Position in chronology
Sennacherib 129
Translation · reference
High confidence(1´) [Whoever places (it) in the service of] a god (or another) person, may [the deities Aššur, Sîn], Šamaš, [Adad, ...], Nabû, (and) [Uraš] make [his name (and) his seed] disapp[ear].
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/Q003934/
Why it matters
Transliteration
[ana dul-li šá] ⸢DINGIR⸣ LÚ-⸢ti⸣ [DÙ-šú] / [AN.ŠÁR d30 d]UTU d[IŠKUR?] / [...] ⸢d⸣MUATI d[uraš?] / [MU-šú NUMUN-šú] ⸢lu⸣-ḫal-⸢li⸣-[qu]
Scholarly note
Royal inscription of Sennacherib, edited by A. Kirk Grayson & Jamie Novotny (RINAP 3, 2012–2014). ORACC text Q003934.
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/Q003934/..
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/Q003934/.
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The earliest historical document in human history.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.