Chapter 00 · 2000 – 1700 BCE
Old Assyrian
Aššur the merchant city — the great trade with Anatolia.
~1900 BCE · Reconstructed composite — see ORACC entry for manuscript witnesses
Aminu 2001
In plain English
Rībam-ilī, a scribe, identifies himself as a servant of Aminu.
AI-generated reading paraphrase; compare with the translation below.
“(1) Rībam-ilī, scribe, servant of Aminu.”
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/Q005616/
Read the full tablet entry~1900 BCE · Reconstructed composite — see ORACC entry for manuscript witnesses
Azuzu 2001 / Man-ištušu 2002
“(1) Man-ištūšu, the king of the world. Azuzu, his servant, dedicated (this spear) to the god Beʾal-SI.SI.”
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/Q005202/
Read the full tablet entry~1900 BCE · Reconstructed composite — see ORACC entry for manuscript witnesses
Erišum I 01
“(1) [...] ... Erišum (I), overseer of (the god) Aššur, [son of Ilu-šūma], overseer of (the god) Aššur; Ilu-šūma (was) the son of Šalim-aḫum, [overseer of (the god) Aššur]; (and) Šalim-aḫum (was) the son of Puzur-Aššur (I), [overseer of (the god) Aššur]. (4) Erišum (I), vice-regent of Aššur: I [built] the holy [Step] Gate, (and) the chapel [for] my lord. I built a [high] throne (and) adorned the front of it with a precious stone (ḫušāru). I installed (its) doors. (8b) With (the god) Aššur, my lord, standing by me, I reserved land for (the god) Aššur, my lord, from the Sheep Gate to the…”
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/Q005621/
Read the full tablet entry~1900 BCE · Reconstructed composite — see ORACC entry for manuscript witnesses
Erišum I 02
“(1) Eriš[um (I)], vice-regent of the god Aššur, son of Ilu-šūma, vice-regent of the god Aššur. (7) He built the temple (and) all of the temple area for the god Aššur, his lord, for his life, and the life of his city. (15) When I started the work, (when) my city was under my command, I made silver, gold, copper, tin, barley, and wool, as well as the payment of bran and straw, exempt from taxes. (26) I mixed ghee and honey into (the mortar of) every wall and (then) laid one layer of bricks. With the god Aššur, my lord, standing by me, I cleared houses from the Sheep Gate to the People’s Gate.…”
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/Q005622/
Read the full tablet entry~1900 BCE · Reconstructed composite — see ORACC entry for manuscript witnesses
Erišum I 03
Documents Erišum I's temple construction at Aššur and its ritual furnishings — bronze duck weights and beer vats — giving the earliest detailed record of cultic equipment in an Assyrian royal building inscription.
In plain English
Erišum, governor of the god Aššur and son of Ilu-šūma, who held the same office, records here that he rebuilt Aššur's temple and the entire sacred precinct for his divine lord, doing it for the sake of his own life and the well-being of his city. He had two large vats made, and at their feet he installed a pair of bronze geese, each weighing a full talent — about thirty kilos of metal apiece.
AI-generated reading paraphrase; compare with the translation below.
“Erišum (I), vice-regent of the god Aššur, son of Ilu-šūma, vice-regent of the god Aššur. For the god Aššur, his lord, for his life and the life of his city, he built the temple (and) the whole of the temple precinct for the god Aššur. He produced two ḫubūru-vats. Two bronze geese, of one talent each, I set at their bases.”
Source: engine:claude-opus-5 (2026-07-12/v7-evolved) · claude-opus-5 · medium confidence
Read the full tablet entry~1900 BCE · Reconstructed composite — see ORACC entry for manuscript witnesses
Erišum I 04
“(1) Erišum (I), vice-regent of the god Aššur, son of Ilu-šūma, vice-regent of the god Aššur. (7) For the god Aššur, his lord, for his life, and the life of his city, he built the entire temple area of the temple of the god Aššur and the holy Step Gate, (as well as) the chapel of (the god) Aššur.”
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/Q005624/
Read the full tablet entry~1900 BCE · Reconstructed composite — see ORACC entry for manuscript witnesses
Erišum I 05
“(1) Erišum (I), vice-regent of the god Aššur, son of Ilu-šūma, vice-regent of (the god) Aššur. (7) For his life and the life of his city, he built all of the temple area for (the god) Aššur, his lord. He installed (its) doors.”
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/Q005625/
Read the full tablet entry~1900 BCE · Reconstructed composite — see ORACC entry for manuscript witnesses
Erišum I 06
Attests Erišum I's construction of Aššur's temple in the god's own city, anchoring the earliest stratum of Assyrian royal piety and the vice-regent (iššiak Aššur) titulature that defined Old Assyrian kingship.
In plain English
Erišum, governor of the god Aššur and son of Ilu-šumma, who held the same office before him, put his name on this brick. He restored the temple and its whole precinct, and he did it for Aššur, his lord — for his own life and for the life of his city. The temple, he says, he built for Aššur.
AI-generated reading paraphrase; compare with the translation below.
“Erišum (I), vice-regent of the god Aššur, son of Ilu-šumma, vice-regent of the god Aššur. For the god Aššur, his lord, for his life and the life of his city, he renovated the temple (and) the temple area in its entirety. For the god Aššur he built (it).”
Source: engine:claude-opus-5 (2026-07-12/v7-evolved) · claude-opus-5 · medium confidence
Read the full tablet entry