Position in chronology
Amar-Suena 11
Written in modern English
Amar-Suena — whose name was proclaimed by Enlil in Nippur, steadfast supporter of Enlil's temple, powerful king of Ur, king of the four quarters — erected a statue bearing the inscription: 'He whose name was proclaimed by Suen is the beloved of Ur.' What follows is a copy of a baked brick found in the excavated rubble of Ur: Sîn-balāssu-iqbi, military governor of Ur, discovered it while searching for the foundations of the E-kiš-nu-ĝal temple, and Nabû-šuma-iddin, son of Iddin-Papsukkal and lamentation-priest of Sîn, read and copied it so others could see it. The inscription ends with a curse or warning directed at whoever does something — the surface breaks off before that clause is complete.
A modern paraphrase of the literal translation — same content, contemporary voice.
Translation — scholar edition
ETCSRI(1) Amar-Suena, whose name was proclaimed by Enlil in Nibru, the steadfast supporter of Enlil's temple, the powerful king, king of Urim, king of the four quarters, erected the statue (with the name) "It is him whose name was proclaimed by Suen who is the beloved of Urim". (1) Copy of a baked brick from the excavated debris of Urim, the work of Amar-Suena, king of Urim, that Sîn-balāssu-iqbi, military governor of Urim, found while looking for the ground-plan of the E-kiš-nu-ĝal. Nabû-šuma-iddin, son of Iddin-Papsukkal, the lamentation-priest of Sîn, read and copied it for viewing. (14) Whoever…
Electronic Text Corpus of Sumerian Royal Inscriptions — scholar edition (Vienna).
Spotted an error? Suggest a correction — confirmed corrections feed the engine's knowledge base.
Scholarly note
Sumerian royal inscription, published in the Electronic Text Corpus of Sumerian Royal Inscriptions (ETCSRI) by Gábor Zólyomi and collaborators. Translation reproduced from the ETCSRI edition. ORACC text Q001794.
Attribution
Image: .
Translation excerpted from Electronic Text Corpus of Sumerian Royal Inscriptions (ETCSRI), University of Vienna, edited by Gábor Zólyomi et al. https://oracc.museum.upenn.edu/etcsri/Q001794/.
Related tablets
Related sources
An early example of administrative writing from Uruk. Its fragmentary numerical entries and commodity signs document record-keeping during the formative period of writing.
An early witness to systematic administrative notation at Kish. Its signs and numerals can be catalogued, but that does not establish a full translation or prove that it is the world's first writing.
An early surviving historical monument that joins named rulers, a territorial dispute and religious oaths. It shows how a city-state turned victory into a lasting public claim, without establishing that this was the first recorded conflict.