CDLI Literary 000380, ex. 024 (P346215)

Literary tablet excavated in Ur (mod. Tell Muqayyar), dated to the Old Babylonian (ca. 1900-1600 BC) period and now kept in British Museum, London, UK

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Chemical Data

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Museum Collection(s)

British Museum, London, UK

Museum Number

BM —

Period

Old Babylonian (ca. 1900-1600 BC)

Provenience

Ur (mod. Tell Muqayyar)

Artifact Type

Tablet

Material(s)

Clay

Genre / Subgenre(s)

Literary (ETCSL 2.02.03 Lament for Sumer and Ur (witness))

Language(s)

Sumerian

Measurements

-

Witness

tablet
obverse
  beginning broken
1'. [...] u2-a# ba#-szi#-in#-[...]
 en: ... the provider(? i.e., the king?) ...
2'. [... u2]-a# ba-szi-in-x-[...]
 en: ... the provider(?) ...
3'. [...] gub#-bu-bi szukur2 mah-gin7 ba-e-x-[...]
 en: Its standing/serving ... like a supreme ration ...
4'. [...] abul#-la mah {gesz}ig im-ma bi2-[...]
 en: At its great gate Enlil stood the door (open) in the wind(?)
5'. [...]-ma lu2 u2-sze3 nu-DU lu2 a-sze3 nu-DU#
 en: In Ur, no one went towards food, no one went towards water
6'. ug3# a# tul8-la2 de2-a-gin7 szu i3-nigin-ne
 en: The people were circling around like water poured into a well/pond
7'. usu#-bi ni2-bi-a nu-gal2 ne3-bi ba-ra-an-tusz#
 en: Its strength was not present in its aura(?) and thus its strength did not dwell (there)(?)
8'. [{d}]en#-lil2-le sza3-gar lu2 nig2-hul iri-a ba-an-da-tusz#!?
 en: Enlil made starvation (in the form of?) an evil person dwell in the city
9'. nig2# iri gul-gul-e nig2 e2 gul-gul-e iri-a ba-an-da-tusz#
 en: He made that which destroys cities, that which destroys temples, dwell in the city
10'. nig2# igi-bi-ta {gesz}tukul# la-ba-gub-bu-a iri-a ba-an-da-tusz#
 en: He made that which before it a weapon does not stand (against) dwell in the city
11'. sza3# nu-si-si igi-nigin-nigin-bi iri-a ba-an-da-tusz#
 en: He made the hungry/unsatfisfied and the eye-roller dwell in the city
12'. uri2{ki}-ma gi dili du3-a-gin7 sag# sag3-ge nu-ga2-[...]
 en: In Ur, even (the fear/disdain of) head shaking like a single planted reed was not established
13'. ug3#-bi ku6 szu dab5-ba-gin7 zi-bi mi-ni-in-tum3#-[...]
 en: Its people took refuge like a caught fish
14'. tur# mah-bi i3-bara2-bara2-ge-esz lu2 nu-um-zi-zi#-[...]
 en: Meager and great alike spread out, no one arose/was mustered
15'. lugal#-bi dub-la2 u5-a nig2-gu7 la-ba-na-gal2#
 en: The king(?) was mounted atop the gate tower(?), there was no food there for him
16'. lugal# nig2-sa6-ga gu7 nag-a szukur2-re im-ma-an-[...]
 en: The king who had ate and drank good things, (had to now) clutch at a (mere) ration(?)
17'. [...] im#-szu2-szu2 igi im-la2-e sza3-ka-tab i3-zu-zu#
 en: The sun was clouded over, (one) was being envious/watching(?) and knew fasting
18'. [...]-edin#-na kasz nu-gal2 gid2!?-da-bi nu-um-gal2#?
 en: There was no beer in the “house of the plain"(!?), its ... was not present
19'. [...] nig2#-gu7# la-ba-na-gal2 tusz-u3-bi nu-du10#?
 en: There was no food for him in his palace, it was not good(?) for dwelling
20'. [ga2]-nun#? mah#?-[a]-ni sze nu-um-si-si zi-bi# la-ba-szi-in#-[...]
 en: His supreme storehouse was not filled with grain, no one could take refuge there(?)
21'. gur7# du6# gur7 [masz] {d#}nanna-kam {d}asznan nu-x-[...]
 en: (The) grain (goddess) was not present in the large and small grain heaps
22'. kin2#-sig dingir-re-ne#?-[...]-x-gu7#? ki#?-si-ga ba-x-[...]
 en: The afternoon meal of the gods was not? eaten, funerary offerings(?) ...
23'. unu2#? gal-ba kurun2 lal3 gesztin x [...] x [...]
 en: In the great banquet the honeyed liquor and ... wine ceased?
24'. giri2#-PA-a gu4 udu gu7#? gu4 x [...]
 en: The giriPAa knife that consumes oxen and sheep ...
25'. gir4# mah-ba gu4 udu i3-x-[...]
 en: In the great oven the oxen and sheep were not being prepared (i.e., roasted?), one could no longer smell it(?)
26'. bur#-sag a2# sikil {d}nanna-kam [...]
 en: The cry/breath of the “pure-armed” bursag building/functionary(?) stopped(?)
27'. e2 gu4#-gin7 gu3 bi2-in-du11#-[...]
 en: The temple that had once belowed like a bull ... silently
28'. mu-DU ku3-ga si nu-mu-un#-[...]
 en: ... did not execute deliveries properly, ...
29'. {na4}kin2 {gesz}naga3 {gesz}gan-[na ...]
 en: The millstone, the mortar, and the pestle sat idle, no one bends down towards them
30'. kar {na4}za-gin3 {d}nanna#-[...]
 en: In the lapis harbor of Nanna (boats?) were “bound in the water” (due to silt?)
31'. a#? ma2 sag-ga2-a szex(TU6)# nu#-[...]
 en: The water of the prow did not scream(?), it did not cast joy?
32'. unu2#?-RI-banda3{+da#} [...]
 en: Sand(?) was piled up in the unuRIbanda building/shrine of Nanna
33'. [{u2}]numun2# SZE3 x [...]
 en: The ... rushes grew, the ... rushes grew, the reed of mourning(?) grew
34'. [...] kar [...]
 en: Boats and barges quit the shining harbor
35'. [...] x x [...]
 en: ...
36'. [...] x x [...]
 en: ...
37'. [...] x [...]
 en: ...
  rest broken
reverse
  beginning broken
  blank space

