CDLI Literary 000540, ex. 005 (P346266)
Literary letter and letter-prayer, Old Babylonian, Ur · c. 1900 BCE–1600 BCE
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| Designation | CDLI Literary 000540, ex. 005 |
|---|---|
| ID | P346266 |
| Museum no. | BM — |
| Collection | British Museum, London, UK |
| Language | Sumerian |
| Period | Old Babylonian · c. 1900 BCE–1600 BCE |
| Genre | Literary letter and letter-prayer |
| Find spot | Ur (mod. Tell Muqayyar) |
| Coordinates | 30.9607, 46.1063 |
English translation
By Peterson, Jeremiah · Via Cuneiform Digital Library Initiative · CDLI (reuse with citation)
| Line | English |
|---|---|
| obverse 1 | When you speak to Aradgu, |
| obverse 2 | thus says Shulgi, your king: |
| obverse 3 | Your man who I sent to ..., isn't he your trusted subordinate(?) |
| obverse 4 | Doesn't he take orders from your own hand? |
| obverse 5 | Why do have (you) not been aware of that which he has done, such as it is(?) |
| obverse 6 | I myself and that which is like me (my representatives/my instruction?) are to solidify the land |
| obverse 7 | To ..., to strengthen the foundations of the land |
| obverse 8 | Your (dissemination of the news that?) “I approach the cities of the land,” to ascertain its thoughts (i.e., reaction) |
| obverse 9 | One should learn the speech of the dignitaries |
| obverse 10 | My scream should cover the lands |
| obverse 11 | My might, the arms of my heroism should be cast continually into the land |
| obverse 12 | My “southern storm” should be imposed in the homeland |
| obverse 13 | Forget about the empty breezes of the plain and the robbers(?) of the field |
| obverse 14 | Until you reach(!?) Apliaša, my prefect |
| obverse 15 | Bring out your face/eye, so that you bring your face/eye towards him(?) |
| obverse 16 | I have ordered you |
| reverse 1' | Governor(s) from the office of governor, office holder(s) from the practice of holding office |
| reverse 2' | If he himself had not installed and removed them |
| reverse 3' | If he had not killed or blinded(?) anyone |
| reverse 4' | If a man is (not deemed) surpassing by that of his own observation |
| reverse 5' | How could he establish the land? |
| reverse 6' | If I(?) love him(?) |
| reverse 7' | Your heart should not become a heart bound up (by wrath?) for him |
| reverse 8' | You are “thick,” (you) do have not understood your own soldiers |
| reverse 9' | You eyes have seen his manpower(?) and that of his heroism(?) |
| reverse 10' | If you are my house-born slave |
| reverse 11' | Your two eyes(?) shall read this inscribed tablet aloud |
| reverse 12' | Come into agreement, establish the foundation of the land! |
Transliteration (ATF)
From Cuneiform Digital Library Initiative · CDLI: reuse of catalogue/transliteration data with citation of CDLI; images restricted (not fetched)
| Line | ATF | Machine English (draft) |
|---|---|---|
| obverse | ||
| 1 | [{disz}]ARAD-gu10-ra u3-na-a-du11 | |
| 2 | [{d}]szul#-gi lugal-zu na-ab-be2-a | |
| 3 | [...]-in#-szi-gi4-na-zu lu2-dun-a-zu#? in-nu | |
| 4 | [...]-zu#-ta a2 ag2-ga2 szu# la-ba-ra-te-ge26-e | |
| 5 | [a]-na#-asz-am3 nig2 bi2-in-ak-a-ni ur5# i3-mex(LA2)-a nu-zu | |
| 6 | [...] ga2-gin7-nam ma-da gin6-ne2-de3 | |
| 7 | [...] x-de3 suhusz ma-da gi-en-gin6-ne2-de3 | |
| 8 | [...]-e-te-ge26-de3-na-zu umusz-bi zu-zu-am3 | |
| 9 | [...]-ne# inim-bi he2-en-zu | |
| 10 | [...] kur-kur-ra he2-en-dul | |
| 11 | [...] nam-ur-sag-ga2 [...]-ra# he2-en-szub-szub-bu | |
| 12 | [...]-ma# he2-en-ri | |
| 13 | [...]-lib4# a-sza3-ga u2-gu de2-ni-ib | |
| 14 | [...] sa2-ne-en | |
| 15 | [...]-ab igi-zu he2-in-szi-ku4 | |
| 16 | [...]-e#?-da-[...]-ag2# | |
| 17 | [...]-x | |
| reverse | ||
| 1' | [...]-ensi2#-[...] garza2# nam-garza2#-[...] | |
| 2' | [...]-am3# li-bi2-ib#-[...]-ta-gub-bu | |
| 3' | [...] nu-un-hul | |
| 4' | [...]-ni#? lu2-lux(URU) al-diri-ge | |
| 5' | [...]-da ib2-gin6-ne | |
| 6' | [...]-mu-ag2 | |
| 7' | [...] zu2#? kesz2 ba-ra-na-ga2-ga2 | |
| 8' | [...]-x aga-us2-zu nu-zu | |
| 9' | [...]-lu#-ni u3 nam-ur-sag-ka-ni [...]-zu#-u3 bi2-duh | |
| 10' | tukumbi# ama-a-tu-gu10 za-e-me-en | |
| 11' | [...]-ne-ne im sar-ra gu3# he2-em-ta-de2-de2-e | |
| 12' | [...] si-ge5 suhusz ma-da gi-en-gin6-ne | |
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
Cite the original edition and translator. Page generated by Unread Atlas from the public corpus export of 2026-10-11.