the Ištar temple in Nineveh, situating this reign within the architectural patronage that defined Middle Assyrian kingship's claim to divine favour from Anu, Enlil, and Ea.
Religion & Myth
Aššur-reša-iši I 03
Preserves a fragmentary Middle Assyrian royal building inscription invoking Mutakkil-Nusku and Aššur-dān I, offering rare epigraphic testimony to the dynastic sequence and temple-restoration ideology of the 13th-century Assyrian court.
LawReligion & MythAššur-reša-iši I 04
(1) [Aššur]-rēša-iši (I), appointee [of the god Enlil, vice-regent of (the god) Aššur, (the one) whose dominion the gods Anu, Enlil, and Ea] — the great gods — [designated] for [the proper administration of Assyria (and whose priesthood they blessed), strong king], king of the world, king of Assyria; son of Mut[akkil-Nusku, vice-regent of (the god) Aššur, son of Aššur-dān (I), (who was) also vice-regent of (the god) Aššur]. (4) [At that time], (as for) the šaḫūru-house of the hinter house [... which …, a king who came before] me had built, in an earthquake, during the time [of Aššur-dān (I),…
LawReligion & Myth
Aššur-reša-iši I 05
Palace label of Aššur-rēša-iši I, attesting his full titulary — 'designate of Anu, king of the world' — and his three-generation Assyrian royal lineage at a formative moment of Middle Assyrian state-building.
LawReligion & Myth
Aššur-reša-iši I 06
Attests Aššur-rēša-iši I's royal titulary — 'designate of Anu, king of the world' — fixing the ideological vocabulary through which Middle Assyrian kings claimed cosmic authority a generation before Tiglath-pileser I's conquests.
LawReligion & MythAššur-reša-iši I 07
(1) Aššur-rēša-iši (I), vice-regent of (the god) Aššur, son of Mutakkil-Nusku, vice-regent of (the god) Aššur, son of Aššur-dān (I), (who was) also vice-regent of (the god) Aššur, builder of the temple of the gods Adad and Anu.
LawReligion & MythAššur-reša-iši I 08
(1) Aššur-rēša-iši (I), vice-regent of (the god) Aššur, builder of the temple of the gods Adad and Anu..
LawReligion & MythAššur-reša-iši I 09
(1) Aššur-rēša-iši (I), vice-regent of (the god) Aššur, son of Mutakkil-Nusku, vice-regent of (the god) Aššur, son of Aššur-dān (I), (who was) also vice-regent of (the god) Aššur, builder of the temple of the Assyrian Ištar.
LawReligion & MythAššur-reša-iši I 10
(1) Palace of Aššur-rēša-i[ši (I)], strong king, king of the world, king of [Assyria]. (3) Belonging to the palace of the city …
LawReligion & MythAššur-reša-iši I 1004
(1') [...] previously [built, ...], Aššur-rēša-iši (I) [built (it) i]n its entirety. [...] beams of cedar beam [...]. (7'b) May a future [rule]r re[store] its dilapidated section(s) [...]. The gods Anu (and) Adad [will (then) listen to his] pra[yers].
LawReligion & MythAššur-reša-iši I 11
(1') [(As for) the temple of the god Aššur, which Ušpia ... had previously built and] (when) it became dilapidated [Erišum (I) ... built (it and when) 159 years had passed and] it had (again) become dilapidated, Šamšī-[Adad (I) ... built (it and) 580 years (passed), then Shalmaneser (I)] built (it), (and) 132 [years (passed), then Aššur]-rēša-iši (I), vice-regent of [(the god) Aššur, built (it) ...]. (6'b) [May] a futur[e rule]r [...]
LawReligion & MythAššur-reša-iši I 12
(1) [Aššur-rēša-iši (I), vice-regent of (the god) Aššur, son of Mutakk]il-Nusku, vice-regent of (the god) Aššur, son of [Aššur-dān (I), (who was) also vice-regent of (the god) Aššur]. (2) (As for) the shrine of (the god) Aššur my lord, which [...] had previously built, had become dilapidated, [...]
LawReligion & MythAššur-reša-iši I 13
(1) [Aššur-rēša-iši (I)], strong [king], king of the world, king of [Assyria, son of Mutakkil-Nusku, king of the world, king of Assyria, son of] Aššur-dān (I), [(who was) also] king of the world (and) king of [Assyria]. (3) He bu[ilt ...] ... [...].
LawReligion & MythAššur-reša-iši I 14
(1) [Aššur-rēša]-iši (I), strong king, king of [the world, king of Assyria, son of Mutakkil-Nusku, strong king, king of] the world, king of Assyria, son of Aššur-dān (I), [(who was) also strong king, king of the world (and) king of Assyria, (builder) of the] courtyard of the palace ... [...].
LawReligion & MythAššur-reša-iši I 2001
(1) Monument of Aššur-šumu-aṣbat, the governor of the city Aššur, the chief ... of Aššur-rēša-iši (I) — the king of Assyria — the son of Rēš-Aššur, (who was) also the governor of the city Aššur.
LawReligion & MythAššur-uballiṭ I 1
(1) Aššur-uballiṭ (I), vice-regent of the god Aššur, son of Erība-Adad (I); Erība-Adad (I), vice-regent of the god Aššur, (was) the son of Aššur-bēl-nišēšu; Aššur-bēl-nišēšu, vice-regent of the god Aššur, (was) the son of Aššur-nārārī (II); Aššur-nārārī (II), vice-regent of the god Aššur, (was) the son of Aššur-rabi (I); Aššur-rabi (I), vice-regent of the god Aššur, (was) the son of Enlil-nāṣir (I); (and) Enlil-nāṣir (I), vice-regent of the god Aššur, (was) the son of Puzur-Aššur (III), vice-regent of the god Aššur. (13) Aššur-uballiṭ (I), appointee of the god Enlil, vice-regent of Aššur,…
LawReligion & Myth
Aššur-uballiṭ I 1001
Attests Aššur-uballiṭ I invoking Šamšī-Adad I as a renovating predecessor — one of the earliest Assyrian royal inscriptions to anchor legitimacy in a named earlier king's building piety.
LawReligion & MythAššur-uballiṭ I 1002
(1') [...] Aššur-uballiṭ (I), appointee [of the god Enlil, vice-regent of the god Aššur — the ...] of the wall of ... [...] of the New Palace [...], which previously Aššur-nādin-aḫḫē (II) had built, [had become dilapidated and I renovated (it) from its foundations to its cren]ellations. [...]
LawReligion & MythAššur-uballiṭ I 2
(1) [Aššur-uballiṭ (I), vice-regent of the god Aššur, son of Erība-Adad (I); Erība-Adad (I), vice-regent of the god Aššur], (was) the son of [Aššur-bēl-nišēšu; Aššur-bēl-nišēšu, vice-regent of] the god Aššur, (was) the son of [Aššur-nārārī (II)]; Ašš[ur-nārārī (II), vice-regent] of the god Aššur, (was) the son of Aššur-[rabi (I)]; Aššur-[rabi (I), vice]-regent of the god Aššur, (was) the son of En[lil-nāṣir (I)]; (and) En[lil-nāṣir (I)], vice-regent of the god Aššur, (was) the son of Puzur-[Aššur (III)], (who was) also vice-regent of the god Aššur. (13) Aššu[r-uballiṭ (I), appointee of the…
LawReligion & MythAššur-uballiṭ I 3
(1) Aššur-uballiṭ (I), vice-regent of the god Aššur, son of Erība-Adad (I), (who was) also vice-regent of the god Aššur. (5) When the god Aššur, my lord, allowed me to construct the Patti-ṭuḫdi (“Canal of Abundance”), the bearer of abundant fertility, I filled in with earth the well that is called Uballiṭ-nišēšu (“It Has Given Life to His People”), (the source) of the pond (that is) behind the terrace, (which was) ten cubits down to water(-level), which previously Aššur-nādin-aḫḫē (II), the vice-regent of the god Aššur, had dug (and which) was reinforced with limestone, bitumen, (and) baked…
LawReligion & MythAššur-uballiṭ I 4
(1) Aššur-uballiṭ, vice-regent of the god Aššur, son of Erība-Adad (I); Erība-Adad (I), vice-regent of the god Aššur, (was) the son of Aššur-bēl-nišēšu; Aššur-bēl-nišēšu, vice-regent of the god Aššur, (was) [the son] of Aššur-nārārī (II); Aššur-nārārī (II), [vice-regent of the god] Aššur, (r 1) I roofed (it) with beams and installed doors inside it. I renovated (and) restored it from its foundations to its crest. Moreover, I made the goddess Ištar-kudnittu, my lady, reside inside that temple. Furthermore, I deposited my clay cone (therein). (r 9) (When) a future ruler builds that temple when it becomes dilapidated, the deities Aššur, Adad, and Ištar-kudnittu will (then) listen to his prayers. Moreover, may he return my clay cone to its place.
Religion & MythWriting & LiteratureAššur-uballiṭ I 5
(1) [Aššur-uballiṭ (I), vice-regent of the god Aššur, son of Erība-Adad (I); Erība-Adad (I), vice-regent of the god Aššur, (was) the son of Aššur-bēl-nišēšu; Aššur-bēl-nišēšu, vice-regent of the god Aššur, (was) the son of Aššur-nārārī (II); Aššur-nārārī (II), vice-regent of the god Aššur, (was) the son of Aššur-rabi (I); Aššur-rabi (I), vice-regent of the god Aššur, (was) the son of Enlil-nāṣir (I); (and) Enlil-nāṣir (I), vice-regent of the god Aššur, (was) the son of Puzur-Aššur (III)], (who was) also [vice-regent of the god] Aššur. (13) [Aššur-uballiṭ (I)], appointee of the god E[nlil, vice-regent of the god Aššur, for his life and] the well-being of [his] city: [...] ... [...] the courtyard of the chapel [...] ... [...] wall [...]
LawReligion & MythAdad-nerari II 1
(1) Adad-nārārī (II), great king, strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria, king of all the four quarters (of the world), the one selected by (the god) Aššur, attentive ruler, the one who acts with the support of the gods Aššur and Ninurta, the great gods, his lords, and (thereby) has struck down his foes; (5) son of Aššur-dān (II), king of the world, king of Assyria, son of Tiglath-pileser (II), king of the world, king of Assyria, son of Aššur-rēša-iši (II), (who was) also king of the world (and) king of Assyria. (8) In my accession year (and) in my first regnal year, when I sat on…
LawReligion & MythAdad-nerari II 1002
(1) [Image of Adad-nārārī (II)], strong [king], king of the world, [king of] Assyria, son of Aššur-d[ān (II), king of the world, king of] Assyria, son of Ti[glath-piles]er (II), (who was) also [king of the universe (and) king of] Assyria.
LawReligion & MythAdad-nerari II 2
(1) [The god Aššur, ...; the god Enlil, ...]; the god [Sîn, king of the lunar disk], lord of brilliance; [the god Šamaš, judge of] heaven and netherworld, commander of all; the god Marduk, sage of the gods, lord of oracles; the god Nin[urta, warrior of] the Igīgū and Anunnakū gods; the god Nergal, perfect one, king of battle; the god Nusku, bearer of the holy scepter, circumspect god; the goddess Mullissu, spouse of the god Enlil, mother of the great gods; (and) the goddess Ištar, foremost in heaven and netherworld, who is consummate in the canons of combat; (5) the great gods who take firm…
Religion & MythAdad-nerari II 3
(r 1') (No translation possible.) (r 11'b) [... and deposited] my [commemorative inscrip]tions. (r 12'b) [May a future ruler restore it (and) return my inscribed name t]o its place. [(The god) Aššur, the great lord, will (then) listen to his prayers]. (r 13'b) [(As for) the one who removes] my [insc]riptions [and my name, may (the god) Aššur overthrow his kingship (and)] make [his name (and) his seed] disappear [from the land]. (r 15') (Date missing)
LawReligion & MythAdad-nerari II 4
(1') [I am enormously radiant, I am a hero], I am a warrior, [I am a virile] lion, [I am foremost, I am exalted, (and) I am raging]. (2') Adad-nārārī (II), strong king, king of [Assyria, king of the four quarters (of the world), the one who defeats his enemies, am I]. The king capable in battle, overwhelmer [of cities, (and) the one who scorches the mountains of (foreign) lands, am I]. The virile warrior, [the one who controls those opposed to him, (and the one) who is inflamed against the evil] and the wicked, am I. I scorch] like the god Gīra, [I overwhelm like the deluge, ...], (and) I…
LawReligion & MythAdad-nerari II 6
(1) [(Palace of) Adad-nār]ārī (II), strong king, king of the wor[ld, king of Assyria, son of Aššur-d]ān (II), king of the world, king of Assyria, [son of Tiglath]-pileser (II), (who was) also king of the wor[ld (and) king of Assyria: ...] ... [...]
LawReligion & Myth
Adad-nerari II 8
Standard titulary of Adad-nārārī II anchoring his legitimacy through two generations of royal descent, attesting the formulaic language by which Assyrian kings asserted dynastic continuity around 900 BCE.
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 001
(i 1) To the god Ninurta, the strong, the almighty, the exalted, foremost among the gods, the splendid (and) perfect warrior whose attack in battle is unequalled, the eldest son who commands battle (skills), offspring of the god Nudimmud, warrior of the Igīgū gods, the capable, ruler of the gods, offspring of Ekur, the one who holds the bond of heaven (and) netherworld, the one who opens springs, the one who walks the wide netherworld, the god without whom no decisions are taken in heaven and netherworld, the swift, the ferocious, the one whose command is unalterable, foremost in the (four)…
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurnasirpal II 002
Preserves Ashurnasirpal II's titulary in full — the layered chain of divine election, genealogy, and universal kingship that legitimised Neo-Assyrian imperial ideology in the 9th century BCE.
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 003
(1) To the god Ninurta, the strong, the almighty, the exalted, foremost among the gods, the splendid (and) perfect warrior whose attack in battle is unequalled, the eldest son who commands battle (skills), offspring of the god Nudimmud, warrior of the Igīgū gods, the capable, ruler of the gods, offspring of Ekur, the one who holds the bond of heaven (and) netherworld, the one who opens springs, the one who walks the wide netherworld, the god without whom no decisions are taken in heaven and netherworld, the swift, the ferocious, the one whose command is unalterable, foremost in the (four)…
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 004
(1') son of Tukultī-Ninurta (II), king of the world, king of Assyria, son of Adad-nārārī (II), (who was) also king of the world (and) king of Assyria. (2'b) For my life, so that my days might be long, my years be many, (for) the well-being of my seed (and) my land, (for) the safekeeping of my vice-regal [throne], (for) abundance in my city, (for) the increase of my people, (for) the thriving of my people in Assyria, [for the scorching of] my enemies, for the destruction of my [dangerous foes], to [subdue] under me rulers who oppose me;
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 009
(1) Ashurnasirpal (II), great king, strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria, son of Tukultī-Ninurta (II), gre[at] king, strong [kin]g, king of the world, king of Assyria, son of Adad-nārārī (II), [(who was) also] great king, strong king, king of the world (and) king of [Assyria].
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 017
(i 1) (The god) Aššur, the great lord, king of all the great gods; the god Anu, foremost in strength, the one who decrees destinies; the god Ea, king of the apsû, lord of wisdom (and) understanding; the god Sîn, wise one, lord of the lunar disk, lofty luminary; the god Marduk, sage, lord god of oracles; the god Adad, strong, almighty among the gods, exalted; the god Ninurta, hero, warrior of the gods, the one who lays low the wicked; the god Nusku, bearer of the holy scepter, circumspect god; the goddess Mullissu, spouse of the god Enlil, mother of the great gods; the god Nergal, perfect one,…
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 018
(1') [In my accession year (and) in my first regnal year, after] I sat on [the throne of my royal majesty] in a grandiose manner, I mus[tered (my) chariot]ry (and) [extensiv]e troops. I [co]nquered inaccessible fortresses round about. I rec[eived] a tribute of horses from the land Gilzānu. ... [Because] horses were not (continually) brought in hither to me I [became angry and] marched to the cities Ḫarira (and) Ḫalḫalauš, which (were under the authority) of the guilty rulers. Those I conquered in the eponymy of Ashurnasirpal (II) (882) . I took out their property, booty, possessions, (and)…
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 019
(1) The deities Aššur, Adad, Sîn and Šamaš, (and) Ištar, the great gods who go at the head of my troops. (5) Ashurnasirpal (II), great king, strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria; (the one who) acts with the support of the gods Aššur (and) Šamaš, the great gods, my lords, and has no rival among the rulers of the (10) four quarters (of the world); attentive ruler, subduer of all of the rulers, fearless in battle, ferocious dragon, the one who breaks up the forces of the rebellious, strong gišginû, who treads upon the necks of the rulers who are insubmissive to him, mighty flood-tide…
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 020
(1) [(The god) Aššur, the great lord, king of] all of the [great] gods; [the god Anu, king of the Ig]īgū and [Anunnakū gods; (lord of the lands,) the god Enlil], exalted one, father of the gods, [(creator of all); the god E]a, king of the [apsû, lord of wisdom (and) understanding; the god Sîn], wise one, king of the lunar disk, [lofty luminary; the god Adad], the exceptionally strong, [lord of abundance; the god Ša]maš, judge of heaven [and netherworld, commander of all; the god] Marduk, sage, [lord] god [of oracles; the god Ninurta], warrior of the Igīgū and [Anunnakū gods; the god] Nergal,…
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 021
(1') [...] … [...] troops [...] … [... I] brought them down [... I inflicted] upon them a major defeat. [(...) I carried off ...] their [possessions (and)] their flocks. [As for] their combat troops, [I cut off] their hands [... (x)] 200 of their fighting men [... I] destroyed [...]. (6') [...] I received [the pay]ment of the kings of lands (and) mountains. Irbibu [... of the city ...ḫ]āni, which was his fortified city, [...] trusted [in his own strength] and rebelled against me. By the command of (the god) Aš[šur, my lord, I marched against him (and)] besieged him. Around his city he had dug…
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 022
(1') which from the time of [...] the statue with the name of Tiglath-pil[eser (I) …] I marched [to the N]aʾiri [lands. I conquered] the city Barzaništu[(un) ... I carried off] their [property], possessions, oxen, sheep, [... (and)] turned (it) into a mound of ruins (lit. “a mound and ruins”). The heads of [their] warriors [I cut off ...] of the Naʾiri lands, horses, mules, [...] … I burned with fire. I destroyed, devastated, (and) [turned (it) into] a mound [of ruins (lit. “a mound and ruins”)]. (8') [...] the city Tillê rebelled [... t]hey stationed [a garrison at ...]. They stati[oned a…
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurnasirpal II 023
One of the standard titulary inscriptions of Ashurnasirpal II, tracing his legitimacy through three generations of Assyrian kings and anchoring royal authority in a chain of divine election by Aššur, Enlil, Ninurta, Anu, and Dagān.