Consult previous versions and their differences
Consult sign list of Old Babylonian (ca. 1900-1600 BC)
Consult word list of Old Babylonian (ca. 1900-1600 BC)

  • Artifact type: Tablet
  • Material: Clay
  • Measurements (mm):
  • Weight:
  • Artifact Preservation:
  • Condition Description:
  • Join Information:
  • Seal no.:
  • Seal information:
  • Artifact comments:

  • Genre(s): Literary (ETCSL 2.02.03 Lament for Sumer and Ur (witness))
  • Language(s): Sumerian


  • history: UET 6, 0130 + 0511

    [Gadd1963] Gadd, Cyril J., and Aaron Shaffer. 1963, 1966.

  • history: Michalowski Lamentation over Sumer and Ur p.32,

    [sec87749] N.d.

  • Composite No.:
  • Museum No.: BM —
  • Accession No.:

  • Provenience: Ur (mod. Tell Muqayyar)
  • Elevation:
  • Stratigraphic Level:
  • Excavation No: U —
  • Findspot Square:
  • Findspot Comments:

Created Creator Type Authors Project Reviewer Status Action
2023-06-15 at 20:34:30 Rattenborg, Rune Artifact Rattenborg, Rune Geomapping Landscapes of Writing Rattenborg, Rune approved View
2019-11-29 at 10:36:54 Englund, Robert K. Atf Englund, Robert K. CDLI approved View
2019-06-11 at 10:42:01 Englund, Robert K. Atf Englund, Robert K. CDLI approved View
2019-05-29 at 21:01:58 Englund, Robert K. Atf Englund, Robert K. CDLI approved View
2006-11-02 at 00:00:00 CDLI Artifact Foxvog, Daniel A.; Guerra, Dylan; Peterson, Jeremiah; Veldhuis, Niek; Wolfe, Jared N. CDLI approved View

This artifact is a witness to the following composite(s):

Composite Score
CDLI Literary 000380 (Lament for Sumer and Ur) composite (P469682) View the score

General Notes: -
CDLI Notes: -
Cite this Artifact
“CDLI Literary 000380, Ex. 024 Artifact Entry.” (2006) 2023. Cuneiform Digital Library Initiative (CDLI). June 15, 2023. https://cdli.ucla.edu/P346215.
CDLI Literary 000380, ex. 024 artifact entry (No. P346215). (2023, June 15). Cuneiform Digital Library Initiative (CDLI). https://cdli.ucla.edu/P346215 (Original work published 2006)
CDLI Literary 000380, ex. 024 artifact entry (2023) Cuneiform Digital Library Initiative (CDLI). Available at: https://cdli.ucla.edu/P346215 (Accessed: March 28, 2024).
@misc{2023CDLI,
	note = {[Online; accessed 2024-03-28]},
	year = {2023},
	month = {jun 15},
	title = {CDLI {Literary} 000380, ex. 024 artifact entry},
	howpublished = {https://cdli.ucla.edu/P346215},
}

TY  - ELEC
DA  - 2023/6/15/
PY  - 2023
ID  - P346215
LB  - CDLI:P346215
M1  - 2024/3/28/
TI  - CDLI Literary 000380, ex. 024 artifact entry
UR  - https://cdli.ucla.edu/P346215
ER  - 
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