A long Babylonian love lyric (BM 45381+)
Neo-Babylonian love lyric (print edition: I. Finkel).
View at electronic Babylonian Library (eBL), LMU Munich · Try the in-browser translator
| Designation | BM.45381 |
|---|---|
| Museum no. | BM.45381 |
| Collection | Babylon |
| Language | Akkadian |
| Period | Neo-Babylonian |
| Genre | CANONICAL > Literature > Monologue and dialogue > Love |
| Findspot | find-spot unknown |
| Source | electronic Babylonian Library (eBL), LMU Munich — MIT (eBL Zenodo dataset); platform terms unverified |
| Lines | 152 (136 with machine English) |
Machine draft. English generated by model atf-en-best-v2 (montycrypto/atf-to-english) (version d871547f92875415dbbc7f4a37fd65e35f8ac97d) on 2026-10-05, line by line from the ATF. Not a scholarly translation.
The transliteration is not reproduced here because the source (electronic Babylonian Library (eBL), LMU Munich) is not marked as republishable; read it at the source link above.
| Line | English (machine draft) |
|---|---|
| obverse col 1 | |
| 1 | |
| 2 | (As for) the lady-melulatu of Marduk, the hero of Zarpanitu |
| 3 | In the riksi of Zarpanitu, the one who does not have strength |
| 4 | his name there is none, his name is the wife of a man. |
| 5 | I, for Zarpanitu, the dream-interpreter, and the edbitu-priest, |
| 6 | In my second regnal year I approached Itar of Babylon, the foundation of the wall |
| 7 | ... and |
| 8 | This, as long as he lives, is an awe-inspiring brilliance, |
| 9 | This wall, as long as he lives, is surrounded by a courtyard. |
| 10 | You are the strength of the house that I have done, you are the strength of the bricks. |
| 11 | In lieu of the tablet, in the hand of Belia, in lieu of the tablet, I will make bricks. |
| 12 | ... your husband |
| 13 | |
| 14 | My strength...... he shall smite..., he shall smite... |
| 15 | ... to you, hear my report... may I be sated in the evening. |
| 16 | From my childhood until my lord's presence I shall bring you? in a dream. |
| 17 | May they see me, may they see me. |
| 18 | May I be sated with the claws of a dog, may I be sated with the locust of Abaquna. |
| 19 | When he heard my prayer, he... me |
| 20 | I seized the kalbum-demon and seized the sand dunes. What is it that? |
| 21 | (If) there is a mole in the middle of the night, locusts will be scattered in the intestines. |
| 22 | A bqnu-vessel of a mountain, a bqnu-vessel, a bqnu-vessel, a mashnu-vessel, |
| 23 | You go to the equlû-temple, go... |
| 24 | With me I went. The Babylonians with me |
| 25 | The priests of the Eturkalamma temple with me |
| 26 | a first-born woman of the Turkalam temple with me |
| 27 | (As for) the aliatutu of the dais of my earth |
| 28 | In her journey I will go, I will... to... |
| 29 | ...... kurbanni... ditto |
| 30 | ... on... ditto. |
| 31 | ... ditto |
| 32 | ... his life |
| 33 | ... before..., lady of the land |
| 34 | ... of the sea |
| 35 | ......... |
| 36 | ... his |
| obverse col 2 | |
| 1 | |
| 2 | |
| 3 | field carried, uma-mtu |
| 4 | You go to the road of Cutha and go to the harrntu of |
| 5 | My donkeys, my..., my..., my..., my..., |
| 6 | The haluria and the haluru... |
| 7 | to the gate of the city not to be abandoned... |
| 8 | With my donkey |
| 9 | In my arms... a gift... |
| 10 | ... a donkey............ |
| 11 | My aqrû-demon in... |
| 12 | ........................ |
| 13 | ... the gate of Kangu |
| 14 | ... the kangu-vessel, your..... |
| 15 | ... let them give. Whoever..., let them give. As much as... |
| 16 | kizzanitu-stone,...-ayu-stone,...-stone,... |
| 17 | ... you... |
| 18 | The lord(?) of...... you, ditto,... the land... |
| 19 | ...... ditto, ditto, you seize and...... |
| 20 | Ditto, ditto, ditto, |
| 21 | [...] |
| 22 | ... you,............ |