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 026
(1) Ashurnasirpal (II), great king, strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria, son of Tukultī-Ninurta (II), great king, strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria, son of Adad-nārārī (II), (who was) also great king, strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria; the valiant man who acts with the support of (the god) Aššur, his lord, and who has no rival among the rulers of the four quarters (of the world); marvelous shepherd, fearless in battle, mighty flood-tide which has no opponent, the king who subdues those insubordinate to him, who rules all of the peoples, strong male, who…
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 028
(i 1) To the goddess Šarrat-nipḫi, great lady, foremost in heaven (and) netherworld, queen of all of the gods, the strong one whose weighty command is respected [in the temples], whose form is surpassing among the goddesses, shining countenance who like the god Šamaš, her sibling, thoroughly inspects the circumference of heaven (and) [netherworld], most capable of the Anunnakū gods, offspring of the god Anu, supreme among the gods, counsellor of her brothers, leader, the one who stirs up the seas (and) shakes the mountains, heroine of the Igīgū gods, lady of conflict and battle, without whom…
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 029
(1') the compassionate [god to whom it is good to pray ...]; (2') [Ashurnasirpal (II)], unrivalled king [of the world, king of all the four quarters (of the world), sun(god) of all people, chosen of the gods Enlil and] Ninurta, beloved of [the gods Anu (and) Dagān, destructive weapon of the great gods, the pious], beloved of your heart, ruler, [your favorite, whose priesthood is pleasing to your great divinity (and)] whose reign you established, [valiant] man [...] shepherdship of his land ... [...] my [kingship], my dominion, (and) my power which [...] I am capable, I am wise, [...]. (9')…
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 030
(1) Palace of Ashurnasirpal (II), vice-regent of (the god) Aššur, chosen of the gods Enlil and Ninurta, beloved of the gods Anu and Dagān, destructive weapon of the great gods, strong king, king of the world, [king of] Assyria, son of Tukultī-Ninurta (II), great king, strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria, son of Adad-nārārī (II), (who was) also great king, strong king, king of the world, (and) king of Assyria; the valiant man who acts with the support of (the god) Aššur, his lord, and who has no rival among the rulers of the four quarters (of the world); marvelous shepherd,…
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 031
(1) Ashurnasirpal (II), great king, strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria, son of Tukultī-Ninurta (II), great king, strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria, son of Adad-nārārī (II), (who was) also great king, strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria; the valiant man who acts with the support of (the god) Aššur, his lord, and who has no rival among the rulers of the four quarters (of the world); marvelous shepherd, fearless in battle, mighty flood-tide which has no opponent, the king who made (the territory stretching) from the opposite bank of the Tigris River to…
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 032
(1) Ashurnasirpal (II), great king, strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria, son of Tukultī-Ninurta (II), great king, strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria, son of Adad-nārārī (II), (who was) also great king, strong king, king of the world and king of Assyria; the valiant man who acts with the support of (the god) Aššur, his lord, and who has no rival among the rulers of the four quarters (of the world); the king who made (the territory stretching) from the opposite bank of the Tigris River to Mount Lebanon and the Great Sea, the land Lāqê in its entirety, (and) the land…
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurnasirpal II 033
Claims Assyrian dominion from Carchemish through the Euphrates lands of Lāqê, Sūḫu, and Rapiqu — pinning the westward reach of Ashurnasirpal II's campaigns to specific named territories in the mid-ninth century BCE.
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 034
(1) Palace of Ashurnasirpal (II), great king, strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria, son of Tukultī-Ninurta (II), great king, strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria, son of Adad-nārārī (II), (who was) also great king, strong king, king of the world, and king of Assyria; the valiant man who acts with the support of (the god) Aššur, his lord, and who has no rival among the rulers of the four quarters (of the world), the king who subdued (the territory stretching) from the opposite bank of the Tigris River to Mount Lebanon and the Great Sea, the land Lāqê, in its entirety,…
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 035
Titles Ashurnasirpal II as 'king of the world' and 'marvelous shepherd' in a three-generation dynastic chain, showing how Neo-Assyrian royal ideology fused cosmic dominion with divine mandate in official palace inscriptions.
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 036
(1') [The god Ninurta, the lord of judgment and destruction] and (the god) Aššur, the great lord, [... will (then) listen to his prayers. May they establish] copious abundance in [his] land; (and) may they make him achieve success [in wars with kings on the battlefield]. (4'b) As for the one who erases my inscription and [writes] his (own) name [or] removes my commemorative inscription, [throws (it)] into water [(,...)], may the god Ninurta, the lord of judgment and destruction, (and) the god Aššur, [the great lord], overthrow [his kingship], take away from him his throne, [make him sit] in bondage before his [enemies, establish in his land distress, famine, (and) hunger, (and) make] his name (and) his seed [disappear] from the land.
Religion & MythWriting & LiteratureAshurnasirpal II 038
(1) Ashurnasirpal (II), great king, strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria, son of Tukultī-Ninurta (II), great king, strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria, son of Adad-nārārī (II), (who was) also great king, strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria; the valiant man who acts with the support of (the god) Aššur, his lord, and who has no rival among the rulers of the four quarters (of the world), the king who subdued (the territory stretching) from the opposite bank of the Tigris River to Mount Lebanon and the Great Sea, the land Lāqê in its entirety, (and) the land…
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 039
(1) Ashurnasirpal (II), great king, strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria, son of Tukultī-Ninurta (II), great king, strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria, son of Adad-nārārī (II), (who was) also great king, strong king, king of the world, (and) king of Assyria, conqueror from the opposite bank of the Tigris River as far as Mount Lebanon and the Great Sea, he made all of the lands from east to west bow down at his feet.
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 040
(1) Ashurnasirpal (II), great king, strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria, king of all of the four quarters (of the world), sun(god) of [all of] the people, ruler, vice-regent of (the god) Aššur, the valiant man who acts with the support of the gods Aššur and Šamaš and who has no rival among the rulers of the four quarters (of the world), who treads upon the mountain peaks in all of the mountains, subduer of those insubmissive to (the god) Aššur to the borders above and below, who marches about on mountain paths, (5) who has seen remote and rugged regions, magnificent king of lands,…
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 041
(1) Ashurnasirpal (II), appointee of the god Enlil, vice-regent of (the god) Aššur, son of Tukultī-Ninurta (II), appointee of the god Enlil, vice-regent of (the god) Aššur, son of Adad-nārārī (II), (who was) also appointee of the god Enlil (and) vice-regent of (the god) Aššur: (3b) conqueror from the opposite bank of the Tigris River to Mount Lebanon and the Great Sea [of] the land Amurru in the west, (who) has conquered the land Ḫatti in its entirety; [(I am the one who) have gained dominion over] (the region stretching) from the source of the Subnat River [to the land Urume, the wide [Naʾiri] lands. [...] … [...]
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 042
(1) Palace of Ashurnasir[pal (II), strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria, son of Tukultī-Ninurta (II)], strong king, king of [the world, king of Assyria], son of Adad-nārārī (II), (who was) also king of the world (and) king of Assyria: (2b) conqueror from [the opposite bank of the Tigris River] to Mount Lebanon and the Great Sea of the land Amurru [in the west], (who) has conquered the land Ḫatti [in its entirety; (I am the one who) have gained dominion over] (the region stretching) from the source of the S[ubnat Riv]er [to the land Urume (and) the wi]d[e] Naʾiri lands, in to [their…
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 045
(1) Ashurnasirpal (II), strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria, king of all the four quarters (of the world), ruler of all of the lands, son of Tukultī-Ninurta (II), strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria, son of Adad-nārārī (II), (who was) also strong king, king of the world, (and) king of Assyria: (13) (As for) the temple of the goddess [Ištar], my lady, I built (and) completed (it) from its foundation(s) to its crenellations. (20) [May] a future ruler [restore its] dilapidated section(s).
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 046
(1) Ashurnasirpal (II), strong king, [..., king of As]syria, chosen of your father — the god Enlil, whose commands [are unalterable — ... He (the king) has trod] difficult paths, mighty mountain chains [...] and he has conquered all those insubmissive to him [...]. (4b - 5) [...] …, the temple of the goddess Ištar, [... its] dilapida[ted section(s) …]
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurnasirpal II 047
Opens with the full Assyrian divine council — Aššur, Enlil, Ea, Adad, Šamaš — granting Ashurnasirpal II his kingship, illustrating how 9th-century Assyrian royal ideology fused theology with conquest legitimacy.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurnasirpal II 048
Attests Ashurnasirpal II's invocation of the storm-god Adad as divine enforcer of a royal decree, linking Neo-Assyrian kingship ideology to divine sanction for legal or cultic obligations.
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 049
(o 1) [Ashur]nasirpal (II), strong king, king [...], unrivalled king of the world, [...], the attentive ruler who [...] heaven (and) netherworld, [...] those insubmissive to him [...], exalted priest, [...] the deities Aššur (and) Adad [...] whose priesthood in [the temples they established forever ...], [(...)] shepherd [...] (r 1') [...] ... [...] may [a future ruler] restore [its dilapidated section(s) (and) restore my] inscribed name [to its place]. The gods Aššur (and) Adad, [the great] lords, [(...) will (then) listen to his prayers]. (r 7') As for the one who erases my inscription [and writes his (own) name, ... may the deities Aššur, Adad, (and)] Ištar, the great gods [...].
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 050
(1) Ashurnasirpal (II), great king, strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria, son of Tukultī-Ninurta (II), great king, strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria, son of Adad-nārārī (II), (who was) also great king, strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria; valiant man who acts with the support of (the god) Aššur, his lord, and has no rival among the rulers of the four quarters (of the world), the king who subdued (the territory stretching) from the opposite bank of the Tigris River to Mount Lebanon and the Great Sea, the land Lāqê, in its entirety, (and) the land Sūḫu,…
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 051
(1) Ashurnasirpal (II), great king, strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria, son of Tukultī-Ninurta (II), great king, strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria, son of Adad-nārārī (II), (who was) also great king, strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria; valiant man who acts with the support of (the god) Aššur, his lord, and has no rival among the rulers of the four quarters (of the world), marvelous shepherd, fearless in battle, mighty flood-tide which has no opponent, the king who subdues those insubordinate to him, who rules all peoples, the strong male who treads upon…
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 052
(1') conqueror [from the passes of land Ḫabr]uri to the land Gilzā[nu]; I [conquered from the source of] the Subnat River to [the land Šubr]ia (and) the interior of the land Nirbu; I subdued the land Lāqê, to its [fu]ll extent, (and) the land Sūḫu, including the city Rapiqu; [I brought] within the boundaries [of my land] (the territory stretching) from the passes of Mount Babi[te] to land Ḫašmar, the land Zamua, in [its] entirety, [from] the opposite bank of the Lower Zab [to] Tīl-Abāri, which is upstream from the land Z[abban, to Tīl-ša]-Abtāni and Tīl-ša-Za[bdāni; the cities Ḫiri]mmu (and)…
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 053
(1) Palace of Ashurnasirpal (II), great king, strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria, son of Tukultī-Ninurta (II), king of the world, king of Assyria, son of Adad-nārārī (II), (who was) also king of the world (and) king of Assyria; conqueror of the Naʾiri lands, to their (text: its) full extent, from the passes of the land Ḫabruri to the land Gilzānu; he conquered from the source of the Subnat River to the land Šubria; I brought within the boundaries of my land (the territory stretching) from the opposite bank of the Tigris River to the land Ḫatti, the land Lāqê, in its entirety,…
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurnasirpal II 055
Dedicates conquered wealth to the god Ninurta, linking Ashurnasirpal II's western campaigns to the theological claim that Assyrian expansion fulfilled divine will — a cornerstone of Neo-Assyrian royal ideology.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurnasirpal II 056
Preserves the full titulary of Ashurnasirpal II — sun-king, world-trampler, chosen of Enlil and Ninurta — encoding the theological and imperial ideology that legitimised Neo-Assyrian expansion in the 9th century BCE.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurnasirpal II 057
Records Ashurnasirpal II's restoration of the Emašmaš temple at Nineveh, situating him within a chain of vice-regents stretching back to Šamšī-Adad and linking royal piety to political legitimacy.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurnasirpal II 060
One of the surviving royal inscriptions of Ashurnasirpal II (r. 883–859 BCE), preserved in the RIAo corpus as a witness to the formulaic and historical record of early Neo-Assyrian kingship.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurnasirpal II 061
One of the surviving royal inscriptions of Ashurnasirpal II, whose annals collectively document the territorial expansion and brutal suppression campaigns that defined early Neo-Assyrian imperial statecraft.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurnasirpal II 066
Attests Ashurnasirpal II's full titulary and three-generation dynastic genealogy back to Adad-nārārī II, anchoring the ideological framework by which Sargonid kings legitimized conquest through divine appointment and hereditary authority.
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 067
(1) Ashurnasirpal (II), appointee of the god Enlil, vice-regent of (the god) Aššur, [son of Tukultī-Ni]nurta (II), appointee of the god Enlil, vice-regent of (the god) Aššur, son of [Adad-nārārī (II), appointee of the god En]lil, vice-regent of (the god) Aššur, (4) the one who conquered (everything) from [(...)] the slopes of the mountains of the Lullumê, the interior of the land Ḫabḫu, the land Zamua, (and) the land Ḫašmar, a[ll of them, to the land Amu]rru, Mount Amanus, and Mount Lebanon, as far as the Great Sea; [I counted (all of this territory) as within the boundar](ies) of m[y] land.…
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 069
(1) [...], king of the world, strong king, king of Assyria, [..., …, king of A]ssyria, son of Adad-nārārī (II), (who was) also king of the wo[rld, …]: (3) [..., which …, who had com]e before me, ha[d built, …] ... [...] ... [...]
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 070
(1) Palace of Ashurnasirpal (II), king of the world, king of Assyria, son of Tukultī-Ninurta (II), king of Assyria, son of Adad-nārārī (II), (who was) also king of Assyria; the conqueror of all lands (who) made (all rulers) from east to west bow down at his feet: (7) (As for) the palace of the city Apku, I laid its foundations for the residence of my royal majesty, (together) with tablets of silver (and) gold. (10) O future ruler, do not erase (my) inscribed name! (The god) Aššur, the great lord, will (then) listen to your (text: “his”) prayers. (12b) As for the one who erases (my) inscribed…
Writing & LiteratureReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 073
(1) [I rec]eived the payment of …: … l]inen [garments] with multi-colored [trim], female musicians, servant men, [...].
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 074
(1) I rece[ived the payment] of [...]: silver, gold, [...], bronze tubs, bronze pots, de[corat]ed beds, (and) [linen] garment[s with multi-colored trim].
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 075
(1) I rec]eived [the payment of …: …, gol]d, t[in], bronze, [iro]n, [(...)], b[ronze] tub(s), bronze [...](s), [...].
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 076
(1) [I rece[ived the paym[ent of ...]: silver, gold, t[in], bronze, bronze tubs, bronze [...], bron[ze …, …, (and) linen garme]nts with multi-colored trim.
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 077
(1) I rec[eived] a herd of elephants raised in a city, a herd of wild bulls ra[ised in] a city, a herd [of …, (and) … ] ...
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 079
(1) [... ; pay]ment of the pe[ople of] the city Ḫindānu; [...; payme]nt [of ...].
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 080
(1) Captives of Sangara, a man of the land Ḫatti.
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 081
(1) Battle against the city Marinâ of Bīt-Adini.
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 082
(1) Palace of Ashurnasirpal (II), king of the world, king of Assyria, son of Tukultī-Ninurta (II), king of Assyria, son of Adad-nārārī (II), (who was) also king of Assyria: captives of the city El(l)ipi of the land Ḫat[ti].
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 083
(1) I conquered the city [Magar]isu of Bīt-Yaḫiri.
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 084
(1) Payment of the people of the city Sarugi.
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 086
(1) Palace of [Ashurnasir]pal (II), king of the world, [king of Assyria, son of Tukultī-Ninurta (II), king of Assyria], son of Adad-nārārī (II), (who was) also king of Assyria: I conquered the city Rug(g)ulitu of Bīt-Adini.
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 087
(1) I conquered the city Y[all]gu (Alligu) [of Bīt]-Adini.
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 090
(1) I conquered the city U[l(l)]uba of Sa(n)gara, [king of the la]nd Ḫatti.
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 092
(1) I slew wild bulls on the Euphrates River.
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 094
(1) Palace of [As]hurnasirpal (II), king of the world, king of [Assyria], son of Tukultī-Ninurta (II), [king of Assyria], son of Adad-nārārī (II), (who was) also king of Assyria: I slew lions on the Baliḫ River.
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 095
(1) Palace [of Ashurnasirpal (II)], king of the world, king of Assyria, son of Tukultī-Ninurta (II), king of Assyria, son of Adad-nārārī (II), (who was) also king of [Assyria]: I slew wild bulls on the Euphrates River.
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 097
(1) Payment of Kudurru of the land [Sūḫu].
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 098
(1) To the god Enlil, king of destinies and designs, the one who makes the mountains shake, the who dwells in the Bīt-Kidmuri, the great lord, my lord: Ashurnasirpal (II), vice-regent of (the god) Aššur, son of Tukultī-Ninurta (II), (who was) also vice-regent of (the god) Aššur: I dedicated (this) for my life so that my days might be long, my years be many, (for) the well-being of my seed (and) land.
Religion & MythWriting & Literature
Ashurnasirpal II 099
Dedicates an offering to Šarrat-Kidmuri, a goddess attested almost exclusively in Assyrian royal contexts, confirming her role in Ashurnasirpal II's dynastic piety alongside the better-known cult of Aššur.
