Position in chronology
Ashurbanipal 089
Translation · reference
High confidence(i 1) [On my eighth campaign], I marched [agai]nst Dunānu, [son of Bēl-iqīša, to the land Gambulu, which h]ad put its trust [in the king of the land Elam (and) had not bowed down to my yoke]. With my mighty [bat]tle array, (i 5) I covered [the land Gambulu in its entirety] like a fog. I conquered [the city Ša-pī-Bēl], his fortified [cit]y, [who]se location is [s]ituated [between rivers]. (i 8) I brought [Dunānu (and) his brothers] out of that city [alive. I brought out his wife, his sons], his [daughter]s, [his (palace) women, male singers, (and) female sing]ers [and] I [count]ed (them) [as…
Source: Novotny, J. & Jeffers, J. 2018–. The Royal Inscriptions of Ashurbanipal (668–631 BC), Aššur-etel-ilāni (630–627 BC) and Sîn-šarra-iškun (626–612 BC), Kings of Assyria. RINAP 5. University Park, PA: Eisenbrauns. https://oracc.museum.upenn.edu/rinap/rinap5/Q003788/
Why it matters
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.
Transliteration
[ina 8-e ger-ri-ia] ⸢UGU⸣ mdu-na-ni / [DUMU mdEN-BA-šá a-na KUR.gam-bu-li] ⸢lu⸣ al-lik / [ša a-na MAN KUR.ELAM.MA.KI] ⸢it⸣-tak-lu / [la ik-nu-šú ana GIŠ.ŠUDUN-ia ta]-ḫa-zi dan-nu / [KUR.gam-bu-lu a-na si-ḫir-ti-šú] ki-ma MURU₉ ak-tùm / [URU.šá-pi-i-dEN] ⸢URU dan⸣-nu-ti-šú / [ša qé-reb ÍD.MEŠ] ⸢na⸣-da-at šu-bat-su ak-šu-ud / [mdu-na-nu ŠEŠ.MEŠ-šú] ⸢ul-tu⸣ qé-⸢reb⸣ URU šú-a-tú / [bal-ṭu-us-su-un]…
Scholarly note
Royal inscription of Ashurbanipal or a late Sargonid successor, edited by Jamie Novotny & Joshua Jeffers (RINAP 5, 2018–). ORACC text Q003788.
Attribution
Image: BM — (British Museum, London, UK) — from Nineveh (mod. Kuyunjik) — Photo via Cuneiform Digital Library Initiative (cdli.mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de/artifacts, P394811). source
Translation excerpted from Novotny, J. & Jeffers, J. 2018–. The Royal Inscriptions of Ashurbanipal (668–631 BC), Aššur-etel-ilāni (630–627 BC) and Sîn-šarra-iškun (626–612 BC), Kings of Assyria. RINAP 5. University Park, PA: Eisenbrauns. https://oracc.museum.upenn.edu/rinap/rinap5/Q003788/.
Related tablets
Related sources
The earliest historical document in human history. Before this, we have lists, accounts, and dedications. Here, for the first time, a ruler tells us what happened — with names, places, and consequences.
The oldest surviving law code in human history. The principle that the state — not the wronged family — defines and enforces justice begins here.
Not the first law code, but the most complete and the most famous. Inscribed on a black diorite stele over two meters tall, displayed in a public place — law made visible, law made monumental.