Position in chronology
OIP 014, 192
About this tablet
A small silver-loan record from the Sumerian city of Adab (modern Bismaya), written in the Old Akkadian period, around 2300 BCE. A man named Aba-Utu-gin advanced silver to two borrowers, Ur-ešpeš and Ur-Keš, and the tablet notes that the debt is to be settled in barley at a fixed rate, with two witnesses, one of them a temple singer, attesting the deal. It is a glimpse of everyday credit: silver going out, grain expected back, and neighbours called in to vouch for the transaction.
Plain-language summary by the engine — meant as a doorway into the literal translation below.
Written in modern English
Ur-ešpeš has received 5 shekels of silver; Aba-Utu-gin holds the claim on him for it. Ur-Keš has received 1 shekel; Aba-Utu-gin holds the claim on him too. For the half-share, the barley owed is to be repaid at the rate of 2 barig (about 120 litres) per shekel. The witnesses to this are Lugal-KU, the lamentation priest, and Iš-iš.
A modern paraphrase of the literal translation — same content, contemporary voice.
Translation — our engine
Our engine1. 5 shekels of silver 2. Ur-ešpeš 3. received; 4. Aba-Utu-gin 5. has (the claim) against him. 6. 1 shekel: Ur-Keš 7. received; 8. he has (the claim) against him. 9. It being the half(-share): its barley, at 2 barig each, 10. is to be repaid. 11. Lugal-KU, 12. the lamentation priest (gala); 13. Iš-iš: 14. they are its witnesses.
Our translation engine — Fable 5.1. Reads the photo, translates the cuneiform, and writes a plain-language interpretation. See methodology for limits.
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Transliteration
5(asz@c) gin2 ku3-babbar ur-esz5-pesz szu ba-ti a-ba-utu-gin7-e an-da-tuku 1(asz@c) gin2 ur-kesz3 szu ba-ti an-da-tuku szu-ri2-kam sze-bi 2(barig@c)-ta si-dam lugal-KU gala isz-isz lu2-ki-<inim>-ma-bi-me
Scholarly note
Catalogue entry from CDLI (Old Akkadian (ca. 2340-2200 BC)) — OIP 014, 192. 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: Oriental Institute, University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, USA (P216048) — Photo via Cuneiform Digital Library Initiative. source
Translation excerpted from engine:claude-fable-5-1 (2026-09-20/v8-evolved).
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