Ashurbanipal 092

~655 BCE·Neo-Assyrian·Q003791

Translation · reference

High confidence

Completely missing (ii 1') [(and) placed gold bracelets (around their wrists). I made the]m [stand before me]. (ii 2') [(As for) Gyges, the king of the land Lydia — a region on the opposite shore of the se]a, [a remote place, the mention of who]se [n]ame [none of the kings, my ancestors, had (ever) heard — (the god) Aššur, the g]od who created me, [made him see in a dream my royal name. (ii 5´) On the (very) day he saw this dream], he sent his [mounted messen]ger [to inquire about my well-being]. (ii 6'b) [(As for) the C]immerians, a dangerous enemy [who had never feared] my ancestors, [and,…

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/Q003791/

Why it matters

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.

Transliteration

[ḪAR.MEŠ KÙ.GI áš-kun ina maḫ-ri-ia ul-zi-is-su-nu]-⸢ti⸣ / [mgu-ug-gu LUGAL KUR.lu-ud-di na-gu-ú šá né-ber-ti A.AB].BA / [áš-ru ru-u-qu ša LUGAL.MEŠ AD.MEŠ-ia la iš-mu-u zi-kir] ⸢MU⸣-šú / [ni-bit LUGAL-ti-ia ina MÁŠ.GI₆ ú-šab-ri-šú-ma AN.ŠÁR] ⸢DINGIR⸣ ba-nu-u-a / [u₄-mi MÁŠ.GI₆ an-ni-ta e-mu-ra LÚ.rak]-⸢bu-šú iš⸣-pu-ra / [a-na šá-ʾa-al šul-mì-ia LÚ].⸢gi-mir⸣-ra-a-a ⸢LÚ⸣.KÚR ek-ṣu / [ša la…

Scholarly note

Royal inscription of Ashurbanipal or a late Sargonid successor, edited by Jamie Novotny & Joshua Jeffers (RINAP 5, 2018–). ORACC text Q003791.

Attribution

Image: BM — (British Museum, London, UK) — from Nineveh (mod. Kuyunjik) — Photo via Cuneiform Digital Library Initiative (cdli.mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de/artifacts, P394612). 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/Q003791/.

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