Religion & MythWriting & Literature
Ashurnasirpal II 100
Dedicatory inscription to Ea records Ashurnasirpal II consecrating a stone object for divine protection of his reign, throne, and lineage — a concrete illustration of how Neo-Assyrian kings negotiated power through temple patronage.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurnasirpal II 1001
One of the surviving manuscript witnesses to an Ashurnasirpal II inscription that names Tukulti-Ninurta II, anchoring the commemorative text within the tradition of Assyrian royal self-presentation at Kalḫu.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurnasirpal II 1003
One of the composite manuscript witnesses preserving Ashurnasirpal II's building activity, attesting the ritual language Assyrian kings used to legitimize monumental construction through divine sanction.
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 1004
(1) [...] of [the ci]ty Qatnu brings wine (and) donkeys.
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 101
(1) To the god Ninurta, the pow[erful one, …, …] the rites, [... whose] attack [in battle cannot be riva]lled, [..., the one who holds the bond of heaven and n]etherworld, the one who opens [springs, the one who walks the wide netherworld, (...)] the god Utulu, the lord of lords, [...], whose hands s[eized …, [...].
Religion & MythAshurnasirpal II 104
(1) Palace of Ashurnasirpal (II), vice-regent of (the god) Aššur, chosen of the gods Enlil and Ninurta, beloved of the gods Anu and Dagān, destructive weapon of the great gods, strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria, son of Tukultī-Ninurta (II), great king, strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria, son of Adad-nārārī (II), (who was) also king of the world (and) king of Assyria.
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 110
(1') [...] the temple of the Sebetti [...]
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurnasirpal II 111
Attests Ashurnasirpal II's construction of Ištar's Nineveh temple, anchoring his reign within a three-generation dynastic lineage while documenting royal patronage of the city's chief cult.
Religion & MythWriting & Literature
Ashurnasirpal II 112
Dedicatory inscription claiming temple property for Ištar of Nineveh, linking Ashurnasirpal II's legitimacy through three generations of royal titulature to both Enlil and Aššur.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurnasirpal II 116
One of the royal inscriptions establishing Ashurnasirpal II's three-generation Assyrian lineage, a formulaic claim that grounded his legitimacy in an unbroken line of world-kings.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurnasirpal II 118
Preserves the tripartite titulary — 'appointee of Enlil, vice-regent of Aššur, king of the world' — through which Ashurnasirpal II anchored his authority in both divine appointment and dynastic descent across three generations.
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 119
(1) Palace of Ashurnasirpal (II), king of the world, king of Assyria, son of Tukultī-Ninurta (II), (who was) also king of the world (and) king of Assyria.
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 120
(1) Palace of Ashurnasirpal (II), great king, strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria, son of Tukultī-Ninurta (II), king of the world, king of Assyria, son of Adad-nārārī (II), (who was) also king of the world (and) king of Assyria: property of the temple of the god Ninurta.
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 121
(1) Palace of Ashurnasirpal (II), king of Assyria, son of Tukultī-Ninurta (II), king of Assyria, son of Adad-nārārī (II), (who was) also king of Assyria: property of the temple of the god Ninurta.
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 122
(1) Ashurnasirpal (II), king of Assyria, son of Tulkultī-Ninurta (II), king of [Assyria], son of Adad-nārārī (II), (who was) also king of Assyria: property of the temple of the god Ninurta.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurnasirpal II 125
Anchors Ashurnasirpal II's reign in a three-generation patriline — Adad-nārārī II, Tukultī-Ninurta II, Ashurnasirpal II — asserting dynastic continuity as ideological foundation for his aggressive territorial expansion.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurnasirpal II 126
Dedicatory inscription linking Ashurnasirpal II's three-generation Enlil-appointed lineage to the Ištar temple at Nineveh, documenting royal legitimation through divine office and cultic patronage in the early Neo-Assyrian period.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurnasirpal II 127
Anchors Ashurnasirpal II's legitimacy in a three-generation chain of divine appointment — each king named vice-regent of Aššur — illustrating how Neo-Assyrian titulary encoded dynastic continuity as theological fact.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurnasirpal II 129
A standard palace titulary of Ashurnasirpal II anchoring his legitimacy in paternal succession — one of the corpus of RIAo inscriptions (Q004583) documenting how Assyrian kings constructed royal identity in stone.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurnasirpal II 130
Marks the palace contents of Ashurnasirpal II as sacred property of the god Ninurta, documenting the deliberate entanglement of royal and temple authority at the Assyrian court circa 875 BCE.
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 131
(1) [Pa]lace of Ashurnasirpal (II), king of the world, [king of] Assyria, [son of] Tukultī-Ninurta (II), king of Assyria, son of Adad-nārārī (II), (who was) also king of Assyria: facing (brick) of the well of the temple of the Sebetti.
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 133
(1) Ashurnasirpal, appointee of the god Enlil, vice-regent of (the god) Aššur, son of Tukultī-Ninurta (II), appointee of the god Enlil, vice-regent of (the god) Aššur, son of Adad-nārārī (II), appointee of the god Enlil, vice-regent of (the god) Aššur: (3b) I completed the temple of the goddess Ištar of Nineveh, my lady, from its foundation(s) to its crenellations and (then) paved (its courtyard).
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 134
(1) Ashurnasirpal, appointee of the god Enlil, vice-regent of (the god) Aššur, son of Tukultī-Ninurta (II), appointee of the god Enlil, vice-regent of (the god) Aššur, son of Adad-nārārī (II) (who was) also appointee of the god Enlil (and) vice-regent of (the god) Aššur: At that time, I built the temple of the goddess Ištar of Nineveh, my lady, from its foundation(s) to its crenellations.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurnasirpal II 135
Records Ashurnasirpal II's claim to have built the temple of Ištar of Nineveh, anchoring his legitimacy in divine patronage and a three-generation royal genealogy reaching back to Adad-nārārī II.
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 136
(1) Palace of Ashurnasirpal (II), <king of the world>, king of Assyria, son of Tukultī-Ninurta (II), (who was) also king of the world (and) king of Assyria: I built and constructed the temple of the goddess Ištar of Nineveh.
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 138
(1) Ashurnasirpal (II), appointee of the god Enlil, vice-regent of (the god) Aššur, son of Tukultī-Ninurta (II), appointee of the god Enlil, vice-regent of (the god) Aššur, son of Adad-nārārī (II), appointee of the god Enlil, vice-regent of (the god) Aššur: (4) (As for) the five towers from the towers of the Kalkal Gate to the towers of the gates [(which one uses) when entering]the forecourt of the god Nunnamnir, [...] … [...] …
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 140 add (Ashurnasirpal II 141 add)
(1) Palace of Ashurnasirpal (II), vice-regent of Aššur, favorite of Enlil and Ninurta, beloved of Anu and Dagan, overwhelming weapon of the great gods, mighty king, king of the world, king of Assyria, son of Tukulti-Ninurta (II), great king, mighty king, king of the world, king of Assyria, son of Adad-nerari (II), likewise king of the world, king of Assyria; (3b) heroic man who acts with the help of Aššur, his lord, and has no equal among the rulers of the four world regions; marvellous shepherd, fearless in battle, towering flood-wave which has no rival; king who forces those unsubmissive to…
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 151 add
(1) Palace of Ashurnasirpal (II), vice-regent of Aššur, favorite of Enlil and Ninurta, beloved of Anu and Dagan, overwhelming weapon of the great gods, mighty king, king of the world, king of Assyria, son of Tukulti-Ninurta (II), great king, mighty king, king of the world, king of Assyria, son of Adad-nerari (II), likewise king of the world, king of Assyria; (4b) heroic man who acts with the help of Aššur, his lord, and has no equal among the rulers of the four world regions; marvellous shepherd, fearless in battle, towering flood-wave which has no rival; king who forces those unsubmissive to…
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 152 add
(1) Palace of Ashurnasirpal, great king, strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria, son of Tukultī-Ninurta (II), great king, strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria, son of Adad-nārārī (II) (who was) also great king, strong king, king of the world, (and) king of Assyria; (2) valiant man who acts with the support of Aššur, his lord, and has no rival among the rulers of the four quarters, marvelous shepherd, fearless in battle, mighty flood-tide which has no opponent, (3) the king who subdued (the territory stretching) from the opposite bank of the Tigris to Mount Lebanon and the…
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 2004
(1) To the god Adad, canal inspector of heaven and netherworld, who sends abundant rain, who provides pasturage and watering for the peoples in all of the communities, who provides temple shares and offerings for the gods his brothers, canal inspector of rivers, who brings prosperity to the (four) quarters (of the world), the compassionate god to whom it is good to pray, who resides in the city Guzāna, great lord, his lord: (8b) Adda-itʾī, governor of the city Guzānu, son of Šamaš-nūrī, (who was) also governor of the city Guzāna, has devoted and dedicated (this object) for his life so that…
Religion & MythWriting & LiteratureAshurnasirpal II 2006 / CDLI Seals 006501
(1) Property of [...]. (2) (erasure) (3) Mušēzi[b-Ninurta dedicated] (this) to the god Sa[mnuḫa] for his life.
LawReligion & MythAshurnasirpal II 2007
(1) Palace of Mušēzib-Ninurta, vice-regent.
LawReligion & MythAdad-nerari III 01
(1) Palace of Adad-nārārī (III), great king, strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria, the king in whose youth (the god) Aššur, king of the Igīgū gods, chose and entrusted him with unrivalled rulership: he conquered and gained dominion over everything from the Great Sea of the Rising Sun to the Great Sea of the Setting Sun; (9b) son of Šamšī-Adad (V), great king, strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria, unrivalled king, (grand)son of Shalmaneser (III), king of the four quarters (of the world), who slew all of his enemies and annihilated (them) like a flood, (great) grandson of…
LawReligion & MythAdad-nerari III 03
(1) Boundary stone of Adad-nārārī (III), king of Assyria, son of Šamšī-Adad (V), king of Assyria, (and of) Semiramis, the palace-woman of Šamšī-Adad (V), king of Assyria, mother of Adad-nārārī (III), strong king, king of Assyria, daughter-in-law of Shalmaneser (III), king of the four quarters (of the world). (7b) When Ušpilulume, king of the city Kummuḫu, caused Adad-nārārī (III), king of Assyria, (and) Semiramis, the palace woman, to cross the Euphrates River, I (Adad-nārārī) fought a pitched battle with them — with Attār-šumki, son of Abi-rāmu, of the city Arpad, together with eight kings…
LawReligion & MythAdad-nerari III 04
(1') ... [...] they drew the yoke of [my lordly majesty. The kings of the wide land Ḫatti], who, in the time of Šamšī-[Adad (V), my father, had become strong and caused] the lords of the Orontes/Euphrates River [to rebel, ...] he heard [of my approach] and Attār-š[umki, ...] trusting [in his own strength, attacked to wage war and strife. I defeated him (and)] took away his camp. [...] the treasure of [his] palace [I carried off ... Attār-šumki], son of A(bī)-rāme, [...] I received, without number. [...] ... [...]
LawReligion & MythAdad-nerari III 05
(1) [Adad-nārārī (III), great king], strong [king], king of the world, king of Assyria, son of Šamšī-Adad (V), [king of the world, king of Assyria, son of] Shalmaneser (III), king of the four quarters (of the world): (3) I mustered (my) [chariotry, troops] and armed forces and [gave the order to march] to the land Ḫatti. I crossed the Euphrates River in flood. (5) I went down [to the city Paqarḫu]buni. Attār-šumki, [son of Abi-rāmu, together with eight kin]gs of the land Ḫatti, who had rebelled and [trusted in their strength] – the awesome radiance of the god Aššur, my lord, [overwhelmed…
LawReligion & MythAdad-nerari III 06
(1) [To] the god Adad, canal inspector of heaven and netherworld, son of the god Anu, the perfectly splendid hero whose strength is mighty, foremost of all of the Igīgū gods, warrior of the Anunnakū gods, who is bedecked with luminosity, who rides the great storms (and) is clothed with fierce brilliance, who lays low the evil, who bears a holy whip, who makes the lightning flash, the great lord, his lord: (6) [Adad-nār]ārī (III), great king, strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria, unrivalled king, marvelous shepherd, the exalted vice-regent whose prayers (and) sacrifices the great…
LawReligion & MythAdad-nerari III 07
(1) To the god Adad, the almighty lord, powerful noble of the gods, son of the god Anu, unique, awesome, supreme, canal inspector of heaven and netherworld, who rains down abundance, who dwells in the city Zamaḫu, the great lord, his lord: (3) Adad-nārārī (III), strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria, son of Šamšī-Adad (V), king of the world, king of Assyria, son of Shalmaneser (III), king of the four quarters (of the world): (4) I mustered my chariotry, troops, (and) armed forces (and) ordered the march to the land Ḫatti. In one year, I made lands Amurru (and) Ḫatti in their (text…
LawReligion & MythAdad-nerari III 08
(1) Palace of Adad-nārārī (III), great king, strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria; the king in whose youth (the god) Aššur, king of the Igīgū gods, chose, entrusted him with unrivalled rulership, made his shepherdship pleasing like a healing drug to the people of Assyria, (and) established his throne; the holy priest who unceasingly provides for Ešarra (and) maintains the rites of Ekur, the one who campaigns with the support of (the god) Aššur, his lord, and subdues the rulers of the four quarters (of the world); (5b) the conqueror from Mount Siluna in the east, the lands Namri,…
LawReligion & MythAdad-nerari III 09
(1) [Adad-nārārī (III), great king], strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria, [son of Šamš]ī-Adad (V), strong king, king [of the world], king of Assyria, [son of Shal]maneser (III), king of the four quarters (of the world): (4) Decree: he entrusted the land Ḫindānu to Pālil-[ēreš], the governor of the land Raṣappa. The state service is under his authority. (6) Whoever lays claim against the provisions of the decree, which is (in favor) of Pālil-ēreš, the governor of the land Raṣappa (and) governor [of the land Ḫindānu], ... [...] his agent. Whoever [... files a] suit before the king…
LawReligion & MythAdad-nerari III 10
(1) For the goddess Bēlet-parṣē, his lady: Adad-nārārī (III), king of Assyria, son of Šamšī-Adad (V), (who was) also king of Assyria, dedicated (this) for his life.
Religion & MythWriting & LiteratureAdad-nerari III 11
(1) For the goddess Bēlet-parṣē, his lady: Adad-nārārī (III), son of Šamšī-[Adad] (V), dedicated (this) for his life.
LawReligion & MythAdad-nerari III 12
(1) Palace of Adad-nārārī (III), king of the world, king of Assyria, son of Šamšī-Adad (V), king of the world, king of Assyria, (and) son of Shalmaneser (III), king of Assyria: belonging to the facing [of the temple of (the god) Aššur].
LawReligion & Myth
Adad-nerari III 13
Records Adad-nārārī III completing a palace left unfinished by his father Šamšī-Adad V, attesting the dynastic continuity rhetoric Assyrian kings used to legitimise building projects inherited across reigns.
LawReligion & Myth
Adad-nerari III 14
Documents Adad-nērārī III's reconstruction of Nabû's Nineveh temple, anchoring the god's growing cult prominence in the Assyrian heartland to a datable early eighth-century royal patron.
LawReligion & Myth
Adad-nerari III 15
Adad-nerari III's royal titulary chains three successive kings as Enlil's appointees and Aššur's vice-regents, attesting the dynastic legitimation formula the Assyrians used to anchor living rule in divine mandate.
LawReligion & Myth
Adad-nerari III 16
Royal titulary of Adad-nārārī III anchors his legitimacy in two generations of conquest kings, Šamšī-Adad V and Shalmaneser III, illustrating how Assyrian rulers constructed dynastic authority through inscribed genealogy.
LawReligion & MythAdad-nerari III 20
(1') [Adad-nārārī (III), king of Assyria, son of Šamšī-Adad V, king of Assyria], son of Shalmaneser (III), (who was) also king of Assyria.
LawReligion & MythAdad-nerari III 2002
(1) To the god Nabû, the heroic (and) exalted one, the son of Esagil, the wise (and) splendid one, the mighty ruler, the heir of the god Nudimmud — whose command is supreme — the one who is skilled in the arts, the one who oversees all of heaven and netherworld, the expert in everything, the wise one who can write (lit. “holder of the tablet stylus”), the learned one of the scribal art(s), the merciful (and) judicious one (5) who has the power to depopulate (and) repopulate (a country), the beloved of the god Enlil — the lord of lords, whose might has no rival, without whom there can be no…
LawReligion & MythAdad-nerari III 2003
(1) Seal of Bēl-tarṣi-ilumma, eunuch of Adad-nārārī (III), king of the world, the governor of the city Kalḫu (and) the lands [Ḫamed]ê, Temeni, (and) Yaluna. I have trusted in you, O Nabû, let me not be put to shame!
LawReligion & MythAdad-nerari III 2005
(1) Property of Rēmanni-ilu, eunuch of Bēl-tarṣi-ilumma, the governor of the city Kalḫu.
LawReligion & MythAdad-nerari III 2006
(1) Property of Pālil-ēreš, eunuch, the governor of the city Nēmed-Ištar (and) of the land Raṣappa.
LawReligion & MythAdad-nerari III 2009
(1) He gave (this) to Ištar-dūrī, eunuch of Nergal-ilāʾī (and) field marshal, his protector. Property of Bīrtāyu, eunuch of Adad-nārārī (III), king of Assyria.
LawReligion & MythAdad-nerari III 2010
(1) The god Aššur, the great lord, the king of the gods [who] decrees destinies; the god Anu, the mighty (and) foremost one, the ancestor of the great gods; the god Enlil, the father of the gods, the lord of the lands who makes kingship great; the god Ea, the wise one, the king of the apsû who grants wisdom; (5) the god Marduk, the sage of the gods, the lord of omens, the commander of all; the god Nabû, the scribe of Esagil, the possessor of the tablet of destinies of [the gods] who resolves differences; [the god] Sîn, the luminary [of heaven and netherworld], the lord of the lunar disk who…
LawReligion & MythAdad-nerari III 2011
(1') [...] troops [...] the river [...] wagon, might of the fearful flood, [...] strife. Šamšī-ilu, a man (who is) fearless [in battle, ...] ... upon his steeds, the extensive river [... (5´) ...] to him and Argišti, in the midst of battle, the bow [... he (Argišti) abandoned] his camp (and) with a single horse he [disappeared]. (6-b) [...] him and the army of the land Amurru, the people of Nir... [...] evil approaching (and) rebellion becoming rife (lit. “strong”) [...] his/its meadow like a ..., like a ... [... (10´) ...] ... the blood of his warriors being shed, with redness [it dyed ...]…
LawReligion & MythAdad-nerari III 2012
(1') the chief of the extensive army. (2') At that time, I built a city on the border of Baltil (Aššur), by Mount Ebiḫ, on the bank of the Tigris River, and surrounded it entirely (with a wall). I built (and) completed (it) from its foundations to its crenellations. I called the name of that city Šarru-iddina. (9') I wrote my commemorative inscription and (thus) established my name for eternity. May those who come after see this commemorative inscription of mine. May they heed my name and [...]
