Ashurbanipal 096

~655 BCE·Neo-Assyrian·Q003795

Translation · reference

High confidence

Obverse completely missing (r i' 1') [I carried off to Assyria those gods (and) goddesses] together with [their] j[ewelry, their property, (and) their equipment], along with šang[û-priests (and) buḫlalû-priests]. (r i' 3') Thirty-two statues [of kings fashioned from gold, silver, copper, (and) alabaster] from inside [the cities Susa, Madaktu, (and) Ḫurādi], (rev. i´ 5´) along with a statue of U[mmanigaš (Ḫumban-nikaš I), son of Umbadarâ], a statue of Ištar-N[anḫūndi (Šutur-Naḫūndi II), a statue of Hallušu (Ḫallušu-Inšušinak I)], and a statue of the [later] T[ammarītu], who [did obeisance to…

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/Q003795/

Why it matters

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.

Transliteration

⸢it-ti šu⸣-[kut-ti-šú-nu NÍG.GA-šú-nu ú-na-a-ti-šú-nu]1 / a-⸢di⸣ šá-an-⸢ge⸣-[e bu-uḫ-la-le-e áš-lu-la a-na KUR AN.ŠÁR.KI] / 32 ⸢ALAM.MEŠ⸣ [LUGAL.MEŠ pi-tiq KÙ.GI KÙ.BABBAR URUDU NA₄.GIŠ.NU.GAL] / ul-tú qé-⸢reb⸣ [URU.šu-šá-an URU.ma-dak-tu URU.ḫu-ra-di] / a-⸢di⸣ ALAM m⸢um⸣-[man-i-gaš DUMU mum-ba-da-ra-a] / ALAM miš-tar-⸢na⸣-[an-ḫu-un-di ALAM mḫal-lu-si] / ù ALAM m⸢tam⸣-[ma-ri-tu EGIR-ú] / šá ina…

Scholarly note

Royal inscription of Ashurbanipal or a late Sargonid successor, edited by Jamie Novotny & Joshua Jeffers (RINAP 5, 2018–). ORACC text Q003795.

Attribution

Image: BM — (British Museum, London, UK) — from Nineveh (mod. Kuyunjik) — Photo via Cuneiform Digital Library Initiative (cdli.mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de/artifacts, P425032). 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/Q003795/.

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