ABL 0951 (P334641)
Letter, Neo-Assyrian, Nineveh · c. 911 BCE–612 BCE
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| Designation | ABL 0951 |
|---|---|
| ID | P334641 |
| Museum no. | BM — |
| Collection | British Museum, London, UK |
| Language | Akkadian |
| Period | Neo-Assyrian · c. 911 BCE–612 BCE |
| Genre | Letter |
| Find spot | Nineveh (mod. Kuyunjik) |
| Coordinates | 36.3582, 43.1621 |
English translation
By ORACC project saao/saa13 · Via Open Richly Annotated Cuneiform Corpus (ORACC) · CC BY-SA 3.0 (ORACC)
| Line | English |
|---|---|
| Obverse [3:4] o 4'4'–o 4'4' | The matter which [he ...] will not pl[ease] the king. |
| Obverse [4:11] o 5'5'–o 11'11' | Now Pulu, the lamentation priest, has been acting arbitrarily in the temple of Nabû. Without the permission of the king, he tore out doorposts, fastened others, and cut down the ... in the Akitu house of N[abû] and the Akitu house of Tašmetu. As for the golden table of [Mar]duk, which Sargon had made, he assigned a goldsmith to it. He removed the old work and replaced it with new. |
| Obverse [11:15] o 12'12'–o 15'15' | Furthermore, the dragons upon which Nabû stands, and the socle between them — he has made a sketch out of them. One of the clergymen saw him, but he turned him back and let him go. No one has authority, and no one says (anything) to him. |
| Obverse [15:22] o 16'16'–o 22'22' | He has appointed officials of his own choosing in the temple. Moreover, the king's father set up golden bottles of ...-liter capacity (with) royal images on them. They would fill with wine the one in front of Bel and the one in front of Nabû. They would be decanted. The wine was the palace allotment. Now this has been stopped. He himself measures out the wine and carries it in. |
| Obverse [22:27] o 23'23'– | And formerly, when my father supervised the house of eunuchs ordinary beer from groats was decanted, and he used to inspect [new] and old (beer) at the same time. |
| Bottom [0:1] b.e. 27'b.e. 27'–b.e. 27'b.e. 27' | [......] regular offerings |
| Bottom [1:2] b.e. 28'28'–b.e. 28'28' | [Pulu is the one who i]s to blame [for ...] |
| Bottom [2:3] b.e. 29'29'–b.e. 29'29' | [... which he/th]ey [...] |
| Bottom [3:9] b.e. 30'30'– | [...(and)] all the [tr]easuries are under his supervision: he is the one to open and seal them. He enters the ritual bath house of Bel and Nabû. (There) twice a year the loins of Marduk are ungirded. All the precious stones and jewelry are under his custody; he does not show them to anybody with him. |
| Reverse [3:7] r 44–r 77 | He also does the work of the woman who carries out the lighting ceremony for Tašmetu. Nobody with him sees (her), neither the deputy priest, nor the temple steward, nor the king's official know. |
| Reverse [7:10] r 88–r 1010 | The ... has been left at his disposal and is being placed in [front of Bel] and in front of Nabû with the help of hired laborers. Moreover [they ...] as they please, and [they ...] the regular sheep offering in the afternoon as they please. |
