Position in chronology
A praise poem of Lipit-Eshtar (Lipit-Eshtar A)
Written in modern English
Lipit-Eshtar speaks in his own voice: he is a king held in high regard, a son of the god Enlil, born nobly. From the time he first raised his head like a young cedar, he has been a man of physical strength and athletic power, growing powerfully built in his youth. He is a lion without equal, a gaping dragon who inspires dread in soldiers, an Anzud bird scanning the mountain heights with sharp eyes. He is a wild bull that no one dares challenge in its rage, a bison with gleaming, beautiful eyes — and here the text breaks off mid-description.
A modern paraphrase of the literal translation — same content, contemporary voice.
Translation — scholar edition
ETCSLI am a king treated with respect, good offspring from the womb. I am Lipit-Ectar, the son of Enlil. From the moment I lifted my head like a cedar sapling, I have been a man who possesses strength in athletic pursuits. As a young man I grew very muscular (?). I am a lion in all respects (3 mss. have instead: to the extremes (?)), having no equal. I am a gaping dragon, a source of great awe for the soldiers. I am like the Anzud bird, peering about in the heart of the mountains. I am a wild bull whom nobody dares oppose in its anger. I am a bison, sparkling with beautiful eyes, having a…
Electronic Text Corpus of Sumerian Literature — scholar edition (Oxford, Black/Cunningham/Robson/Zólyomi).
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Scholarly note
Composition c.2.5.5.1 in the ETCSL catalogue. Sumerian literary text reconstructed from multiple cuneiform manuscripts, the great majority Old Babylonian (c. 1900–1600 BCE). Translation reproduced from the ETCSL edition.
Attribution
Image: .
Translation excerpted from ETCSL c.2.5.5.1: A praise poem of Lipit-Eshtar (Lipit-Eshtar A). Black, J.A., Cunningham, G., Robson, E. & Zólyomi, G. (eds.), The Electronic Text Corpus of Sumerian Literature, Faculty of Oriental Studies, University of Oxford. https://etcsl.orinst.ox.ac.uk/cgi-bin/etcsl.cgi?text=c.2.5.5.1.
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