LawReligion & MythAdad-nerari III 2013
(1) For (the god) Aššur, his lord, has Šamšī-ilu, the field marshal, dedicated (this) for his life.
LawReligion & MythAdad-nerari III 2014
(1) Property of Šamšī-ilu, the field marshal.
LawReligion & MythAdad-nerari III 2015
(1) Seal of Nabû-šarru-uṣur, eunuch of Adad-nārārī (III), king of Assyria.
LawReligion & MythAdad-nerari III 2016 / CDLI Seals 007055
(1) For the goddess Gula, his lady: Pān-Aššur-lāmur, the governor of Baltil (Aššur), dedicated (this) for the life of Adad-nārārī (III), king of Assyria, (and) his (own) life.
Religion & MythWriting & LiteratureAdad-nerari III 2017
(1) Seal of Bēl-dayyānī, eunuch of Adad-nārārī (III), king of Assyria.
LawReligion & MythAdad-nerari III 2018 add
(1') who resides in the ciy Dūr-kat[limmu, the] holy [shrine], his beloved abode, the great lord, his lord: (3') Pālil-ēreš, [the gover]nor of the land R[asappa], the city [Nēmed-Ištar, (and) the city Apk]u, had a gol[den sw]ord made and made and presented an image of Adad-nārārī (III), king of Assyria, his lord, to the god Salmānu (Text: “Adad-nārārī, king of Assyria”), his lord, who protects the throne of his priesthood, to give into his hands the scepter that shepherds the people, for the well-being of his seed, the well-being of the people of Assyria and the well-being of Assyria, to…
LawReligion & MythAdad-nerari III 21
For (the god) Aššur, the great lord, his lord: Adad-nārārī (III), appointee of the god [Enlil, vice-regent of (the god) Aššur], son of Šamšī-Adad (V), [appointee of the god Enlil], vice-regent of (the god) Aššur, son of Shalmaneser (III), (who was) also [appointee] of the god Enlil and vice-regent of (the god) Aššur, [dedicated (this)] for his life (and) [the well-being of his seed] and his land.
LawReligion & MythAššur-dan III 1
(1) [(...)] Aššur-dān (III), appointee of the god Enlil, vice-regent [of (the god) Aššur (...), son of] Adad-nārārī (III), appointee of the god Enlil, vice-regent of (the god) Ašš[ur (...), son of] Šamšī-Adad (V), [(who was) also] appointee of the god Enlil and vice-regent of [(the god) Aššur (...)]: (4) [(...)] the main courtyard of Eḫursa[gkurkurra ...] the main courtyard [...]
LawReligion & MythAššur-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 [...].
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 001
Documents Ashurbanipal's forced resettlement of conquered populations into Egypt and the Levantine town of Qirbit — a concrete case of Assyrian demographic engineering as an instrument of imperial control.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 002
Lists nine deities who legitimise Ashurbanipal's rule, each sponsoring a different royal quality — a snapshot of the theological machinery the Neo-Assyrian court used to underwrite imperial authority.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 003
Claims divine sanction for Ashurbanipal's literacy — the gods granted him 'a broad mind' to master the scribal arts — embedding scholarly kingship ideology at the heart of Assyrian royal self-presentation.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 004
Claims divine sanction not just for Ashurbanipal's military power but for his scribal learning — one of the clearest royal assertions that literacy itself was a gift of the gods and a mark of legitimate kingship.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 005
Claims divine sanction for Ashurbanipal's legendary scribal literacy — a rare royal boast that a king personally mastered cuneiform learning, framing intellectual mastery as a god-given mark of legitimate rule.
Religion & MythWriting & Literature
Ashurbanipal 006
Claims Ashurbanipal completed Esarhaddon's unfinished temples — including Eḫursaggalkurkurra at Aššur — framing construction piety as dynastic continuity and divine sanction for his kingship.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 007
Records Ashurbanipal's restoration of Marduk's chariot and shrine roof, linking Assyrian royal piety toward Babylon's chief god to the ideological balancing act of ruling both Assyria and Babylonia simultaneously.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 008
Documents Ashurbanipal's restoration of Sîn and Nusku to their temples and his refurbishment of sanctuaries across Assyria and Akkad, anchoring the king's legitimacy in cultic patronage rather than military conquest.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 009
Attests the Sargonid practice of legitimating a crown prince through divine pre-election — Sîn's nomination in the womb — positioning Ashurbanipal's rule as cosmically ordained before Esarhaddon's formal designation.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 010
Ashurbanipal's titulature — king of Assyria, Babylon, Sumer, and Akkad simultaneously — encapsulates the ideological claim that one ruler could hold the entire Mesopotamian world-order, north and south, under a single divine mandate.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 011
Declares Ashurbanipal's kingship divinely foreordained from the womb by Aššur, Sîn, Šamaš, Adad, and Ištar — anchoring Sargonid legitimacy theology in a chain of gods stretching from conception to coronation.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 012
Records Ashurbanipal's lavish furnishing of Ezida at Borsippa — an ebony bed for Marduk, silver wild-bull guardians, and 83 talents of zaḫalû-metal — documenting Assyrian royal patronage of the great Babylonian sanctuaries.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 013
Preserves Ashurbanipal's own account of his divine mandate, naming seven patron deities across Assyrian and Babylonian pantheons — evidence of deliberate theological synthesis at the height of Sargonid imperial ideology.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 014
Fuses two registers of Sargonid kingship in a single text: the lone-archer lion hunt staged as cosmic spectacle, and the Addaru akītu-festival linking royal legitimacy to the queen of the gods.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 015
Ashurbanipal claims the wisdom of the antediluvian sage Adapa as personal divine endowment — coupling scribal mastery with military might to justify one king's embodiment of both priestly and warrior ideals.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 016
Chronicles the chaotic succession crisis in Elam after Urtaku's death — rival claimants dying of mouse-bite and dropsy before the demon-like Teumman seized the throne — framing Assyrian intervention as cosmic necessity.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 017
Records Elamite court violence — the killing of Indabibi and enthronement of Ḫumban-ḫaltaš III — framed as divinely ordained Assyrian dominance, linking Sargonid royal ideology directly to datable Elamite dynastic upheaval c. 655 BCE.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 018
Preserves Ashurbanipal's account of Elamite vassal Indabibi's submission — fragmentary but direct evidence of how Assyrian royal inscriptions legitimised dominance over post-Teumman Elam.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 019
Documents Assyrian military operations against Elamite royal survivors after the fall of Teumman, then records a diplomatic rupture: Ummanigaš detained Ashurbanipal's envoy and broke off communication — a prelude to renewed Assyrian-Elamite war.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 020
Records Ashurbanipal's desecration of Elamite royal tombs and the repatriation of Nanāya's cult statue to Uruk after 1,635 years — anchoring a precise, self-serving Assyrian chronology of divine abandonment and imperial restoration.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 021
Lists cult centers and temple furnishings restored by Ashurbanipal — including Emeslam at Cuthah, seat of Nergal — documenting the king's systematic program of sanctuary patronage across Assyria and Babylonia.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 022
Records Ashurbanipal's furnishing of Marduk's sanctuary at Babylon — an ebony bed clad in gold, silver pirkus weighing six talents each — charting the Assyrian king's calculated piety toward the Babylonian god after decades of fraught Assyro-Babylonian conflict.
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 023
(1) [For the goddess Mul]lis[s]u, exalted ruler, the pre-eminent one among the Igīgū and Anunnakū gods, the most splendid of goddesses, the que[en of que]ens, the Ištar worthy of praise, who is endo[w]ed with sexual charm (and) filled with awe-inspiring radiance, the supreme lady whose lordly majesty is the most outstanding (and) whose divinity is the greatest among the gods of [a]ll settlements, the very competent one, the lady of all things that (are found) in the whole (lit. “territory”) of heav[e]n and netherworld, [the one who holds] the bond of the bright firmament, who[se] place is…
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 024
(1) I conquered, plund[ered, ...] the city Birtu-ša-Adad-rēmanni, of/which [...] the Manneans.
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 025
(1) Teumman, <who>, during a loss of (all) reason, said to his son: “Shoot the bow!”
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 026
(1) Teumman, the king of the land Elam who had been struck during a mighty battle (and) whose hand Tammarītu, his eldest son, had grasped — they fled in order to save his (Teumman’s) life (and) slipped into the forest. With the support of (the god) Aššur and goddess Ištar, I killed them. I cut off their head(s) in front of one another.
Religion & MythAshurbanipal 027
(1) The head of Teum[man, the king of the land Elam], which a common soldier in my army [had cut off] in the midst of bat[tle]. They dispatched (it) quickly to As[syria] to (give me) the good ne[ws].
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 028
(1) Ur[t]aku, an in-law of Teumman who had been struck by an a[rro]w (but) had not (yet) died, called out to an Assyrian to c[ut of]f his (Urtaku’s) own head, saying “Come here (and) cut off (my) head. Carry (it) before the king, your lord, and obtain fame.”
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 029
(1) Itunî, a eunuch of Teumman, the king of the land Elam, whom he (Teumman) insolently sent again and again before me, saw my mighty battle array and, with his iron belt-dagger, cut with his own hand (his) bow, the emblem of his strength.
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 031
(1) [Battle line of Ashurbanipal, king of A]ssyria, the one who established the de[feat of the land Elam].
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 032
(1) The defeat of the troops of Teumman, the king of [the land Elam], which Ashurbanipal, [great king, strong king], king of the world, king of Assyria, [had brought about] (by inflicting) countless (losses) at (the city) Tīl-Tūba, (and during which) he had cast down the corpses of [his (Teumman’s)] w[arriors].
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 033
(1) The fugitive [U]mmanigaš (Ḫumban-nikaš II), a servant who had grasped my feet. When I gave the command (lit. “at the working of my mouth”) in (the midst of) celebration, a eunuch of mine whom [I had] sent (with him) ushered (him) in[to] the land Madaktu and the city Susa and placed him on the throne of Teu[mman, whom] I [had def]eated.
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 035
(1) I, Ashurbanipal, king of the world, king of Assyria, [who] with the support of (the god) Aššur and the goddess Ištar, my lords, conquered my [enemies] (and) achieved my heart’s desire. (3b) Rusâ, the king of the land Urarṭu, heard about the mi[gh]t of (the god) Ašš[ur], my [lo]rd, and fear of my royal majesty overwhelmed him and he (then) sent his envoys to me in Arbela, to inquire about my well-being. I made Nabû-damiq (and) Umbadarâ, envoys of the land Elam, stand before them with writing boards (inscribed with) insolent m[es]sages.
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 036
(1) (PN₁ and PN₂) uttered grievous blasphemies against (the god) Aššur, the god who created me. I tore out their tongue(s and) flayed them.
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 038
(1) I, Ashurbanipal, king of the world, king of Assyria, who by the command of the great gods, achieved his heart’s desires: They paraded before [m]e clothing (and) jewelry, royal appurtenances of Šamaš-šu[ma-u]kīn — (my) unfaithful brother — his palace women, his [eun]uchs, his battle troops, a chariot, a processional carriage, [the ve]hicle of his lordly majesty, every necessity of his palace, as much as there was, (and) people — male and female, young (and) old.
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 040
(1) I surrounded, conquered, (and) plundered the city Ḫamanu, a royal city of the land Elam.
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 041
(1) I surrounded, conquered, plundered, destroyed, demolished, (and) burned with fire the city Ḫamanu, a royal city of the land Elam.
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 042
(1) [...] the city [Bīt]-Bunakku, a [(royal)] city [of the land Elam].
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 043
(1) I, Ashurbanipal, king of the world, king of Assyria, who b[y the command of (the god) Aššur and] the goddess Mullissu, achieved his heart’s desires, surro[und]ed (and) conquered the city Din[šarri, a ci]ty of the land Elam. [I brought] out [chariot]s, wagons, horses, (and) mules and I cou[nted] (them) as booty.
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 044
(1) I surrounded, conquered, (and) plundered the cit[y] ..., a royal city of the land Elam.
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 045
(1) [I surrounded, conquered, destroyed, dem]olished, (and) [burned] with fire [the city ...]tu, a city of the land [Elam].
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 047
(1) I, [Ashurbanipal, king of the world, king of Assyria], who with [the support of (the god) Aššur and the goddess Ištar, (...), conquered his] enem[ies, ...] plu[ndered ...] of [...].
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 049
(1) [Ummanaldaš (Ḫumban-ḫaltaš III), (the king of the land Elam) who had seen the rage of] the weapon of (the god) Aššur, my lord, [(...) and had returned] from the mountain(s), his place of refuge. [PN, the city rul]er of the city Murubissi (Marubišti), [thought about ... the migh]t of (the god) Aššur, my lord, [and ...]. He seized Ummanaldaš, and [...] brought him before me.
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 050
(1) [... who] love his good [d]e[e]ds (lit. “[the] good [d]ee[ds of] his hands”), all of the rulers of the entiret[y of the lands ... — (As for) Tammarītu, Paʾê, (and) Ummanalda]šu (Ḫumban-ḫaltaš III), kings of the land Elam whom [I] had defeat[ed] with the support of (the god) Aššur and the goddess Mullissu, [...] they [sto]od [...] and (then) they prepared their royal meal with their own hands and had (it) brought [before me].
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 051
(1) [I, Ashurbani]pal, king of the world, king of Assyria, [who with the support of (the god) Aššur and the goddess Ištar], conquered his enemies [..., surrounded (and) conquered the ci]ty Bīt-Luppi. [I brought out the pe]ople living in it, [chariots, wagons], horses, (and) [mules and] counted (them) as [boo]ty.
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 052
(1) [...] had incited [(...)] to rebel [against (the god) Aššur and the goddess] Ištar and [he] prepared for battle. At the beginning of his fight, in the city [..., w]ho had encouraged me, a small body of troops [brought about] the defeat of [his] troops. [... t]heir [...], the rest of them who had fled when (they were) defeated ... [...]. They were speaking [as] follows, saying: “Do not be frightened! (The god) Aššur [...].”
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 054
(1) I, Ashurbanipal, king of the world, king of Assyria, for who[m] (the god) Aššur — the king of the gods — (and) the goddess Ištar — the lady of battle — determined a destiny of heroism, [...]: The god Palil, the one who goes before me, let me go triumphantly hunting in the steppe. For pleasure ... [...] I went out. (3b) In the steppe, a widespread place, rag[ing] lions, a ferocious mountain breed, attacked [me and] surrounded the chariot, the vehicle of my royal majesty. By the command of (the god) Aššur (and) the goddess [Ištar], the great gods, my lords, with a single team [harnes]sed to…
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 055
(1) I, Ashurbanipal, king of the world, king of Assyria — while (carrying out) [my princely] spor[t], they had [a fi]erce [lion] that was born in the steppe (lit. “of its plain”) brought out of a cage and, while on foot, I pierced (it) three times with arrow(s) [(but)] its life did not come to an end. Through the command of the god Palil, the king of the steppe who had generously gr<anted> me power (and) vir[ilit]y, I subsequently stabbed it with my iron belt-dagger [(and)] it laid down (its) life.
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 056
(1) I, Ashurbanipal, king of the world, king of Assyria, while enjoying myself on foot, seized a fierce lion that was born in the steppe (lit. “of its plain”) by its ear and, with the support of (the god) Aššur and the goddess Ištar — the lady of battle — pierced its body with the lance that was in my hand.
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 057
(1) I, Ashurbanipal, king of the world, king of Assyria, while (carrying out) my princely sport, seized a lion that was born in the steppe (lit. “of its plain”) by its tail and, through the command of the gods Ninurta (and) Nergal, the gods who support me, shattered its skull with the mace that was in my hand.
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 058
(1) I, Ashurbanipal, king of the world, king of Assyria, to whom (the god) Aššur (and) the goddess Mullissu have granted outstanding strength, set up the fierce bow of the goddess Ištar — the lady of battle — over the lions that I had killed. I made an offering over them (and) poured (a libation of) wine over them.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 059
Credits Nabû's divine command for Ashurbanipal's defeat of four successive Elamite kings — including Teumman's beheading at the Battle of Til-Tuba — and their humiliation as carriage-pullers, linking Assyrian military conquest explicitly to scribal-god patronage.
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 060
(1) For the goddess Mullissu, the lady of the lands who dwells in Emašmaš: (2) Ashurbanipal, king of Assyria, the ruler who reveres her, the governor (who is) the creation of her hands, who, at her great command, cut off the head of Teumman, the king of the land Elam, in the thick of battle. (6) Moreover, with her great support, I defeated Ummanigaš (Ḫumban-nikaš II), Tammarītu, Paʾê, (and) Ummanaldašu (Ḫumban-ḫaltaš III), who had exercised kingship over the land Elam after Teumman, and (then) harnessed them to a processional carriage, the vehicle of my royal majesty. (11) Furthermore, at her…
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 061
(1) Ashurbanipal, great king, strong king, king of the world, king of As[syria], the pious servant, the one who reveres the great gods, beloved of the god Aššur and the goddess Mullissu, the one required by the gods Nabû and Marduk, the one who protects the secret knowledge of the great gods, (5) the one who is assiduous towards san[ctuari]es, the holy priest whose gi[ving of food off]erings the gods of heaven (and) netherworld enj[oy], the one who ... Ešarra, the one who am[a]sses te[mple] appurtenance(s), (8) (No translation possible) (13) [I] made (him) t[ake] his seat in [his] (own)…
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 062
(1) T[o the gre]at [lord, ...], powerful, sple[n]di[d, ...], foremost among the Igīgū and Anunnakū gods, lord of [...], unrivalled king, my lord, ... [...]: (5) I, Ashurbanipal, king of [Assyria, ...] ... [... the one who] is assiduous towards [your] place[s (of worship), ...] who day and night ... [...], the one who reveres your gre[at] divinity [...] ... [...] the one who directs gods and hum[anity ...], the one who prolongs (my) days, [...], I, Ashurba[nipal, ...], (rev. 1) son of the king of the gods [...] in his good physical health [...], shepherdship ... [...] (r 4) You (Marduk), be…
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 063
(1) The palace of Ashurbanipal, king of the world, king of [Assyria], the one who conquered the wi[de] land Elam (and) who devastated [its] settl[ements], son of Esarhaddon, king of the world, king of A[ssyria], son of Sennacherib, king of the world, king of [Assyria], descendant of Sargon (II), king of the world, king of [Assyria] — after [I had brought about] the defeat of <Te>umman i[n battle], by the command of the gods Aššur and Marduk, in[side Nineveh, ...] an i[mage of] my [royal majest]y [...]
