Position in chronology
Sennacherib 052
Translation · reference
High confidence(1) [(Palace of) Sennac]herib, [...], favorite of the great gods: (2b) [(The god) Aššur granted] me [...] and, from ea[st] to [west he made ... bow d]own [at my feet] and they (now) pull my yoke. (4b) At [that time, ... which earlier kings], my ancestors, had had built [and ...] its construction [...]. Moreover, from [...]
Source: Grayson, A.K. & Novotny, J. 2012–2014. The Royal Inscriptions of Sennacherib, King of Assyria (704–681 BC). RINAP 3. University Park, PA: Eisenbrauns. https://oracc.museum.upenn.edu/rinap/rinap3/Q003526/
Why it matters
Transliteration
[(É.GAL) mdEN.ZU-ŠEŠ].⸢MEŠ⸣-eri-⸢ba⸣ [...]1 / [...] ⸢mi⸣-gir DINGIR.MEŠ GAL.MEŠ [...]2 / [ú-šat-li-ma?-an?]-ni-ma <<ana>> ul-tu ṣi-[taš] a-di [šil-la-an ...]3 / [še-pu-ú-a ú-šak]-niš-ma i-šu-ṭu ⸢ab⸣-[šá]-a-ni i-[na u₄-me-šu-ma ... LUGAL.MEŠ] / [a-li-kut maḫ-ri] AD.MEŠ-ia ú-še-pi-šu-[ma ...] / [...] e-piš-taš ù ul-tu [...]
Scholarly note
Royal inscription of Sennacherib, edited by A. Kirk Grayson & Jamie Novotny (RINAP 3, 2012–2014). ORACC text Q003526.
Attribution
Image: Created by A. Kirk Grayson, Jamie Novotny, and the Royal Inscriptions of the Neo-Assyrian Period (RINAP) Project, 2014. Lemmatized by Jamie Novotny, 2013. The annotated edition is released under the Creative Commons Attribution Share-Alike license 3.0. Please cite this page as http://oracc.org/rinap/Q003526/..
Translation excerpted from Grayson, A.K. & Novotny, J. 2012–2014. The Royal Inscriptions of Sennacherib, King of Assyria (704–681 BC). RINAP 3. University Park, PA: Eisenbrauns. https://oracc.museum.upenn.edu/rinap/rinap3/Q003526/.
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The earliest historical document in human history.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.