| Reverse [10:15] r 1111–r 1515 | The regular sheep offering which is car[ried] out in the temple of Marduk should be stopped — for at least one month if not two. The regular sheep offering of the pilgrims (lit. 'the blesser'), which is performed before Nabû, is [incom]plete. They carry out the regular sheep offering in full before Marduk — but having performed its ritual in the temple of [...]mar. |
| Reverse [15:18] r 1616–r 1818 | No one can do (anything); there is an order to remain silent. But they have changed the old rites! The 'opener of the eyes' [...] the food allotment [...]. Just let [the king], my [lord], ask! |
| Reverse [18:19] r 1919–r 1919 | [...] the exorcist, the [...]-official [...] |
| Reverse [20:21] r 2121–r 2121 | [...] the 'opener of the eyes' and [...] |
| Reverse [21:22] r 2222–r 2222 | [......] Uraš, Nabû, [DN] |
| Reverse [22:23] r 2323–r 2323 | [......] ... and if [...] |
| Reverse [23:24] r 2424–r 2424 | [...] which the king, my lord, ... [...] |
| Reverse [24:29] r 2525– | I have stood [...]. Why does [NN] serve [in] my father's [o]ffice while I am dying of hunger? [Con]cerning what [...] |
| Edge [0:1] e. 1e. 1–e. 1e. 1 | [......] to [......] |
| Edge [1:3] e. 22–e. 33 | [......] May [Nabû] and Marduk bless [the king]. [... w]rote concern[ing ......]. Let the king try him, and let him write me in detail about the work of the house of eunuch[s]. |
Transliteration (ATF)
From Open Richly Annotated Cuneiform Corpus (ORACC) · CC BY-SA 3.0 (ORACC default); per-file JSON license fields say: This data is released under the CC0 license (133618)
| Line | ATF | Machine English (draft) |
|---|---|---|
| o | ||
| 1' | LUGAL [x x x x x x x] pa is [x x x x]-tu₂ | |
| 2' | ina ŠA₃-⸢bi⸣ [x x x x x x] u₃ [x x x x]-⸢pa⸣-tum | |
| 3' | is-si-⸢hir⸣ [x x x x x x] ma ad [x x x x x] | |
| 4' | a-bu-tu ša ⸢x x⸣-la-ni a-na LUGAL la ⸢ṭa⸣-[ba-at] | |
| 5' | u₂-ma-a {1}pu-u₂-lu {lu₂}UŠ.KU ki-i ra-[me-ni-šu] | |
| 6' | ina E₂—{d}PA up-pa-aš₂ ina E₂—a-ki-ti E₂—a-ki-ti ša {⸢d⸣}[PA] | |
| 7' | u₃ E₂—a-ki-ti E₂—a-ki-ti ša {d}taš-me-tum ša ⸢la⸣-a ⸢LUGAL⸣ | |
| 8' | {giš}šu-up-ša₂-a-te it-ta-sa-ah ša-ni-a-te iṣ-ṣa-bat | |
| 9' | ṣi-im-mi-it-tu it-ti-kis u₃ {giš}BANŠUR ša {[d]}⸢AMAR⸣.UTU | |
| 10' | ša KUG.GI ša {1}LUGAL—u₂-kin₂ e-pu-šu₂-u-ni | |
| 11' | {lu₂}SIMUG.KUG.GI ina UGU-hi us-se-ši-ib dul-lu la-bi-ru | |
| 12' | u₂-tal-li GIBIL e-ta-pa-aš₂ u₃ šu-un-gal-li | |
| 13' | ša {d}PA ina UGU-hi iz-za-zu-u-ni šu-ub-tum ina bir-tu-uš-šu₂-nu | |
| 14' | li-i-ṭu e-ta-pa-aš₂ 01-en ina ŠA₃ {lu₂}TU—E₂ {lu₂}TU—E₂ e-ta-mar-šu₂ | |
| 15' | ⸢us⸣-sa-hi-ir ur-ta-am-me mi-mi-e-ni la ⸢i⸣-šal-liṭ | |
| 16' | 01-⸢en⸣ la i-qab-ba-aš₂-šu₂ {lu₂}EN—pi-qit-ta-a-te {lu₂}EN—pi-qit-ta-a-te | |
| 17' | ša ra-me-ni-šu₂ ina ŠA₃ E₂.KUR-ri up-ta-qid | |
| 18' | u₃ {[dug]}⸢la⸣-ha-a-ni ša KUG.GI ša [x] qa-a-a | |
| 19' | ⸢NU⸣—LUGAL-ni ⸢NU⸣—LUGAL-ni ina UGU-hi AD-šu₂ ša LUGAL us-sa-zi-iz | |
| 20' | 01-en ina IGI {d}EN 01-en ina IGI {d}PA GEŠTIN-MEŠ u₂-ma-al-lu-u | |
| 21' | in-ne₂-ep-su GEŠTIN-MEŠ ta-a-a-ru ša E₂.GAL šu-u₂ | |
| 22' | u₂-ma-a ba-aṭ-lu ša-ki-in šu-u₂ GEŠTIN-MEŠ | |
| 23' | ⸢i⸣-ma-da-ad i-⸢na⸣-aš₂-ši-a u₃ ina pa-ni-te | |
| 24' | ⸢ki⸣-i AD-u₂-a ina IGI E₂—SAG-MEŠ E₂—SAG-MEŠ iz-zi-zu-u-ni | |
| 25' | [o] {⸢kaš⸣}US₂.SA ša {še}haš-la-te in-ne₂-si-ip | |