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 064
(1) The palace of Ashurbanipal, great king, strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria, son of Esarhaddon, king of Assyria, son of Sennacherib, (who was) also king of Assyria.
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 065
(1) The palace of Ashurbanipal, king of the world, king of Assyria, son of Esarhaddon, king of Assyria, son of Sennacherib, [(who was) also king of] Assyria.
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 066
(1) Seal of Ashurbani[pal, king of the world, king of Assyria, son of Esarhaddon, king of Assyria, son of Sennacherib, (who was) also king of Assyria].
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 067
(1) [The palace of Ashurbanipal, king of the world, king of Assyria, son of Esarhaddon], king of Assyria, [son of Senna]cherib, [(who was) also king of] Assyria.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 068
One of the standard royal titulary inscriptions of Ashurbanipal (RINAP 5, Q003767), attesting the Sargonid formula — great king, strong king, king of the world — as a fixed ideological claim to universal sovereignty.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 069
Attests Ashurbanipal's full titulary tracing legitimacy through Esarhaddon and Sennacherib — the dynastic chain the Sargonids used to anchor royal authority across three generations.
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 070
(1) [The palace of Ashurbanipal, (great king, strong king,) king of the world, king of Assyria, son of Esa]rhaddon, king of the world, king of [Assyria, son of Sennacher]ib, king of Assyria, son of Sargon (II), (who was) also king of Assyria.
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 071
(1) [The one who bro]ught about the defeat of [the land] Elam.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 072
Attests Esarhaddon's conquest of Egypt and Kush as refracted through Ashurbanipal's own royal ideology: the renaming of cities and installation of vassal kings recorded here illuminates how Assyria consolidated its briefest, most audacious imperial overreach.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 073
Chronicles Ashurbanipal's first campaign against Taharqa of Egypt and Kush, picking up directly from Esarhaddon's earlier conquest and documenting Assyria's sustained military pressure on the Twenty-Fifth Dynasty.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 074
Records a Lydian king's dream-oracle in which a deity commands him to grasp Ashurbanipal's feet, linking Assyrian royal power to Gyges of Lydia's campaigns against the Cimmerians — one of the few cuneiform texts to name a Lydian ruler.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 075
Names eleven divine sponsors of Ashurbanipal's Mannean campaign and records a night ambush routed across three leagues of steppe — pinning Assyrian theology of divinely mandated conquest to a specific military engagement.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 076
Chronicles Ashurbanipal's recapture of Mannean-occupied cities — Paddiri, Arsiyaniš, Eristeyana — documenting Assyrian efforts to reassert the northeastern frontier against a rival highland power.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 077
Records an Arab chieftain sending his daughter as housekeeper and reinstating lapsed tribute payments to Ashurbanipal — direct evidence of how the Assyrian court enforced loyalty through dynastic hostage-taking and fiscal obligation.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 078
Records Ashurbanipal's reimposition of tribute on the Median ruler Uallî — including thirty additional horses — and his simultaneous campaigns against Median city-rulers who had defected, documenting Assyrian methods of coercion and reward on the empire's eastern frontier.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 079
Records Assyria's grain relief to famine-struck Elam and the repatriation of Elamite refugees — then frames Urtaku's subsequent aggression as ingratitude, revealing how Sargonid kings cast humanitarian acts as instruments of political obligation.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 080
Records Urtaku of Elam's unprovoked invasion of Babylonia despite Ashurbanipal's prior goodwill — a rare Assyrian royal account of the diplomatic breakdown that triggered the Assyro-Elamite wars of the 650s BCE.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 081
Records Ashurbanipal's justification for invading Elam: Teumman's persecution of the royal Elamite refugees gave the Assyrian king a dynastic-legitimacy pretext rather than a naked conquest.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 082
Names five Elamite kings — Ummanigaš, Ummanappi, Tammarītu, Kudurru, and Parrû — abandoned their thrones rather than face Assyrian arms, supplying a rare royal-inscription checklist of the dynastic chaos that consumed Elam after 653 BCE.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 083
Ashurbanipal justifies refusing extradition of Elamite royal refugees to Teumman — framing the rejection as divine command — before narrating the campaign that ended at the Battle of the Ulaya River, 653 BCE.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 084
Links a lunar eclipse, divine omens, and the Elamite king's physical affliction — paralyzed lip, diminished eye — to justify Ashurbanipal's campaign: a rare royal text weaving extispicy logic directly into annalistic narrative.
Religion & MythAstronomy & Mathematics
Ashurbanipal 085
Records Ashurbanipal's installation of Ummanigaš II on the Elamite throne after Teumman's defeat — a rare royal account of Assyrian-engineered regime change in Elam, corroborating the annals' narrative of the 653 BCE Ulai campaign.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 086
Chronicles Aššurbanipal's installation of Tammarītu as an Elamite client king and the subsequent Gambulu campaign — concrete evidence of Assyria's strategy of dynastic manipulation to pacify its eastern frontier.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 087
Charges the Elamite king Tammarītu with accepting bribes from the rebel Šamaš-šuma-ukīn: direct Assyrian royal testimony on the diplomacy that nearly split the empire in the 650s BCE.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 088
Records Elamite king Indabibi's return of Assyrian captives seized by Nabû-bēl-šumāti — a grandson of the legendary Babylonian rebel Merodach-baladan — documenting the tangled dynastic hostilities of the mid-7th century BCE.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 089
Records Ashurbanipal's eighth campaign against Gambulu and the capture of Dunānu alive — one of the few royal inscriptions detailing punitive operations against a tribe that defected to Elam during the Assyro-Elamite wars.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 090
Records Ashurbanipal's punitive campaign against the Arab chief Iautaʾ — looting, burning of encampments, and mass seizure of camels and livestock — giving one of the fullest Assyrian accounts of desert warfare beyond the settled frontier.
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 091
(i 1') [I constricted (and)] cut sho[rt their lives. I made] them (the people of Tyre) [b]ow down [to my yoke]. (i 3') He (Baʾalu) brought before me [(his) daughter], his [own offspring], and the daughters of his brothers [to serve as housekeepers. (i 5´) He sent at the same time his son, who] had n[ever] crossed the sea, to do obeisance to me. [I received from him his daughter and the daughters of his brothers, tog]ether with a large marriage gift. [I had mercy on him and (then)] I gave (his) son, his offspring, back to him. (i 9') [(As for) Yakīn-Lû, the king of the city Arw]ad, who resides…
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 092
Records Gyges of Lydia's dream-vision of Aššur and his subsequent embassy to Nineveh — the only cuneiform account of first contact between Assyria and the Lydian kingdom, corroborating and complicating Herodotus's version.
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 093
(1') ... [...] two tall obelisks [cast with shiny zaḫalû-metal, whose weight was 2,500 talents (and which) stood at a temple gate, I ripped (them)] from where th[ey] were erected [and took (them) to Assyria]. (4') On my second campaign, [I marched] ag[ainst Baʾalu, the king of the land Tyre who resides in the middle of the sea]. Because he did not honor my royal command(s and) did not obe[y the pronouncement(s) from my lips], I set up outposts against him. By sea (and) dry land, [I took control of (all of) his] r[outes]. I constricted (and) cut short their lives. I made [them (the people of…
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 094
Records Ashurbanipal's systematic conquest of Elamite royal cities — Madaktu, Susa, Ḫaltemaš and others — providing the Assyrian court's own account of the campaigns that effectively ended the Elamite state, c. 647 BCE.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 095
Chronicles Elamite king Tammarītu's military support for the rebel Šamaš-šuma-ukīn, supplying a rare Assyrian royal account of the political fractures that ignited the Babylonian revolt of 652–648 BCE.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 096
Lists the gods, priests, royal statues, and treasures looted from Susa, Madaktu, and Ḫurādi after Ashurbanipal's sack of Elam — the primary Assyrian record of that systematic cultural decapitation of a rival civilization.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 097
Describes the ritual reconstruction of a temple — mortar mixed with beer and wine, workers singing — preserving the ceremonial language Sargonid kings used to legitimise sacred building projects.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 098
Records Ashurbanipal's ceremonial return of Marduk and the Babylonian gods to Esagila after their Assyrian exile — a pivotal act of religious diplomacy meant to legitimise Assyrian rule over Babylon.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 099
Quantifies the precious materials — fifty talents of zaḫalû-silver and thirty-four talents of gold — lavished on Marduk's throne-dais, giving a rare cost-accounting of Assyrian royal temple patronage in Babylon.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 100
Places an Assyrian campaign against the district of Ḫunnir and destruction of Bašimu on the Hidalian border, adding localized geographic and military detail to the fragmentary record of Ashurbanipal's eastern operations.
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 1001
(o 1) Ashur/Esar/Aššur-[..., ...], son of [..., ...] (o 3) (No translation possible) (r 1') [f]rom the watering place fo[r his stronghold ...] 1/2 bread (and) 1/2 beer from the watering plac[e ...] ... the city [...]. (r 4') [(...)] second extract [...].
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 1002
(o 1') (No translation possible) (o 3') The god Ninurta, ... [...], allowed [me] to achieve [my heart’s] desire [...] (and) he returned [...]. (o 7') The goddess Queen of Nineveh, the mercifu[l mot]her, came to my side and gladly made me sit on the throne of the father who had engendered me. (o 11') The goddess Lady of Arbela, the great lady, regularly sent me favorable message(s) concerning my exercising kingship. (r 3) The goddess Gula pacified those who were insolent to me and she made ... bow dow[n (to me)]. (r 5) The Sebetti, valiant gods, [...] the left [...] ... [...] (r 8) (No translation possible)
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 1003
(1') [...] ... [...] the gods [... with] power, [...] ..., awe-inspiring radiance, (and) bril[liance ...] ... heir designate [...]. (5') [...], great [kin]g, strong king, kin[g of ..., ...] ... [...]
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 1004
(1') [...], my [lo]rd, (the god) Aššur, who ... [... for rul]ing over the lands and people [...] set out, Taharqa [...], governors, [...] (r 1') (No translation possible) (r 4') That which is (written) upon the inner sanctum of the temple of [...].
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 1005
(1') [...] ... [...] my [..., my] strength [...] (his) heart was prou[d ...] he forgot [...] and [did not remember my] favo[r(s) ... (5´) ...] his own judgment and without [divine approval ... He] trusted [in his own strength] and [answered] with disrespect. [...]. He did [not] honor [...] and he [... He did] not [...] ... the gods [...] ... [...]
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 1006
(1) (No translation possible) (r 1') ... [...] of the citad[el of ...]. Through supplications [...] with power, viril[ity, ...] (rev. 5´) by the command of the god Aššur [...] with gold, silver, [...], large horses, [...], in (the midst of) joyous celebration [...]. (r 9') The Elamites who trusted in the mass(ed might) of ... and [...].
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 1007
(1') [...] ... [...] in ... [..., who] had sent his troops [to fight with (the troops of) ..., the k]ing of Assyria, [... Egy]pt and Kush [...] to me, the land of Sumer and Akkad, (5´) [saying: “... of Karduni]aš (Babylonia), all of it, we will deliver into your hand.” [...] (who) did not remember my kindness, [...], abandoned [the ...]s of the gods, and [...]. He forgot my ... and (10´) [...] ... [...]
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 1008
(1') [...] ... [...]. He forgot [the kindness that I had do]ne for him and sinned against me. [... B]abylon ... [...] to/for [...] ... [...]
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 1009
(1') (No translation possible) (3') [...] before ... [...] for [my] troops [...] were constantly searching for [...]. They [cam]e to me and k[issed my feet. ...], the magnani[mous (and) forbearing one, ...]. (8') (No translation possible)
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 101
Claims Ashurbanipal salted sixty leagues of Elamite territory — one of the few royal inscriptions quantifying the deliberate ecological devastation used to permanently disable a conquered region.
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 1010
(o 1') [...] (the god) Aššur [...] ... [... the goddess Išta]r, the lady who loves me, ... [...] ... to/for [... from] my childhood until I became an adult, I took hold of the he[m of] her [divinit]y (and) I constantly followed [... (5´) ...] she guarded (me) with her benevole[nt] protection [...] I made [..., h]er hand, which [sustains] my life, guided me [...] she constantly kept sending [me message(s) from] my ecstatics [...] I killed my enemies (and) flattened ... [...] ... [...] ... [...] (r 1') [...] I went ... [...] ... [... i]nside the mountains, his watering place, [..., I captured]…
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 1011
(1') [...] ... [...] in [...], the king of the land Ela[m, ...] I brought [out and ...]
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 1012
(1') [...] ... [...] I sent to him and [...]. (3') [RN, (...,) his brothers], his [fa]mily, (and) the seed of hi[s] father’s house [... the eun]uch of mine whom [I had sent] to inquire abo[ut his well-being ... (5´) ..., whom ...] ... had confined [in prison, ... they] cra[wled naked upon] their [belli]es [and ...].
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 1013
(o 1') [...] ... [...]s and the noble(s), who(m) my ancestors ... [... to d]eliver payment, which [...] yearly [...] trusted [...], like an eagle [whose dwelling] is situated in a mountain cleft, [...] whose settlements are [s]ituated [...], whose forces are organized (and) [whose] troo[ps are ...]. (o 6') [The deities ...], Nabû, Sîn, Ištar, (and) Nergal, who march at [my] side, [...] ... the assault of troops (and) the setting of an atta[ck] in motion, [...] and they became terrified. They foolishly forgot [...] royal ..., including all of his extens[ive] troops, (10´) [...], (and) his…
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 1014
(A 1') [...] (the god) Aššur ... [...] the one who holds god and king [..., ...], his [..., ...] in the assembly of [..., ...] the command(s) of [the god Š]amaš and the god Adad ... [... (A 5´) ..., who ...] the four quarters (of the world) as on[e, ..., the one who] ... [the kin]gship of Assyria [...]. (A 7') [...] his furious [...] in a cr[afty] maneuver [...] to save his (own) life, to [..., he ... the w]ill of his great divinity [... (A 10´) ... the bo]rder of the city Ḫarrān ... [...] his benevolent [protecti]on (and) [his beneficent] aegis [...] the son of the king, who(m)ever [...]. (A 13') (No translation possible) (Traces of 1 or 2 signs in 9 lines)
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 1016
(o 1') (No translation possible) (o 4') [...] he did not [...] without divine approval [...]. (o 6'a) I myself, by the command of (the god) A[ššur, ...] ... [his/my] weapons [...] who/they were eating [his/their] fo[od ...] for m[y] troops [...] ... [...]. Reverse completely missing
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 1017
(o 1) The Elamite [...] ... [...] (r 1') On account of the evil deed(s), [may he/they ...] from his progeny, [...] the thr[one (of) ... May he/they ...] through his gaze.
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 1018
(1') [...] ... [...] ... he incited to become hostile ... [... to wag]e armed battle and wa[r ..., the gods/deities ...], (and) Nabû, the great gods, [... (5´) ...] who/they stood [... I did not fo]rget and [...] ... [...]
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 1019
(A 1') [... the god E]nlil [...] ... (A 3') [...] prize bul[l(s) ... he] fled an[d ... Ashur]banipal [...] him. (B 1') (No translation possible)
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 102
Documents Ashurbanipal's campaign against Ḫidalu — including the removal of its gods to Assyria — a concrete instance of the deliberate religious humiliation used to subordinate a conquered people.
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 1020
(1') [...] ... [...] I did [n]ot say [...]. In/from ... [... he se]nt [his mounted messenger] to inquire about [my] wel[l-being ...] ... which ... he blocked/decided [... (5´) ...] ... not ... [... he p]l[a]ced them [...] arranged [...] ... lie[s ...] ... [...]
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 1021
(1') [... upon] it. [...] ... [... an]d silver [... (5´) ... in] its [e]ntirety. [...] ... I made [...] reside [...]. (7') [...] great [..., ...] I filled (it) with [splen]dor. [...] I had [...] made and [... (10´) ...] its [...]
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 1022
(1') [... (of)] my [...], which [..., which] he (Sennacherib) had built [...] the terrace [... (5´) ...] I covere[d tall columns with shi]ny [copper (and) ...]. (6'b) [Eḫ]ulḫul, the templ[e of the god Sîn, which ..., the s]on of [..., had built, ...]
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 1023
(1') (No translation possible) (4') [... l]apis lazuli, (and) pappardilû-stone, pre[cious] stone(s), [... (5´) ...] cypress, sweet reed(s), all of the aromatics, which [... the goddess Šer]ūa, the queen, and the god Nabû [..., ... whose horns and h]ooves are perfect, fattened sheep, [...]. I offered sumptuous offerings ... [...] ... of (the god) Aššur [...] to/for Esagil, which [... (10´) ...] ... [...], his creator, the da[is of ... who is en]trusted with al[l of ...]. (12') (No translation possible)
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 1024
(o 1) [For the goddess Zarpanītu, ...] ... of the goddesses, the heroic o[ne of the gods ..., the one who] is endowed with [sexual cha]rm (and) who bears the awe-inspir[ing radiance, ..., who pu]rifies all the lord[s ..., for]emost of the earth, whose pre[cious] cultic rites [are ..., (5) ... the pr]aise of all [...] ... deliberation and counsel, the daug[hter of ...] that was given to her (lit: “him”), the totality (of) [...]; (o 8) [...] exalted [lady], goddess of pleasure who [...] to/for [...] — the holy shrine — [... (10) ... who does] not [... the de]cision of the gods Anu, Enlil, and…
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 1025
Obverse completely missing (r 1') [...] may she [... the men]tion of his venerated name [...] the pleasure bed at night that [... may] she grant me [progeny] and expa[nd my offspring ... (rev. 5´) ...] may she strengthen my [...] and may she [...] may she have [...]s written [...] daily may she remi[nd ...] ... may th[ey] constantly bless [...] good thing(s) [...]. Subscript completely missing
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 1026
(o 1') [... the me]ntion of his lordly majesty ... [...] ... [...] they (the gods) were constantly [im]ploring him for (my) life ... [...] I had [... of the go]ds written therein and [...]. (r 3) [... o]n you, may your divinity accept (and) [may your] m[ind desire ...] a singer with a lyre, the abode of the god Dunga, (in) the month Addaru (XII), [... (rev. 5) ...] may [(the command for) ...] come forth [from] your [lips]. Always remem[ber ..., ...], make firm the foundation(s) of [my royal] throne. [...]. May your holy [...]. (r 8) [...] may [... a] pleasure bed [...] ... [... (rev. 10) ...] ... and ... [...] the goddess Zarpanīt[u ...] ... [...] ... [...]
