Position in chronology
Ashurnasirpal II 022
Translation · reference
High confidence(1') which from the time of [...] the statue with the name of Tiglath-pil[eser (I) …] I marched [to the N]aʾiri [lands. I conquered] the city Barzaništu[(un) ... I carried off] their [property], possessions, oxen, sheep, [... (and)] turned (it) into a mound of ruins (lit. “a mound and ruins”). The heads of [their] warriors [I cut off ...] of the Naʾiri lands, horses, mules, [...] … I burned with fire. I destroyed, devastated, (and) [turned (it) into] a mound [of ruins (lit. “a mound and ruins”)]. (8') [...] the city Tillê rebelled [... t]hey stationed [a garrison at ...]. They stati[oned a…
Source: Royal Inscriptions of Assyria online (RIAo), Munich Open-access Cuneiform Corpus Initiative (MOCCI), Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München; in association with the RINAP Project, University of Pennsylvania. https://oracc.museum.upenn.edu/riao/Q004476/
Why it matters
Transliteration
[...] x šá TA ⸢tar-ṣi⸣ m[...] / [...] ⸢ṣa-lam⸣ MU šá mGIŠ.tukul-ti-⸢A?⸣-[é-šár-ra ...] / [...] ⸢na⸣-i-ri a-lik URU.bar-za-ni-iš*-tu-[(un) ...] / [... NÍG].⸢ŠU⸣.MEŠ-šú-nu NÍG.GA.MEŠ-šú-nu GU₄.MEŠ-šú-nu UDU.[ṣe-ni-šú-nu ...] / [...] kar-me ú-ter SAG.DU muq-tab-⸢li⸣-[šú-nu ...] / [...] šá KUR.KUR na-i-ri ANŠE.KUR.RA.MEŠ ANŠE.[MEŠ ...] / [...]-⸢a⸣-ni ina IZI GÍBIL ap-púl a-qur ana DU₆ [u kar-me…
Scholarly note
Royal inscription of an Assyrian king, published in the Royal Inscriptions of Assyria online project (RIAo). Translation reproduced from the ORACC edition. ORACC text Q004476.
Attribution
Image: Based on A. Kirk Grayson, Assyrian Rulers of the Early First Millennium BC I (1114-859 BC) (RIMA 2), Toronto, 1991. Adapted by Jamie Novotny (2015-16) and lemmatized and updated by Nathan Morello (2016-17) for the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation-funded OIMEA Project at the Historisches Seminar - Abteilung Alte Geschichte of Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München. The annotated edition is released under the Creative Commons Attribution Share-Alike license 3.0. Please cite this page as http://oracc.org/riao/Q004476/..
Translation excerpted from Royal Inscriptions of Assyria online (RIAo), Munich Open-access Cuneiform Corpus Initiative (MOCCI), Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München; in association with the RINAP Project, University of Pennsylvania. https://oracc.museum.upenn.edu/riao/Q004476/.
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The earliest historical document in human history.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.