| 26' | [GIBIL] u₃ la-⸢bi⸣-[ru is-sa]-⸢he⸣-iš em-mar | |
| b.e. | ||
| 27' | [x x x x x x x] gi-ne₂-e | |
| 28' | [x x x x x x x x]+⸢x⸣ hi-i-ṭu | |
| 29' | [x x x x x x i]-⸢ba⸣-šu₂-ni | |
| 30' | ⸢x x⸣ [x x E₂]—⸢nak⸣-ka-ma-a-te E₂]—⸢nak⸣-ka-ma-a-te gab-bu | |
| 31' | ina IGI-⸢šu₂⸣ šu-u₂ ⸢i⸣-pat-te i-⸢kan⸣-nak | |
| r | ||
| 1 | ina E₂—rim-ki E₂—rim-ki ša {d}EN u₃ {d}PA er-rab | |
| 2 | 02-šu₂ ina ŠA₃ MU.AN.NA qab-li ša {d}ŠU₂ ip-pa-ṭa-ra | |
| 3 | NA₄-MEŠ ša-kut-tum gab-bu ina IGI-šu₂ a-na mi-mi-e-ni | |
| 4 | is-se-e-šu₂ la u₂-kal-lam u₃ MI₂ ša na-mu-ru | |
| 5 | a-na {d}taš-me-tum te-ep-pa-šu₂-u-ni šu-u₂ dul-la-ša₂ ep-pa-aš₂ | |
| 6 | mi-mi-e-ni is-se-e-šu₂ la-a em-mar la-a {lu₂}SANGA 02-u₂ | |
| 7 | la-a {lu₂}lah-⸢hi⸣-nu u₃ la-a {lu₂}EN—pi-qit-ti {lu₂}EN—pi-qit-ti ša LUGAL | |
| 8 | ⸢u₂-di⸣-[u] ⸢ina pa-ni⸣-šu₂ ra-[am-mu]-⸢ma⸣ ina ŠA₃ {lu₂}ag-ru-u₂-ti | |
| 9 | ina [IGI {d}EN] ina IGI {d}PA iš-⸢šak⸣-kan u₃ ki-ma ŠA₃-ba-šu₂-nu | |
| 10 | [x x x x x x u₃ ki]-ma ŠA₃-ba-šu₂-nu ina mu-ṣal-li {udu}da-ri-u₂ | |
| 11 | ⸢x⸣+[x x] kit ⸢x⸣+[x x] {udu}da-ri-u₂ ša ina E₂—{d}AMAR.UTU | |
| 12 | in-ne₂-[ep-pa]-šu₂-u-ni šum₂-ma ITI šum₂-ma 02 ITI-MEŠ-ni lu ba-ṭi-il | |
| 13 | {udu}da-ri-u₂ ša ⸢SUB⸣ ša ina IGI {d}PA in-ne₂-ep-pa-šu₂-u-ni | |
| 14 | [la] ⸢gam⸣-er {udu}[da]-⸢ri⸣-u₂ ina IGI {d}AMAR.UTU ep-pu-šu₂ | |
| 15 | ⸢u₂-gam-mu⸣-ru ina E₂—{d}[x]+⸢x⸣.MAR dul-lu-šu₂ e-tap-šu₂ | |
| 16 | mi-mi-e-ni la-[a] ⸢ep⸣-uš qa-a-la ša₂-ki-in | |
| 17 | u₃ par-ṣi la-bi-ru-u₂-te us-sa-aš₂-ni-u₂ | |
| 18 | {⸢lu₂⸣}BAD—e-ni {⸢lu₂⸣}BAD—e-ni a-kul-⸢lu⸣-[u₂ x x x x LUGAL be]-li₂ liš-al | |
| 19 | ⸢x⸣+[x] {lu₂}MAŠ.MAŠ {lu₂}⸢x⸣+[x x x x x x x x]-u-ni | |
| 20 | [x x x x x x x x x]+⸢x x⸣+[x x x x x] ka ši | |
| 21 | [x x x x x x x x]+⸢x⸣ {lu₂}BAD—e-ni {lu₂}BAD—e-ni u₃ | |
| 22 | [x x x x x x x x x]+⸢x⸣ {d}IB {d}PA {d}[x x] | |
| 23 | [x x x x x x]-da-ni-ni u₃ šum-ma ⸢x⸣+[x x x] | |
| 24 | [x x x x] ša LUGAL ⸢be-li₂⸣ u₂ ni qur an ⸢x⸣+[x x x] | |
| 25 | [x x x x x x]+⸢x⸣ at-ti-ti-iz a-ta-a | |
| 26 | [x x x ina] ⸢pi⸣-qit-ti ša AD-⸢ia⸣ iz-za-az | |
| 27 | u₃ a-⸢na-ku⸣ ina bu-bu-⸢u₂⸣-te [a]-⸢mu-at⸣ | |
| 28 | [ina] UGU mi-mi-e-ni ša ⸢x⸣+[x x x x x] | |
| r.e. | ||
| 29 | [x x x] ⸢x x x x⸣+[x x x x x x x x x] | |
| e. | ||
| 1 | [x x x x x x x x x x]+⸢x⸣ a-na [x x x x x x x] | |
| 2 | [x x x x x]+⸢x⸣+[x x]+⸢x⸣ {d}AMAR.UTU [a-na LUGAL] lik-ru-bu ina ⸢UGU⸣ [x x x] iš [x x x] | |
| 3 | [x x x]-⸢sa-ṭar LUGAL lu⸣-u-ki-in-šu₂ u₃ ina UGU dul-li ša E₂ {lu₂}⸢SAG-MEŠ⸣ [x x x] | |
| 4 | ⸢šid⸣-di ar-ki LUGAL liš-pu-ra | |
Sources & licences
- Cuneiform Digital Library Initiative · CDLI: reuse of catalogue/transliteration data with citation of CDLI; images restricted (not fetched) · Cuneiform Digital Library Initiative (CDLI), https://cdli.earth/ ; cite CDLI and the P-number
- Open Richly Annotated Cuneiform Corpus (ORACC) · CC BY-SA 3.0 (ORACC default); per-file JSON license fields say: This data is released under the CC0 license (133618) · ORACC project editions, https://oracc.museum.upenn.edu/ ; cite the individual project (see texts.extra_json.project)
Cite the original edition and translator. Page generated by Unread Atlas from the public corpus export of 2026-10-11.