CDLI Literary 000782, ex. 063 (P346685)
Literary, Old Babylonian, Ur · c. 1900 BCE–1600 BCE
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| Designation | CDLI Literary 000782, ex. 063 |
|---|---|
| ID | P346685 |
| Museum no. | BM — |
| Collection | British Museum, London, UK |
| Language | Sumerian |
| Period | Old Babylonian · c. 1900 BCE–1600 BCE |
| Genre | Literary |
| 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 col 1 1' | Do not transgress (my) spoken word |
| obverse col 1 2' | The advice of a father is precious |
| obverse col 1 3' | You should orient your neck towards it (i.e., respect it) |
| obverse col 1 4' | Do not buy a braying donkey |
| obverse col 1 5' | It will split apart the workforce(!?) |
| obverse col 1 6' | Do not put down a field (on) a road, there will be crushing/growling(?) force |
| obverse col 1 7' | Do not sow/cultivate a field in a path, the boundary stake(s)(!?) will be consumed at the border(!?) |
| obverse col 1 8' | Do not construct a well/cistern in(!) your field, the people will(?) destroy it for you |
| obverse col 1 9' | Do not attach a house(?) to the broad street/town square, there is “binding” (there) |
| obverse col 2 1' | The thief is indeed a pirig monster, (but) after he is caught, he is indeed a slave |
| obverse col 2 2' | My son, one should not rob |
| obverse col 2 3' | Do not “hew” yourself(?) |
| obverse col 2 4' | Do not sexually penetrate(?) the bridegroom, do not ... yourself |
| reverse col 1' 5' | 2/20(?) days ... |
| reverse col 1' 6' | ... like a female worker ..., ... diminished(?) sustenance |
| reverse col 1' 7' | The sick one made better (i.e., healed?) ... |
| reverse col 1' 9' | Do not quarrel ... |
| reverse col 2' 1' | An elder is a god, his word is true |
| reverse col 2' 2' | You should pay attention to the instruction of an elder |
| reverse col 2' 3' | The house(s) of the suburbs continually builds the inner city |
| reverse col 2' 4' | My son, the field(?) is situated towards the cattle pen/the bottom(?) |
| reverse col 2' 5' | (If) wet, it is a ration, if dry(!?) <it is a ration> |
| reverse col 2' 6' | Something lost(?) is (stunned) silence(?) |
| reverse col 2' 7' | The shekel/copper axe(?) of Dilmun is put for sale(?) |
| reverse col 2' 8' | An unknown place is furious(?), an unknown dog/a lack of shame(?) is evil(!?) |
| reverse col 2' 9' | On an unknown road (on) the edge/base(?) of the mountain |
| reverse col 2' 10' | The gods of the mountains are man eaters |
| reverse col 2' 11' | They do not build houses like man, they do not build cities like man |
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 col 1 | ||
| 1' | inim du11-ga [...] na-ab-te-bala#-[...]-x | |
| 2' | na de5 ad-da# kal#?-la-am3# | |
| 3' | gu2-zu he2-em-szi-gal2 | |
| 4' | dur3 gu3 di# na-ab-sa10-sa10-an | |
| 5' | erin2!?-ba sza-ra-si-il-le# | |
| 6' | GAN2!? kaskal# na-bi-ga2-ga2-an nam-silig gum-am3 | |
| 7' | a-sza3 ka-giri3-ka na-bi-uru4-en za3-e bulugx(BAL) gu7#?-a# | |
| 8' | GAN2!?-zu-am3 pu2 na-ni-[...] ug3-e szi-ri-ib!-hul# | |
| 9' | e2# sila#-dagal#-la#!? na#-[...] | |
| obverse col 2 | ||
| 1' | ul#-[...] | |
| 2' | dumu-gu10# [...] na-an#-[...] | |
| 3' | ni2#-zu# du5# [...] na-ga-bar#-[...] | |
| 4' | gesz nimgir#-[...] ni2#? [...] | |
| reverse col 1' | ||
| 1' | [...] ki NIG2 nag x [...] | |
| 2' | LUM-LUM he2-ni#-[...] | |
| 3' | e gu2? du3 la2-e#? [...] in szu x x [...] | |
| 4' | nig2#-UD-NE# nig2-UD#?-[...] mu#?-na#?-ab-[...] | |
| 5' | u4 2(disz@t) x [...] x x [...] x | |
| 6' | ur x x geme2#?-gin7 x [...] IM DU# sza3#? x-e sza3#?-gal ba#?-ni-in-lal | |
| 7' | tur5-ra du10-ga#? x x x | |
| 8' | nam-gig#? x AN x [...] | |
| 9' | du14 nam-mu2#?-[...] SAL? IM x [...] | |
| 10' | x x [...] | |
| reverse col 2' | ||
| 1' | ab#-ba# [...] zi#-[...] | |
| 2' | na de5# ab-ba-[...]-x-TUG2-x he2-em-szi#-gal2 | |
| 3' | e2# iri# bar#-ra iri sza3-ga szi-du3#-du3-e | |
| 4' | dumu-gu10 GAN2? tur3-sze3# gal2-am3# | |
| 5' | al-<duru5> szukur2-am3# al-duru5-x | |
| 6' | nig2# x-x-x nig2-me-gar-ra | |
| 7' | GIN2#? dilmun#?-na sa10-sze3 si!?-ga# | |
| 8' | ki nu#?-zu#? husz#?-am3 UR nu#-zu# UR-am3 | |
| 9' | [...] nu-zu! gaba kur-ra-ka | |
| 10' | [...] kur-ra lu2 gu7-gu7-me-esz | |
| 11' | [...]-gin7#? nu-du3 [...]-du3# | |
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.