| 23 | his eyes... his... his... |
| 24 | to go...... |
| 25 | |
| 26 | |
| 27 | |
| 28 | |
| 29 | |
| 30 | The dog(?)..., |
| 31 | ... he smote a seed.... he entered |
| 32 | Your father, may you be praised(?) |
| 33 | You should not... on top of a taqrû-vessel... |
| 34 | For your protection, which you...... in your presence... |
| 35 | |
| 36 | When he is not a mountain, when he is a sage |
| 37 | The awe-inspiring radiance of my awe-inspiring radiance overwhelmed the gate. |
| 38 | To the quay of your merciful heart, to the quay of your desire |
| 39 | Who to the city...? |
| 40 | To the quay of your own strength, to the quay of your own strength |
| 41 | |
| obverse col 3 | |
| 1' | |
| 2' | ... month, from |
| 3' | to a man’s house |
| 4' | To the temple of the gold(?) ditto |
| 5' | to a man's house ditto, ditto |
| 6' | to a man's house ditto, ditto |
| 7' | To a man's house ditto, ditto. |
| 8' | To your..., ditto the heavens(?) |
| 9' | Yayau, son of Muknu |
| 10' | goddess of the kuzbu priestess, Zarpanitu, |
| 11' | At the gate of peace, he stood by Bel(?) Babylon |
| 12' | To the king, you have sworn(?)... Belia |
| 13' | To the... of a man(?)... in order to(?)...... |
| 14' | For the gold(?) that..., for the... of |
| 15' | ... of the house(?)......... |
| 16' | ...... |
| 17' | ...... of |
| 18' | |
| 19' | For the people who... my lips. |
| 20' | On account of the supplication that you have made... |
| 21' | to the unceasing one who... |
| 22' | For entering the house |
| 23' | to the cella house |
| 24' | The six eretu offerings |
| 25' | Like a tavern...... |
| 26' | Let me... as... |
| 27' | The lapis lazuli that is in your hand |
| 28' | The ziggurrat of your ziggurrat |
| 29' | ... of/in(?) his temple... stone |
| 30' | The lapis lazuli of your tikku stone |
| 31' | The ziggurrat of your ziggurrat...... |
| 32' | In the sand dunes(?) of Bel, the black-headed(?) one(?) |
| 33' | He gave birth to Bel, he gave birth to the king of Ina |
| 34' | Your father, HAR-baqnu, O Bel, who(?) does not seize the black-headed (people) |
| 35' | O Bel, who does not seize the black-headed and...... |
| 36' | to you the silver(?) he shall perform. May the gold(?) of |
| 37' | Your treaty............ |
| 38' | The word............ |
| 39' | Your lips I bring to the king, may they give you to.... |
| 40' | O god, your female servant,... not(?) |
| 41' | ......... |
| 42' | ... of......... |
| 43' | ...... not...... |
| 44' | Gate............ |
| 45' | May Bel(?) not go before you, may... strong(?)... not |
| 46' | ......... not... |
| 47' | ......... |
| 48' | |
| 49' | |
| reverse col 2 | |
| 1' | Your limbs are alabaster, kurnu-stone. |
| 2' | These are my stones,... carnelian,..., |
| 3' | (As for) the shatammu-stone, which is surrounded by a band of lapis lazuli, it is surrounded by a mountain. |
| 4' | sagdu-stone, my tilletua-stone, juniper of... |
| 5' | The... reed tree of... stone |
| 6' | ...-ua, the seal of the house |
| 7' | ... stone |
| 8' | |
| 9' | ... fearsomeness,... |
| 10' | adidu’a stone, saggilmudmud stone, the one who binds me |
| 11' | My scepter that...... |
| 12' | From the Ilurtu until the Ilurtu... |
| 13' | The spleen of cedar, my spleen, the awe-inspiring abode, the place of rejoicing |
| 14' | (As for) her akkullû-stone, which is a samu-stone, may she... the gold. |
| 15' | My singers of cedar, adidu, and takkiltu-wood |
| 16' | My father who... the gate(?) |
| 17' | The gate of... is a good... of his life. |
| 18' | I am a iatu-tree, a... boat |
| 19' | my dead... did not come, the son of the king of the shipyard... |
| 20' | ............ |
| 21' | Why... a tree? |
| 22' | of my... |
| 23' | ... not... |
| 24' | ... the mouth(?) |
| 25' | ... to the great and small(?) |
| 26' | ... plant(?) |