Position in chronology
RIME 3/1.01.07.037, ex. add1245
About this tablet
This is a royal dedicatory inscription of Gudea, ruler of the city-state of Lagash in southern Mesopotamia (best known from the Neo-Sumerian period, though catalogued here under the broader 'Akkadian' era label). It commemorates his rebuilding of the Eninnu, the great temple of the warrior-god Ningirsu at Girsu, nicknamed the 'White Thunderbird' after the mythical Anzu bird. This short formula is one of many nearly identical exemplars found across Gudea's numerous statues, cylinders, and building inscriptions, all proclaiming his piety and his temple-building achievements.
Plain-language summary by the engine — meant as a doorway into the literal translation below.
Written in modern English
Gudea, ruler of Lagash, declares that he honored the mighty warrior-god Ningirsu, son of Enlil, by making everything fitting and splendid for him. He built the god's temple, the Eninnu — known as the 'White Thunderbird' — and restored it to its proper place.
A modern paraphrase of the literal translation — same content, contemporary voice.
Translation — our engine
Our engineFor Ningirsu, mighty warrior of Enlil, Gudea, ruler of Lagash, made the fitting things resplendent for him. His Eninnu, the White Anzu (temple), he built for him, he restored it for him (to its place).
Our translation engine — Sonnet 5. Reads the photo, translates the cuneiform, and writes a plain-language interpretation. See methodology for limits.
Spotted an error? Suggest a correction — confirmed corrections feed the engine's knowledge base.
Transliteration
nin-gir2-su ur-sag kal-ga en-lil2-la2-ra gu3-de2-a ensi2 lagasz-ke4 nig2-du7-e pa mu-na-e3 e2-ninnu anzu2-babbar2-ra-ni mu-na-du3 ki-be2 mu-na-gi4
Scholarly note
Catalogue entry from CDLI (Lagash II (ca. 2200-2100 BC)) — RIME 3/1.01.07.037, ex. add1245. This record has no stored scholarly English translation; the existence of published translations has not been checked; the transliteration is from the ATF (CDLI's Atf-Friendly format).
Attribution
Image: BM 088308 (British Museum, London, UK) — from uncertain (mod. uncertain) — Photo via Cuneiform Digital Library Initiative (cdli.earth/artifacts, P234268). source
Translation excerpted from engine:claude-sonnet-5 (2026-07-12/v7-evolved).
Related tablets
Related sources
An early example of administrative writing from Uruk. Its fragmentary numerical entries and commodity signs document record-keeping during the formative period of writing.
An early witness to systematic administrative notation at Kish. Its signs and numerals can be catalogued, but that does not establish a full translation or prove that it is the world's first writing.
An early surviving historical monument that joins named rulers, a territorial dispute and religious oaths. It shows how a city-state turned victory into a lasting public claim, without establishing that this was the first recorded conflict.