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 1027
(o 1') [...] ... [...], the priest, the true vice-regent, who provides for Ez[ida, ...], the capable ruler who comprehends the wisdom of the god Nabû, [...]; (to) who(m) the great gods [...] to dire[ct ..., (...)], (5´) and to restore the work of temple[(s), ...], a just scepter (and) a true staff [for ...]; (o 7') (for whom) the gods Aššur, Bel (Marduk), and Nabû [...] h[is] aid; the one who carries out in full the instruction(s) of (the god) Aššur and the god Mar[duk ...], the one who (re)-established your privileged status, the one who [...]; (10´) who, at the name of the god Nabû, his…
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 1028
Obverse completely missing (r 1') [...] ... [...] may he ... [...]. (r 3') That which (is written) upon the wild bulls of Borsippa [(...)].
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 1029
(o 1) [For the god Nergal, perfect warrior, mightiest of the gods, foremost hero, powerful lord, (...)] ..., [king of battle, lord of strength and power, lord of the Deluge that brings abo]ut devas[tation, the exalted son of the god Enlil, powerful one among the gods, his brothers, child of the goddess Kutuša]r (Mullissu), the gr[eat] queen, [who marches at the side of the king, his favorite, and kills his foes, (who) cuts d]own the en[emy, (5) (who) spares the ruler who reveres him from plague, (who) grant]s him mighty vic[tor]ie[s], who resides in Emeslam, the holy shrine that is inside…
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 103
Records Ashurbanipal's systematic devastation of Elam — gods deported, sixty leagues salted — documenting the Assyrian theology of conquest in which plundering enemy cult statues physically broke divine protection.
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 1030
(1) The god Aššur and the [grea]t gods [w]ho [sta]nd at the side of the king, their fav[or]ite, and [who] cut down [(all of)] his [en]emies: (4) [...], king of the world, [...], ... [...], (5) son of [..., ...]: (8b) The god [Aššur, the father of the go]ds, ... determined [a roya]l destiny as my lot [(while I was) in my mother’s wo]m[b (and) ...]; the god Enlil [nominated] me for ruling over the land and people; the gods Sîn and Šamaš discussed with each other favorable omens concerning the stability of my r[eign]; (and) the gods Nabû (and) Marduk granted me a broad mind (and) extensive…
Religion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 104
Preserves the standard Assyrian royal prayer formula — longevity, dynastic continuity, victory over enemies — attesting the ideological template Sargonid kings imposed on monumental self-presentation in the mid-seventh century BCE.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 105
Preserves Ashurbanipal's framing of his brother Šamaš-šuma-ukīn's revolt as sacrilege — specifically the theft of cult centers the king had personally restored — casting civil war as divine betrayal rather than political rebellion.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 106
Records Tammarītu of Elam's mocking words about the beheading of Teumman and Ummanigaš's submission — then Aššur's divine retribution, linking Assyrian war propaganda directly to theological justification for punishing vassal insolence.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 107
Tammarītu's groveling submission at Nineveh — crawling naked, kissing royal feet, sweeping the ground with his beard — documents the ritual humiliation Assyria imposed on deposed Elamite claimants after the civil war of the 650s BCE.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 108
Records Ištar of Arbela appearing in a dream to reassure Assyrian troops afraid to ford the Idide River — direct evidence of divine-oracle legitimation woven into Ashurbanipal's Elamite campaign narratives.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 109
Places the Arab king Uaiteʾ of Sumuʾil in a dog collar at the city gate — one of the few royal inscriptions to specify this particular humiliation for a defeated vassal who broke his oath to Assyria.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 110
Records Urarṭian king Sarduri III's submission of audience gifts and renewed diplomatic ties to Ashurbanipal — rare cuneiform evidence of the northern kingdom's shift from rival to tributary in the late 7th century BCE.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 111
A fragmentary Sargonid royal inscription invoking the Assyrian state pantheon — Šarrat-Kidmuri, Ištar of Arbela, Ninurta, Nergal, and Nusku — preserving partial evidence of the ritual and ceremonial language binding kingship to divine favour.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 112
Preserves Ashurbanipal's ultimatum to the Elamite king Indabibi — threatening Susa, Madaktu, and Ḫidalu and invoking the fate of Teumman — documenting Assyrian coercive diplomacy in the final years of Elamite independence.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 113
Invokes the full Assyrian-Babylonian pantheon — Aššur to Nabû — in a single royal inscription, attesting the late Sargonid formula for anchoring royal authority in the consent of every major deity.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 114
Traces Ashurbanipal's conquests 'from the Upper Sea to the Lower Sea,' encoding the Assyrian imperial ideology of universal kingship through its titulary and campaign narrative.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 115
Records Ashurbanipal's completion and gold-cladding of Eḫursaggalkurkurra, Aššur's chief temple, linking royal construction piety to divinely ordained kingship in the Sargonid tradition.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 116
Records Ashurbanipal's restoration of Marduk's cult furniture — bed, canopy, and chariot — in Babylon, anchoring the Assyrian king's claim to legitimate rule over the south through priestly service to the Babylonian god.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 117
Records Ashurbanipal's first campaign against the Kushite pharaoh Taharqa, framing the reconquest of Memphis as divine mandate — a rare Assyrian first-person account of the struggle for Egypt that cross-checks both biblical and Egyptian sources.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 118
Names Necho, Šarru-lū-dāri, and Pa-qruru as Assyrian-installed client kings in Egypt, giving the Assyrian court's own account of the vassal network Esarhaddon built along the Nile delta.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 119
Attests Ashurbanipal's reinstatement of Egyptian vassals who had fled Taharqa's advance, then pivots to the Elamite war against Urtaku — threading two simultaneous imperial crises in one royal account.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 120
A fragmentary Sargonid royal inscription invoking Ištar's authority over the king's enemies — one of many RINAP 5 witnesses preserving the theological language that legitimised Neo-Assyrian military campaigns.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 121
Names Elamite dynasts Ḫumban-ḫaltaš II and Teumman alongside the Kushite pharaoh Tanutamon, placing Assyria's simultaneous western and eastern military pressures within a single royal record.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 122
Chronicles Assyria's defeat of the Nubian pharaoh Tanutamun and the installation of a local client-king at Athribis — the primary cuneiform record of Assyrian military dominance over Egypt in the 660s BCE.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 123
Narrates Ashurbanipal's sack of Thebes (663 BCE) — the deepest Egyptian penetration by an Assyrian army — and catalogues the city's looted treasures, corroborating the biblical lament in Nahum 3:8–10.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 124
Records Ashurbanipal's naval blockade of Tyre — cutting off food and water to the island city — one of the few cuneiform accounts of Assyrian siege warfare at sea.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 125
A Lydian ruler dreams that Ashur commands him to grasp Ashurbanipal's feet — and then defeats the Cimmerians: one of the clearest surviving texts linking Assyrian royal ideology to a foreign vassal's military success.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 126
Narrates Ashurbanipal's defeat of the Elamite king Teumman at the Ulai River and his installation of client rulers in Elam — direct royal testimony to the Assyrian policy of dynastic partition as an instrument of imperial control.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 127
Names Undasu, son of the Elamite king Teumman, and Šamaš-šuma-ukīn's messengers in a battle context, adding onomastic and diplomatic detail to the Assyro-Elamite wars of the 650s BCE.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 128
Records Ashurbanipal's claim to have defeated Teumman of Elam and seized Bīt-Imbî, situating this Assyrian-Elamite war within the king's own ideological framing of divinely sanctioned conquest.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 129
Records Assyria's deposition of the Qedarite king Uaiteʾ and the installation of Abī-Yateʾ in his place — direct evidence of Sargonid intervention in Arab dynastic succession during the wars tied to Šamaš-šuma-ukīn's rebellion.
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 130
(1') (No translation possible) (3') [...] to kill [...]. (4') [...] ... gold which ... [...]. (5') [...] ... [...] ... [...] ... [...] powe[r], virility, (and) king[ship ...]. (r 1) Šamaš-šuma-ukīn, (my) hostile brother, who had plan[ned murder] against Assyria [...], saying: “I will come and destr[oy] those cities [...]. I will carry off Assyrians from (their) midst and [...].” (As for) Šamaš-šuma-ukīn, who had spoken (these) insolent word(s), [(the god) Aššur determined for him a cruel death; he consigned him] to a conflagration ... [(and) destroyed his life]. (r 6) (As for) the people,…
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 131
Attests Aššurbanipal invoking Aššur and Ištar to legitimize the defection of eighty-five named nobles — a concrete glimpse of how Sargonid kings framed elite realignment as divine favor.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 132
Records Tammarītu's flight to the Assyrian court after his own servant Indabibi seized the Elamite throne — direct Assyrian testimony to the dynastic collapse that dismembered Elam in the 650s BCE.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 133
Records Elamite court factions killing Indabibi and enthroning Ḫumban-ḫaltaš III — framed as Assyrian divine terror, this is a key source for the political collapse of Elam in the 650s BCE.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 134
Records Ashurbanipal's account of his brother Šamaš-šuma-ukīn's death in the flames of Babylon (648 BCE) and the seizure of his royal regalia — one of the few first-person Assyrian narratives of the brutal end to the great fraternal civil war.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 135
Names four rival Elamite claimants — Ummanigaš, Ummanappa, Tammarītu, and Kudurru — and records Tammarītu's barefoot prostration before Ashurbanipal, giving the most detailed Assyrian account of the dynastic chaos that fractured Elam after Teumman's death.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 136
Records Ashurbanipal's sack of Bīt-Imbî and the mutilation of its defenders — visceral first-person evidence of the psychological terror tactics underpinning Assyrian imperial expansion into Elam.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 137
Attests Ashurbanipal's account of crushing his brother Šamaš-šuma-ukīn's rebellion (652–648 BCE) and defeating the Elamite king Ummanalداšu — Assyrian royal propaganda cast as divine sanction for fratricidal civil war.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 138
Narrates Ḫumban-ḫaltaš III's flight across a river from Assyrian forces — fragmentary but direct Assyrian testimony to the campaign that effectively ended Elamite royal resistance by the 640s BCE.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 139
Attests Ashurbanipal's campaign against Ḫumban-haltaš III of Elam — the routed king's flight 'naked' into the mountains marking one of Assyria's deepest penetrations into Elamite territory before Susa's sack.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 140
Fragmentary Sargonid royal inscription recording spoils — statues, wagons, horses, mules — taken from Susa, likely part of Ashurbanipal's 647 BCE sack of the Elamite capital.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 141
Records Nanāya's 1,535-year 'exile' from Babylonia and her divine nomination of Ashurbanipal as restorer of her cult — linking Sargonid royal legitimacy directly to the goddess's prophetic dreams and ecstatic oracles.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 142
Records Elamite prince Paʾê fleeing to Ashurbanipal and 'grasping the feet' of the king — the submission formula in action during the Assyrian–Elamite power struggle of the 650s BCE.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 143
Records Ḫumban-ḫaltaš III's flight into exile after his own land rebelled — Ashurbanipal's account of Elam's internal collapse following Assyrian devastation of Madaktu.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 144
Attests Aššurbanipal's theology of divine warrant for war — Aššur and Ištar personally guaranteeing victory — in the context of his Elamite campaigns, where a fleeing enemy is seized 'like a falcon.'
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 145
Names three successive Elamite kings — Tammarītu, Paʾê, and Ḫumban-ḫaltaš III — alongside the Arab king Uaiteʾ as captives yoked to Ashurbanipal's chariot, anchoring the chronology of Elam's final collapse under Assyrian pressure.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 147
Preserves a fragmentary Ashurbanipal royal inscription invoking Aššur and Ištar to legitimise military action against Elam, attesting the standard Sargonid theology of divine wrath as the engine of imperial conquest.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 148
Invokes the craft deities Ninagal, Kusibanda, and Ninkurra alongside Mullissu and Ištar of Nineveh, preserving late Sargonid royal theology linking divine artisanship to military victory.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 149
Fragmentary Sargonid royal inscription naming Tīl-Tūba and a descendant of the Elamite king Urtaku — likely part of Ashurbanipal's account of his wars against Elam in the 650s BCE.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 150
Chronicles Ashurbanipal's Elamite campaign alongside the rebel king Tammarītu, placing Ištar's intervention at the heart of Assyrian royal ideology in the wars that destroyed Elam in the 650s BCE.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 151
Names Tammarītu — an Elamite king restored and then deposed by Ashurbanipal — in a royal inscription that frames Assyrian military intervention as divine mandate from Aššur.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 152
Records Ashurbanipal's campaign against Ḫumban-ḫaltaš III of Elam, one of the few royal inscriptions naming that king and corroborating the Assyrian destruction of Elam in the 640s BCE.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 153
Attests Nabû-bēl-šumāti's submission to Ashurbanipal and a connection to Mannean territory, offering fragmentary but direct evidence of Assyrian diplomacy on its northeastern frontier ca. 655 BCE.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 154
Records Ashurbanipal's claim that the goddess Nanāya had dwelt in Elam for exactly 1,535 years before choosing him as her liberator — yoking precise dynastic chronology to divine mandate for the Elamite campaigns.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 155
Records Ashurbanipal's decapitation of the Elamite king Teumman at the Battle of Til-Tuba (~653 BCE) and the installation of a client ruler — the Assyrian annalistic template for conquest, divine mandate, and vassal governance in one passage.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 156
Records Ishtar-as-Venus abandoning the Arab king Hazael to Sennacherib's forces and then migrating to Assyria — direct theological justification for Assyrian military dominance over the Arabs across three royal generations.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 157
Chronicles Ashurbanipal's successive defeats of three Elamite kings, placing Elam's serial dynastic collapses within the framework of Ištar's divine patronage of Assyrian military power.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 158
Names Tammarītu, Paʾê, and Ḫumban-ḫaltaš III together in an Assyrian royal account of the Elamite wars, corroborating the turbulent succession of client and captive kings Ashurbanipal installed after the sack of Susa.
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 159
(1) [For the goddess Bēlet-parṣē who resides in the House of Succession that is insi]de Nineveh, the great lady, my lady — (2) [I, Ashurbanipal, king of the world, king of] Assyria, king of the four quarters (of the world), [... Šarra]t-Kidmuri, Ištar of Arbela, [... t]o be king of the four quarters (of the world): (5b) [...] an excellent throne [... the se]at of the goddess Bēlet-parṣē, his lady, [...] ... of Bēlet-parṣē [... th]at excellent [throne ...] I decorated it and (10) [... cast with] shiny [zaḫa]lû-metal [...]. I established [the ... of] her great [divinit]y [... may] her heart…
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 160
Dedicates a restored shrine to Bēlet-parṣē within Nineveh's House of Succession, then invokes her curse on any ruler who erases Ashurbanipal's dynastic name — a rare attestation of this goddess as guardian of Sargonid legitimacy.
Religion & MythWriting & Literature
Ashurbanipal 161
Records Elamite heralds submitting to Assyrian envoys and a decapitated rival king's head being carried as tribute — concrete evidence of how Ashurbanipal projected terror to dissolve Elamite resistance without pitched battle.
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 162
(1') [I ripped out the tongue(s ...)] of Na[bû-uṣalli, a city overseer of the land Gambulu, (and)] fla[yed him/(them)]. (3') With [the decapitated head of Teumman, the king of the land Elam, I took] the road to the city [Arbela in (the midst of) celebration]. (5') I sent Tammarītu [...] with him [...] the people of the city Ḫidal[u ...]. (8') Simburu, the heral[d of the land Elam, heard about the advance of my troops and] became frightened at the mention of my name. [He] then [came] b[efore my messenger and kissed my feet]. (10') [Fear of my royal majesty] covered Umbakidinu, the [herald of…
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 163
Records Elamite heralds and a provincial governor preemptively delivering a rival king's severed head to Assyrian envoys — concrete testimony to the psychological reach of Ashurbanipal's campaigns into Elam c. 655 BCE.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 164
Narrates the death of the Elamite king Teumman at the Battle of the Ulaya River (653 BCE): one of the few royal inscriptions to preserve a verbatim last command attributed to a defeated enemy king.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 165
Records Ashurbanipal's account of the Battle of the Ulaya (c. 653 BCE) and the decapitation of the Elamite king Teumman — a scene also carved on the Nineveh palace reliefs, letting scholars align royal inscription and sculptural propaganda.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 166
Attests Ashurbanipal's claim to have choked the Ulāya River with Elamite dead — a vivid rhetorical formula for total victory that shaped how Assyrian kings narrated the destruction of their eastern rival.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 167
Attests Ashurbanipal's triumphal entry into Arbela with Gambulian and Elamite captives — including Teumman's severed head — framed as a gift of Ištar and staged within the akītu-festival liturgy.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 168
Narrates the rout of the Elamite king Teumman at the Battle of Til-Tuba (653 BCE), his wagon's collapse in the forest, and his son Tammarītu grasping his hand — a royal account of Assyria's decisive dismemberment of Elam's royal line.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 169
Chronicles Ashurbanipal's Elamite campaign — including the defeat of Teumman and the burning of Ša-pī-Bēl — while naming provincial officials like the šandabakku of Nippur, anchoring Assyrian imperial reach into Babylonia.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 170
Attests Teumman of Elam's demand that Ashurbanipal extradite sixty royal Elamite refugees — a casus belli for the 653 BCE campaign that ended at the Battle of the Ulāya River.
