Position in chronology
Ashurbanipal 2003
Translation · reference
High confidence(1) For the god Sîn of heaven, lion of the gods (and) king of the Enlil (circle of) gods, his lord: (5) Sîn-balāssu-iqbi, governor of Ur, son of Ningal-iddin, (who was also) governor of Ur, who provides for Ekišnugal — (10) (With regard to) Etemennigurru, whose (enclosure) wall had collapsed in the distant past, whose foundation terrace had lain waste, (and) whose foundations were covered over, I sought the location of (15) its forgotten gate(s). I put its foundation inscription inside a box and raised its (the temple’s) top. I inlaid with silver (20) a door of boxwood, wood of finest quality…
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/Q003842/
Why it matters
Records Sîn-balāssu-iqbi's restoration of Etemennigurru at Ur — a rare governor-level building inscription attesting provincial temple patronage under late Sargonid rule.
Transliteration
dsuen an-na / pirig digir-re-e-ne / lugal den-líl-e-ne1 / lugal-a-ni-ir / mdEN.ZU-TI.LA.BI-DU₁₁.GA / šagina úri.KI-ma / dumu m⸢d⸣nin-gal-SUM.MA / šagina úri.KI-ma / ú-a é-kíš-nu₆-gal / é-temen-ní-gùr-ru / níg u₄ ul-lí*-a-ta2 / é-gar₈ dirig-ga-bi3 / te-me-en-bi a-ri-a / uš₈-bi bí-in-šú-šú / ká-bi ḫa-lam-me-e-ne4 / ki-bi bí-in-kin-kin / šà dub te-me-en-bi / u-me-ni-dù / sag-bi ba-ni-in-íl / GIŠ.ig…
Scholarly note
Royal inscription of Ashurbanipal or a late Sargonid successor, edited by Jamie Novotny & Joshua Jeffers (RINAP 5, 2018–). ORACC text Q003842.
Attribution
Image: BM 114277 (British Museum, London, UK) — from Ur (mod. Tell Muqayyar) — Photo via Cuneiform Digital Library Initiative (cdli.mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de/artifacts, P428409). 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/Q003842/.
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The earliest historical document in human history.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.