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 171
(o? 1') ... [...] his hea[vy def]eat [... his] offspr[ing ...] provinces of [...] the people [...]. (o? 6') I, Ashurbanipa[l, ...], which I constantly marc[hed through ...] the land Mannea [...] you made bow d[own ...] (obv.? 10´) Er[isinni ...] ... [...] (r? 1') [...] lordly [...], which [...] Teumman, the king of the land Elam, [...] I cut off his head in the assembly of [his troops ...]. Blank space for 2 lines (r? 4') I, Ashurbanipal, king of Assyria: (The god) Aššur and the goddess Ištar, [...], before “May [the Vice]-Regent of (the God) Aššur En[dure],” the ga[te of (the god) Aššur, (...)], they allowed [me] to stand [ove]r my foes, who [...]. Blank space for 2 lines (r? 7') [...] he appointed [...] I placed him [...] Umma[nigaš ...]
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 172
Records Ashurbanipal's account of the Elamite king Tammarītu's betrayal and his own palace coup — a rare Assyrian royal text naming an internal Elamite dynastic rupture as divine punishment for siding with the rebel Šamaš-šuma-ukīn.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 173
Records Tammarītu of Elam's downfall after aiding the Babylonian rebel Šamaš-šuma-ukīn: divine sanction via internal Elamite revolt, narrated as proof that Aššur and Ištar actively defended Ashurbanipal's throne.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 174
Chronicles Ashurbanipal's suppression of his brother Šamaš-šuma-ukīn's revolt and the punishment of Borsippan rebels, preserving the Assyrian court's own framing of the great civil war of 652–648 BCE.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 175
Ashurbanipal's own account of suppressing his brother Šamaš-šuma-ukīn's revolt (652–648 BCE): one of the few royal inscriptions detailing the Assyrian civil war that nearly split the empire.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 176
Records Ashurbanipal's confiscation of his rebel brother Šamaš-šuma-ukīn's household after the Babylonian civil war (652–648 BCE): palace women, eunuchs, chariotry, and named officials catalogued as war spoils of fratricide.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 177
Records the Elamite king Tammarītu's flight to Nineveh and submission to Ashurbanipal after his own servant Indabibi overthrew him — a rare first-person royal account of Elam's internal collapse during the Assyro-Elamite wars.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 178
Records Elamite king Tammarītu's humiliating flight to Nineveh and submission at Ashurbanipal's feet after a servant's coup — corroborating the Rassam Cylinder's account of Assyria exploiting Elam's internal collapse.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 179
Records Tammarītu's flight through the Sealand marshes after military defeat and his rival Indabibi's seizure of the Elamite throne — Assyrian royal testimony to the dynastic fractures that left Elam vulnerable to Ashurbanipal's campaigns.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 180
Records Ashurbanipal's capture and public humiliation of Ammi-ladīn, king of Qedar, paraded on camels before the Assyrian court — direct epigraphic evidence of Assyrian military reach into the north Arabian steppe.
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 181
(o? 1') [I, Ashurbanipal, king of Assyria, who by the command of (the god) Aššur] (and) the goddess Mu[llissu a]chi[eved his heart’s desire: Um]manigaš (Ḫumban-nikaš II) [dispatched them (his forces) to Undasu, a s]on of Teum[man — a (former) king of the land Elam — Zazaz, the city ruler of the c]ity Pillatu, (and) [Parr]û, the [city ruler of the land Ḫilmu, to help] Šamaš-šuma-ukīn — [(my) unfaithful] b[rother — (and) to fight with the troops of Assyria] (r? 1') (No translation possible) (r? 2') [I], Ashurbani[pal, king of Assyria, who b]y the command of (the god) Aššur (and) the goddess…
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 182
(o? 1') [...] ... [...] mi[ghty] victories [... the la]nd Elam [... the land Ela]m, all of it, [... (obv.? 5´) with the suppor]t of (the god) Aššur (and) the goddess Mulli[ssu, ... he became di]stressed. [He sent] his envoys [to me ... and with] his substantial audience gift(s) ... [...]. (o? 8') [I], Ashurbanipal, ki[ng of Assyria, who by the comman]d of (the god) Aššur (and) the goddess Mull[issu achieved his heart’s desire]: (r? 1') [...] (r? 2') [I], Ashurbanipal, [king of Assyria, who by the command of] (the god) Aššur (and) the goddess Mul[lissu achieved his heart’s desire: ...] the land Elam [... (rev.? 5´) ... I la]id w[aste ...] the god Lagma[ru ...] ... [...]
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 183
Names Šamaš-šuma-ukīn alongside royal regalia and court officials, preserving fragmentary Assyrian testimony on the brother-king installed at Babylon whose revolt in 652 BCE shook the empire.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 184
Records Aššur's divine mandate empowering Ashurbanipal to install Tammarītu's envoy on the Elamite throne — direct evidence of Assyrian ideological justification for installing client kings in Elam, c. 655 BCE.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 185
Records Ashurbanipal's rebuilding of Arbela's long-unfinished walls and the silver-and-gold refurbishment of Ištar's temple there — grounding the city's role as Ištar's cultic seat in datable royal construction.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 186
Preserves Ashurbanipal's full titulature — 'king of the world, king of the four quarters' — within a royal inscription that also records deliberate erasure, attesting the scribal practice of revising official commemorative texts.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 187
Records Ashurbanipal's personal tally of eighteen lions killed in a single dawn hunt, anchoring the famous Nineveh lion-hunt reliefs in a contemporary textual account of royal ritual violence.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 188
Narrates Ashurbanipal's systematic deportation of the Elamite royal family, elite troops, and craftsmen after his sack of Elam — primary Assyrian evidence for the deliberate dismantling of a rival dynastic state.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 189
A fragmentary Sargonid royal inscription recording a campaign against Elam — one of several RINAP 5 witnesses that, read together, reconstruct Ashurbanipal's systematic dismantling of Elamite power in the mid-seventh century BCE.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 190
Sîn's prenatal naming of Ashurbanipal as rebuilder of Eḫulḫul — the moon-god's temple at Ḥarrān — grounds a political construction project in divine predestination, illustrating how Sargonid kings legitimised costly building programmes through celestial prophecy.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 191
Attests Ashurbanipal's self-presentation as royal intercessor — annulling the sins of nobles and eunuchs before his father — a rare glimpse of how Sargonid kings framed filial piety as a source of legitimate authority.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 193
A fragmentary Sargonid royal inscription invoking Šamaš and Nabû alongside the king's name: one of the manuscript witnesses preserving the divine legitimation formulae of Ashurbanipal's reign.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 194
Records Esarhaddon's campaign against Uaiteʾ of the Arabs and the capture of his gods — a rare first-person Assyrian account of punitive action against a vassal who 'cast off the yoke,' framed as divine mandate from Aššur.
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 195
(1) O Aššur, the great mountain, [...], the sublime one [who resides] i[n] Eḫur[saggalkurkurra, ...], the lord of the crown, ... [...] by whose exalt[ed] command [...], (5) the fierce deluge [...], who, by the weapons of [his mighty] battle array, [...] and together with mankin[d ...] you swept over them like [...] you imposed [...] on the lands [...]. (10) Dunānu, son of Bē[l-iqīša, ...] who spoke w[ords of ...] and you, kin[g of the gods ...]. Him, together with [his] famil[y ...] who to Sargon (II) [...] (15) kings who preced[ed me ...]. Moreover, he, Aplāya [... who] constantly harassed…
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 196
Records Taharqa's attack on Assyrian personnel stationed in Egypt and Ashurbanipal's furious military response — a rare first-person Assyrian account of the collision between two empires competing for control of the Nile Delta.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 197
Chronicles Ashurbanipal's 667 BCE campaign against Taharqa — the Kushite pharaoh's flight from Memphis to Thebes — supplying Assyrian royal testimony for the conquest that briefly made Nineveh master of Egypt.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 198
Records Aššurbanipal's claim that the goddess Nanāya had dwelt in Elam for 1,530 years before he restored her — anchoring his sack of Susa in a theology of divine homecoming while also attesting his systematic salting of Elamite farmland.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 199
Records Ashurbanipal's claim that Nanāya herself foretold his retrieval of her cult statue from Elam after 1,530 years' exile — directly linking royal military action to divine mandate in Sargonid ideology.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 200
Links Ištar of Arbela's cult calendar to the heliacal rising of the Bow Star (Sirius) in month Abu, anchoring Sargonid royal legitimacy in observed astronomical phenomena.
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 2001
(1) [I]mage of Libbāli-šar[rat], que[en] of Ashurbani[pal], king of the world, ki[ng] of As[syria].
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 2002
A Sargonid queen dedicates a gold votive object to an unnamed goddess, petitioning for Ashurbanipal's long reign and mutual marital longevity — rare epigraphic evidence of a Neo-Assyrian queen acting as an independent religious patron.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 2003
Records Sîn-balāssu-iqbi's restoration of Etemennigurru at Ur — a rare governor-level building inscription attesting provincial temple patronage under late Sargonid rule.
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 2004
(1) For the god Sîn of heaven, lion of the gods (and) king of the Enlil (circle of) gods, his lord: (5) Sîn-balāssu-iqbi, governor of Ur, son of Ningal-iddin, (10) (who was also) governor of Ur, built anew Etemennigurru, his beloved temple.
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 2005
(1) For the goddess Ningal, queen of Ekišnugal, divine Ninmenna (“Lady-of-the-Crown”), beloved of Ur, his lady: (5) Sîn-balāssu-iqbi, governor of Ur, built anew the Gipāru, the house of the supreme goddess, beloved wife of the god Sîn. After he constructed a statue, a (re-)creation of the goddess Ningal, (and) brought it into the house of the wise god, she took up residence in Enun, (which was) built (to be) her lordly abode.
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 2006
(1) For the goddess Ningal, exalted lady, queen of the goddesses, (most) valiant of the great gods: (4) In order to ensure the good health of Ashurbanipal, king of Assyria, strong king, (and) king of the world, his lord, Sîn-balāssu-iqbi, son of Ningal-iddin, governor of Ur, Eridu and the Gurasimmu (tribe), (10) opened up (its) emplacement, built (the well named) Puḫilituma, and established (it) for all time. He made inexhaustible spring water appear in it. (14) With regard to any (future) ruler who (re)opens this well, may his days be long (and) his offspring extensive!
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 2007
(Lines 1-28 [= col. i–iii], which contain an inscription of Amar-Suen, are not edited here.) Col. iv (29) Copy from a baked brick from the debris of Ur, the work of Amar-Suen, the king of Ur, (which) Sîn-balāssu-iqbi, the governor of Ur, had discovered while looking for the ground plan of Ekišnugal. Nabû-šuma-iddin, son of Iddin-Papsukkal, the lamentation-priest of the god Sîn, saw (it) and wrote (it) down for display. Top (39) (No translation possible)
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 2008
(1) (For) the god Nanna, king of heaven (and) netherworld: in order to ensure the good health of Ashurbanipal, king of kings, his lord, (5) Sîn-balāssu-iqbi, governor of Ur (and) Eridu, who provides for Ekišnugal, the shining shrine of the Watery Abyss (apsû), built anew (10) Elugalgalgasisa, his beloved temple.
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 2009
(1) [(For) the god Nanna], his [lo]rd, [... of As]hurbanipal, [king] of the world, [Sî]n-balāssu-iqbi, (5) governor of Ur (and) Eridu, for the sake of his life (re)built Elugalgalgasisa [an]ew.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 201
Ashurbanipal's tearful appeal to Ištar of Arbela — timed to the heliacal rising of the Bow Star in Abu — shows how Sargonid kings anchored military decisions in ritual calendars and divine patronage before marching against Elam.
Religion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 2010
Records Sîn-balāssu-iqbi, governor of Ur, constructing a cult station for Ninkasi — goddess of brewing — at Eridu, attesting Assyrian-period investment in southern Babylonian sacred infrastructure.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 2011
Attests Sîn-balāssu-iqbi, governor of Ur, renovating the Eešbanda temple for Šuzianna at Eridu — localised religious patronage carried out under Assyrian imperial authority in the deep south of Babylonia.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 2012
Records Sîn-balāssu-iqbi, governor of Ur, rebuilding Eankikuga — attesting Assyrian provincial governors sponsoring traditional Sumerian cult infrastructure as late as the 7th century BCE.
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 2013
(1) (For) the god Nanna, king of the Enlil (circle of) gods, his lord: Sîn-balāssu-iqbi, governor of Ur, (5) who provides for Eridu, built Eadgigi, the abode of the god Nusku.
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 2014
(1) (For) the god Nanna, king of the Enlil (circle of) gods, his lord: Sîn-balāssu-iqbi, governor of Ur, (5) who provides for Eridu, built Ekišibgalekura, the abode of the god Ninimma.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 2015
Attests a Sargonid governor of Ur, Sîn-balāssu-iqbi, sponsoring temple construction for Nanna and Ennugi at Eridu — localising late Assyrian royal piety within the ancient sacred landscape of the deep south.
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 2016
(1) (For) the god Nanna, king of the Enlil (circle of) gods, his lord: Sîn-balāssu-iqbi, governor of Ur, (5) who provides for Eridu, built Eanšar, his royal abode.
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 2017
(1) (For) the god Nanna, king of the Enlil (circle of) gods, his lord: Sîn-balāssu-iqbi, viceroy of Ur, (5) who provides for Eridu, built Ešaduga, the abode of his Enlilship.
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 2018
(1) (For) the god Nanna, king of the Enlil (circle of) gods, his lord: Sîn-balāssu-iqbi, governor of Ur, (5) who provides for Eridu, built Eašanamar, the abode of the god Enlil.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 202
Attests Aššurbanipal's invocation of Aššur and Ištar as divine weapons-bearers in his Elamite campaigns, linking royal military ideology to the goddess's martial persona in mid-7th-century Assyrian royal rhetoric.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 203
Dedicates military victories over the Elamite king Tammarītu and the rebel Šamaš-šuma-ukīn to Ištar of Egašankalam, anchoring Ashurbanipal's civil-war propaganda within her cult.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 204
Chronicles the internal Elamite revolts — servants turning on Tammarītu, Ḫumban-ḫaltaš, and their royal kin — that Ashurbanipal credited to Ištar's intervention during the Assyro-Elamite wars of the 650s BCE.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 205
Names Tammarītu and four Elamite kings alongside eighty-eight nobles who fled or were captured, giving the densest surviving prosopography of the Elamite royal house in its final decades before Assyrian destruction.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 206
Dedicates a musukkannu-wood object with silver mountings before Ištar, documenting Ashurbanipal's material patronage of her cult and the royal titulary linking Assyrian kingship to Sumer and Akkad.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 207
Preserves Ashurbanipal's justification for the Assyrian campaigns into Egypt, framing Taharqa's seizure of the Nile Delta as impious defiance of Aššur — a rare royal-inscription account of the 660s BCE Assyro-Egyptian conflict.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 208
Hymns Sîn as the cosmic arbiter who alone enables gods to fix fates for heaven and netherworld, attesting the theological elevation of the moon-god under the late Sargonid kings.
Religion & MythAshurbanipal 209
(1) [For the goddess Ni]ngal, who makes life pleasant, goddess worthy of pra[ise], mother of the gods, the hero[ic one, the] gracious [wil]d cow, who(se) face is ra[diant, who(se)] featu[res] always shine brightly [l]ike daylight, (5) wi[f]e of the divine light (Sîn) — foremost lord, resplendent one, light of the distan[t] heavens — who bore the god Šamaš — the one who lights up the four quarters (of the world), who(se) judgement and decision are final ... — who intercedes for the light of the gods, her beloved, the god S[în], who gives counsel (and) says favorable thing(s) to the god Šamaš,…
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 210
Hymn to Nusku as divine judge and fire-deity records the Sargonid theology linking celestial fire, legal authority, and ritual purification — showing how Assyrian kingship anchored its jurisprudence in divine cosmic order.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 211
Hymns Nusku as supreme judge and divine fire who 'burns up evil ones' — preserving Sargonid theology in which the lamp-god's judicial and purifying roles underwrite royal legitimacy.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 212
Attests Ashurbanipal's devotion to the moon-god Sîn at Ḥarrān and his self-presentation as upholder of civic privileges — evidence of late Sargonid royal ideology binding northern cult centres to Assyrian kingship.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 213
Hymns Ashurbanipal as supreme heir of Ekur and judge who discerns the just from the wicked, yoking royal legitimacy directly to the moon-god Sîn's cosmic authority over law and truth.
Religion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 214
Hymn to Nusku as supreme judge and fire-god attests the Sargonid court's theological alignment of divine justice with the purifying power of flame, linking priestly, legal, and royal authority in a single dedicatory formula.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 215
Records Ashurbanipal's gilding of Marduk's canopy and chariot with thirty-four talents of gold — concrete evidence of Assyrian royal investment in Babylonian cult as a tool of political legitimation.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 216
Hymnic praise of a Sargonid king as cosmic mediator — one whose word cannot be changed and without whom no judgement is rendered — fusing royal ideology with the judicial authority of Šamaš.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 217
Ashurbanipal's account of sacking Elam (~646 BCE): the deliberate destruction of temples, secret groves, and royal tombs attests the ideological use of sacral desecration as a weapon of imperial subjugation.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 219
Records Ashurbanipal's gold-clad renovation of Marduk's canopy and throne-dais in Babylon, documenting Assyrian investment in Babylonian cult as a deliberate tool of imperial legitimation.
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 220
Lacuna of about 5 or 6 lines (i 1') [governor of B]abylon, king of [the land of Sumer and Akkad; grands]on of Sennacherib, [great] kin[g, strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria; de]scen[da]nt of Sargon (II), gre[at] king, [strong king, king of the world, king of Assyri]a, [governo]r of Babylon, king of the land of S[umer and Akkad] — (i 5') [(The god) Aššur], the father of the gods, [determined] a roya[l] destiny [as my lot] (while I was) in my mother’s womb; [the goddess Mul]lissu, the great mother, nominate[d me] for ruling over the land and people; [the god] Ea (and) (the goddess)…
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 221
Preserves Ashurbanipal's petition to Šamaš, Adad, Nabû, and Marduk to designate his successor by divine oracle — direct evidence that late Sargonid succession was framed as a matter of celestial appointment, not dynastic right alone.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 222
Records Ashurbanipal's completion and gilding of Eḫursaggalkurkurra at Aššur, anchoring the temple's mid-7th-century renovation to a named Sargonid king and his building piety toward Marduk and Aššur alike.
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 223
Columns i and ii are not edited here iii 1´–35´ The inscription of Sennacherib and measurements and descriptions of Zarpanītu’s bed and Marduk’s throne are not edited here (iii 36') Wording (of the inscription) that was erased from the bed (and) the throne of the god Bēl (Marduk), which were deposited in the temple of (the god) Aššur, (and that of the inscription) written upon (them) in the name of Ashurbanipal. Simānu (III), the twenty-seventh day, eponymy of Awiānu (655) , th[ey were returned t]o Ba[byl]on [(...)]. (iv 1') [...] ... [...] ... [..., O l]ord, being furious (and) relenting,…
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 224
Ashurbanipal's hymnic praise of Marduk — invoking his mastery over the Igīgū and Anunnakū — attests Assyrian kings publicly venerating the chief Babylonian deity, a theological diplomacy central to their claim over the south.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 225
Catalogs Marduk's epithets — cosmic judge, holder of heaven's bond, destroyer of the wicked — showing how a 7th-century Assyrian king legitimized power by publicly honoring Babylon's chief god.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 226
Attests Ashurbanipal's direct-speech divine assurance — 'Do not fear, I myself will come to your aid' — the same royal-reassurance formula that recurs in Neo-Assyrian prophecies, linking monumental inscription to oracular tradition.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 227
Dedicatory hymn to Nergal at his cult-seat Emeslam in Cutha, preserving Sargonid royal theology of the plague-god as protector of the obedient king against disease and enemy armies.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 228
Invokes a 1,635-year span of Elamite destruction to justify Ashurbanipal's campaign, showing how Neo-Assyrian royal ideology wove deep historical grievance into divine mandate for war.
Religion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 229
Claims Ashurbanipal personally mastered 'all of the scribal arts' — a rare royal self-presentation as literate scholar that underlies his systematic collection of texts at Nineveh.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 230
Records Ashurbanipal's restoration of Emeslam — the temple of Nergal at Cutha — including bricks molded in ebony and musukkanu-wood and scented with crushed aromatics: a concrete window into Sargonid sacred construction ritual.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 231
Equates Babylon with the zodiacal Crab constellation while describing Ashurbanipal's restoration of its tottering foundations — linking Assyrian royal ideology to celestial geography in a rare astro-theological framing of conquest and clemency.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 232
Asserts Ashurbanipal's personal mastery of the scribal arts as a divine gift — one of the clearest royal claims to literacy in the ancient Near East, legitimising his famous library-building programme at Nineveh.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 233
Claims Assyrian sovereignty over territory reached by a journey of 'one month and twenty days into the midst of the sea' — among the most expansive geographical boasts in the surviving Sargonid royal corpus.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 234
Chronicles Ashurbanipal's repeated installation and removal of Elamite client-kings — Ḫumban-nikaš II, Tammarītu, Ḫumban-ḫaltaš III — documenting Assyrian mechanisms for controlling Elam through dynastic manipulation rather than outright annexation.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 235
Records Ashurbanipal's sack of Susa and the return of the goddess Nanāya to Eanna after her long Elamite 'captivity' — linking military conquest to the restoration of Babylonian cult.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 236
Attests Nanāya, Uṣur-amāssa, and Urkayītu as divine guarantors of royal legitimacy at Uruk — preserving a local theological formula for kingship otherwise scarcely documented in Sargonid inscriptions.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 237
One of the composite royal inscriptions of Ashurbanipal preserved across multiple manuscript witnesses, attesting the Sargonid titulary 'king of Sumer and Akkad' as a living ideological claim to Babylonian sovereignty.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 238
Records Ashurbanipal's military intervention against a ruler of Qirbit who refused submission — one of the few inscriptions attesting Assyrian punitive campaigns into the Kassite borderlands during his reign.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 239
Preserves Ashurbanipal's three-generation dynastic lineage — son of Esarhaddon, grandson of Sennacherib — a formulaic claim that anchored Sargonid legitimacy in royal inscriptions of the mid-seventh century BCE.
LawReligion & Myth
Ashurbanipal 240
Names Urtaku and Ummanigaš — the Elamite king and his brother whose rivalry Assyria exploited — placing this inscription among the direct royal accounts of Ashurbanipal's Elamite campaigns.
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 241
(1) For the god Marduk, king of all the Igīgū gods and Anunnakū gods, creator of heaven and netherworld, who establishes archetypes (and) dwells in Esagil, lord of Babylon, great lord, my lord: (3) I, Ashurbanipal, great king, strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria, king of the four quarters (of the world); son of Esarhaddon, great king, strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria, governor of Babylon, king of the land of Sumer and Akkad, who (re)settled Babylon, (re)built Esagil, renovated the sanctuaries of all the cult centers, constantly established appropriate procedures in…
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 242
(1) Ashurbanipal, great king, strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria, king of the four quarters (of the world), king of kings, ruler who has no rival; son of Esarhaddon, great king, strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria, (5) governor of Babylon, king of the land of Sumer and Akkad; grandson of Sennacherib, great king, strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria, I — (7b) During my reign, the great lord, the god Marduk, who during the reign of a previous king had resided in Baltil (Aššur) in the presence of the father who had created him, (10) entered Babylon amidst…
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 243
(1) Ashurbanipal, [great] king, [mighty king, king of the world], king of Assyria, king of the [four] quarters (of the world), [king of kings], ruler who has no rival, who rules from [the Upper Sea to the] Lower [Sea] and [who made] all [rulers bow down at his feet]; (5) son of Esarhaddon, [great] king, [(mighty king), (king of the world), (king of Assyria), (governor of Babylon)], king of the land of Sumer and Akkad; [grand]son of [Sennacherib, (great king), mighty king], king of the world, king of Assyria, I — (7b) [I completed the work on Esagil] which (my) father who had engendered me had…
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 244
(1) Ashurbanipal, great king, strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria, king of the four quarters (of the world), king of kings, ruler who has no rival, who rules from the Upper Sea to the Lower Sea and who made all rulers bow down at his feet; (5) son of Esarhaddon, great king, strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria, governor of Babylon, king of the land of Sumer and Akkad; grandson of Sennacherib, strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria, I — (8) I completed the work on Esagil which (my) father who had engendered me had not finished. I (re)confirmed the regular…
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 245
(1) Ashurbanipal, great king, strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria, king of the four quarters (of the world), king of kings, ruler who has no rival, who rules from the Upper Sea to the Lower Sea and who made all rulers bow down at his feet; (5) son of Esarhaddon, great king, strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria, governor of Babylon, king of the land of Sumer and Akkad; grandson of Sennacherib, strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria, I — (8) I completed the work on Esagil which (my) father who had engendered me had not finished. I (re)confirmed the regular…
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 246
(1) I, Ashurbanipal, great king, strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria, king of the four quarters (of the world), king of kings, ruler who has no rival, who by the command of the gods Aššur, Šamaš, and Marduk rules from the Upper Sea (10) to the Lower Sea and who made all rulers bow down at his feet, who provides for Esagil, the palace of the gods — whose doorbolt I made glisten like the stars (lit. “writing”) of the firmament —, who repaired the damaged parts of all their sanctuaries, (who) established (my) protection over all cult centers, whose deeds are pleasing to all the gods…
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 247
(1) For the god Marduk, his lord: Ashurbanipal, king of the world (and) king of Assyria, in order to ensure his good health (5) had baked bricks made anew for Esagil and Etemenanki.
Religion & MythWriting & LiteratureAshurbanipal 248
(1) For the god Marduk, his lord: Ashurbanipal, king of the world (and) king of Assyria, son of Esarhaddon, (5) king of the world, king of Assyria, (and) king of Babylon, had baked bricks made anew for Etemenanki.
Religion & MythWriting & LiteratureAshurbanipal 249
(1) For the god Marduk, his lord: Ashurbanipal, king of the world (and) king of Assyria, for the sake of his life had baked bricks made anew for Etemenanki.
Religion & MythWriting & LiteratureAshurbanipal 250
(1) [For] the god Marduk, his lord: Ashur[banipal], son of Esarhaddon, king of the world (and) [king of Assyria had] baked bricks [made] anew for Etemena[nki].
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 251
(1) For the god Asari, great lord, his lord: Ashurbanipal, king of the world (and) king of Assyria, son of Esarhaddon, king of the world, king of Assyria, (and) king of Babylon, for the sake of his life had constructed Etemenanki anew.
Religion & MythWriting & LiteratureAshurbanipal 252
(1') this [work] falls into dis[repair ...], question skilled [craftsmen! ... Rebuild (...)], the temple of the goddess Ištar according to [its ancient] specifi[cations! (...) The goddess Ištar (of Agade)] will (then) listen to [your prayers. Look at my] inscribed object, [anoint (it) with oil, offer a sacrifice, (and)] s[et] (my inscribed object) with your (own) inscribed object! (5'b) [(But) as for the one who erases my inscribed name by some crafty device], (or) does not write [my name] with his name, (or) [destroys my inscribed object], (or) does not set [my inscribed object with his (own) inscribed object] ... [...] the goddess Ištar of Agade [will ...].
Writing & LiteratureReligion & MythAshurbanipal 253
(1) To the god Nabû, the powerful heir [... h]ero of the gods, eminent, exalted, splendid, scribe of Esagil, f[oremost] son, [...], who bears the tablet of the fates of the gods, who controls the omens, prince of the g[reat] gods, [(...) the one who directs the Igīgū and] Anunnakū gods, who gives advice to the gods of heaven (and) netherworld, powerful ... [...] whose weapons cannot be equaled, (5) firstborn son of the god Asari (Marduk), offspring of the goddess [Erua (Zarpanītu), ...] whose lordship is supreme, who dwells in Ezida — the proper temple — lord of Borsi[ppa — the] awesome [cult…
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 254
(1) I, Ashurbanipal, great [kin]g, strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria, king of the four quarters (of the world), king of kings, ruler who has no rival, who by the command of the gods Aššur, Šamaš, (5) and Marduk rules from the Upper Sea to the Lower Sea and who made all rulers bow down at his feet, [who provi]des for Esagil, the palace of the gods — [who]se [doorbo]lt I made glisten like the stars (lit. “writing”) of the firmament — who repaired the damaged parts (10) of all their sanctuaries, (who) established (my) protection over all cult centers, the one who[se] deeds are…
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 255
(1) ... [...] in Esagi[l ...]. When that light [...] the good of Ashurbanipal, king of the land[s ...]. Let him daily ... [(...)].
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 256
(1) For the god Enlil, [(...) his lord] Ashurbanipal, king of the world, king of [Assyria, (...)] king of the four quarters (of the world), had (this) [(...)] built for the sake of his life.
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 257
(1) For the god Nergal, mightiest of the gods, most overpowering of the gods, the supreme, perfect, (and) noble sovereign of his brother(s), the one who dwells in (the temple) Ešaḫula, the lord of Sirara, his lord: (3b) Ashurbanipal, great king, strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria; son of Esarhaddon, great king, strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria, (5) king of Babylon, king of the land of Sumer and Akkad; grandson of Sennacherib, great king, strong king, king of the world, (who was) also king of Assyria — (7b) In order to ensure his good health, he enlarged the courtyard of (the temple) Ešaḫula with baked bricks from a (ritually) pure kiln and made its processional way shine like daylight.
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 258
(1) For the god Enlil, king of the gods, lord of heaven and netherworld, prince [...], one who renders decisions, who[se order] cannot be changed, foremost of the Igīgū gods, hero of the Anunnakū gods, who ru[les ...], one who holds the lead-rope of every(one), one who makes [opposing forces] agr[ee], lord of the lands, wisest of the gods, one who dwells in Ekur which is inside [Nippur, (the great lord), his lord]: (6) Ash[ur]b[ani]p[al, great king], strong [kin]g, king of the wor[ld, king of Assyria, ... king who has no] equal [in all] the lands; [son of Esarhaddon, great king], strong…
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 259
(1) For the god Enlil, lord of the lands, his lord: Ashurbanipal, (5) his obedient shepherd, mighty king, king of the four quarters (of the world), (re)built Ekur, his beloved temple, with baked bricks.
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 260
(1) For the god Enlil, king of the gods, sovereign of heaven (and) netherworld, prince (who decides) the fates, (5) his lord: Ashurbanipal, his obedient shepherd, mighty king, king of the world, (re)built Egigunû with baked bricks.
Religion & MythWriting & LiteratureAshurbanipal 261
(1) For the god Enlil, king of the gods, sovereign of heaven (and) netherworld, prince (who decides) the fates, (5) his lord: Ashurbanipal, his obedient shepherd, mighty king, king of the world, skillfully (re)built (10) with baked bricks ... within Eḫursaggalama, his ancient royal cella.
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 262
(1) Ashurbanipal, great king, strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria, king of the four quarters (of the world), king of kings, ruler who has no rival, who by the command of the gods, his helpers, rules from the Upper Sea to the Lower Sea and who made all rulers bow down at his feet; son of Esarhaddon, great king, strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria, governor of Babylon, (5) king of the land of Sumer and Akkad, who (re)settled Babylon, (re)built Esagil, renovated the sanctuaries of all the cult centers, constantly established appropriate procedures in them, and…
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 263
(1) For the goddess Ištar of Uruk, sovereign of heaven and netherworld, most powerful of the gods, exalted one, who executes the command she gives in the east and in the west, the fierce goddess of battle who whirls around in the melee like a dust storm, who marches at the side of the king, her favorite, (and) slays his foes, (5) mistress of the lands, who has gathered to herself (all) divine offices (and) administers correctly all purification rites, who dwells in Enirgalanim — which is inside Eanna — great lady, his lady: (7) Ashurbanipal, great king, strong king, king of the world, king of…
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 264
(1') [...] ... [...] pure [food offer]ings, anything ... set out before you. (2') [... m]e, Ashurbanipal, king of Assyria, the servant (who is) the favorite of your heart, [...] ... (and) the just shepherdship that you bestow at your command, [...] the preservation of (my) life ... [...] a [b]right spirit ... Grant ... as a gift, ... come to my aid and always stand in for me, kill m[y] enemy, (and) make the foundation of my royal throne as secure as a mountain for eternity. (r 5b) When this ceremonial wagon becomes dilapidated and old, may one of the kings, [my] descendants, restore its…
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 265
(1') [At that time], I sought the (original) emplacement [of Edimgalkalama, (which is inside (the city) Dēr), the temple of Great Anu], the gr[eat] lord, [my lord, which had become old, ...] ... [I had (it) built anew] with the craf[t of the god Kulla, …, (and) ma]de (it) as high as a mountain. (3'b) On account of this, [may] Great Anu, the exalted lord, [look upon this] wor[k with pleasure]. Determine [for me — Ash]urbanipal, king of Assyria, the ruler who reveres you — as my fate a long life, fulln[ess of old age, good health, ha]ppiness, and a bright spirit. Make me stand [ov]er my…
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 266
(1) [For the goddess] Sutītu, his [la]dy: Ashurbanipal, king of Assyria, presented (this object) for the sake of his [lif]e.
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 267
(1) For the goddess Su[tītu], his lady: As[hurbanipal], king of Assyria, prese[nted] (this object) for the sake of his life.
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 268
(1) [Palace of Ashurbani]pal, kin[g of Assyria].
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 269
(1) Palace of Ashurbanipal, grea[t] king, [strong king, kin]g of the world, king of Assyria.
LawReligion & MythAshurbanipal 270
(1) Palace of Ashurbanipal, [great king, stro]ng [king], king of the world, king of Assyria, son of Esarhaddon, king of Assyria, son of Sennacherib, king of Assyria.
LawReligion & Myth
Epic of Gilgamesh, Tablet XI (the Flood)
The single most important literary discovery of the 19th century. It rewired the understanding of the Bible's literary context and proved that the Mesopotamian flood tradition is older. It is the oldest surviving epic poetry in human history.
Religion & MythWriting & Literature
Aššur-etel-ilāni 01
Aššur-etel-ilāni's dedication of baked bricks for Ezida at Kalḫu — framed as a life-preservation rite — attests royal temple-building ideology persisting into the final turbulent years of the Assyrian Empire.
Religion & MythWriting & Literature
Aššur-etel-ilāni 02
Addresses Marduk as 'Enlil of the gods' and supreme arbiter of both Igīgū and Anunnakū — attesting the late Assyrian theological strategy of absorbing Babylonian divine supremacy into royal piety.
LawReligion & MythAššur-etel-ilāni 03
(1) For the god Marduk, supreme lord, exalted hero, lord of lords, exalted, wh(ose) figure is splendid (and who) is vastly superior to all of the (other) gods, bearer of the awe-inspiring, terrible radiance, clothed in splendor, (5) who drove [off] the god Kingu, defeated the angry sea, (and) overcame the evil ones, who dwells in Eešerke — which is inside Sippar-Aruru — great lord, his lord: (8) Aššur-etel-ilāni, king of the world (and) king of Assyria, son of Ashurbanipal, king of the world (and) king of Assyria, (10) had a scepter of red gold made which was (then) presented for his…
LawReligion & MythAššur-etel-ilāni 04
(1a) For the god Uraš, exalted lord, foremost of the great gods of E-ibbi-Anum — the shrine (which is) worthy of honor — great lord, his lord: (2b) Aššur-etel-ilāni, king of Assyria, who renovated the shrine(s) of the great gods, son of Ashurbanipal, king of Assyria, shepherd of the black-headed, renovated E-ibbi-Anum, the holy place which is inside Dilbat, the abode of the god Uraš and the goddess Ninegal. He built (it) anew with baked bricks, the craft of the god Baḫar and, with regard to the foundation of the well, he (re-)established its position just as (it had been) in ancient times.…
LawReligion & MythAššur-etel-ilāni 05
(1) For [the god Enlil, lord of the la]nds, his [lord: Aššu]r-etel-ilāni, (5) his obedient [shephe]rd, who provides for Nippur, supporter of Ekur, mighty king, king of the four quarters (of the world), (re)built (10) Ekur, his beloved temple with baked bricks.
LawReligion & MythAššur-etel-ilāni 06
(1) The tomb of Šamaš-ibni, the Dakkurian, upon whom Aššur-etel-ilāni, king of Assyria, had pity, brought from Assyria to Bīt-Dakkūri, his (own) country, and laid to rest in a tomb inside his home of Dūru-ša-Ladīni (“Fortress of Ladīnu”). (4) Whoever you are, whether governor or commander or judge or prince, who is appointed in the land, do not harm this tomb or (its) bone(s)! (But rather) look after its position (and) extend (your) good protection over it! For (doing) this, may the god Marduk, the great lord, lengthen your reign, establish his good protection over you, (and) bless your name,…
LawReligion & Myth