Unread Atlas
CDLI Literary 000577 (Governor to King) composite (P479849)
Literary letter and letter-prayer, Old Babylonian · c. 1900 BCE–1600 BCE
Open in the reader & map →See it among all tablets
| Designation | CDLI Literary 000577 (Governor to King) composite |
|---|---|
| ID | P479849 |
| Language | Sumerian |
| Period | Old Babylonian · c. 1900 BCE–1600 BCE |
| Genre | Literary letter and letter-prayer |
Transliteration (ATF)
From Cuneiform Digital Library Initiative · CDLI: reuse of catalogue/transliteration data with citation of CDLI; images restricted (not fetched)
Machine draft. The right-hand column is machine English from ixmon/atf-to-english (atf-en-t5base-F, 2026-10-17), generated line by line from the transliteration. It is unreviewed and is not a scholarly translation.
| Line | ATF | Machine English (draft) |
|---|---|---|
| surface a | ||
| 1 | lugal-me u3-na-du11 | our king said to us |
| 2 | ensi2 sanga-ke4 na-ab-be2-a | the governor and the temple administrator should not say: |
| 3 | a-sza3 da-ab-ta{ki} 3(szar2) GAN2-bi | the field of Da’abbta: 3 car field, |
| 4 | esz2-gar3 {d}en-lil2 | the ešgar of Enlil, |
| 5 | sza3-bi-ta 3(bur3) GAN2-am3 szukur2 lu2 nig2-dab5-ba-ke4-ne | therefrom: 3 bur3 field area, šukur-offerings of the seized persons; |
| 6 | 1(bur3) GAN2-am3 sa-dur2 a-sza3-ga-bi | 1 bur3 surface area, its sadur-measure, |
| 7 | {disz}iq-bi-sum2 u3 a-bi-qa2-ti-e inim mu-da-an-gar-re-esz | Iqbi-šum and Abi-qati agreed with him. |
| 8 | tukum-bi lugal-me an-na-kam | If our king is here, |
| 9 | ra-gaba hu-mu-szi-in-gi4-gi4-ma | may the courier return, and |
| 10 | kin a-ak bulug a-sza3 inim du11 hu-mu-ni-ib-x | May he/she say a word in the field. |
| 11 | SU-bi-sze3 2(iku) GAN2 n(bur3) 2(esze3) GAN2 gaba a-sza3-ga-bi | ... 2 iku surface area, n bur3 2 eše3 surface area adjacent to its field |
| 12 | {gesz}al-ta ba-dub2 kin-sze3 ba-ak | From the hoe he fell, to the work he did. |
| 13 | erin2 tah-hu-um engar sza3-gu4 lu2 {gesz}apin-na nu-me-a | labor-troops of Taḫhum, plowman of the oxen-drivers, were not a man of the plough. |
| 14 | gu4 dili-dili-ta a-sza3 gesz bi2-ur3 | From the single ox he cleared the field. |
| 15 | al i3-ak-en-de3-en lugal-me he2-en-zu | We will do it together, may our king know it! |
| surface b | ||
| 1 | a-sza3 me-am3{ki} 3(szar2) GAN2-am3 | field Me-am: 3 car field, |
| 2 | esz2-gar3 {d}en-lil2 u3 {d}nin-urta | the ešgar of Enlil and Ninurta |
| 3 | sza3-bi-ta 3(bur'u) GAN2-am3 | therefrom: 30 bur3 field, |
| 4 | szukur2 lu2 nig2-PAD-e-ne | offering of the men of the offerings |
| 5 | SU?-bi-sze3 sahar 2(iku) GAN2-ba me-a | To its ..., earth: 2 iku, where is the field? |
| 6 | al-ta ba-dub2 erin2-ta he2-x-a | From above it was heaped up, from the troops ... |
| 7 | kin-sze3 sar a-sza3-ga lu2 apin-bi nu-bi | The plowmen are not in charge of the work. |
| 8 | iq-bi-sum2 u3 a-bi-qa2-ti | he said to him, and the apprehension |
| 9 | inim mu-e-de-gar-re-esz | they placed a claim |
| 10 | tukum-bi lugal-gu10 | If my king |
| 11 | an-na-kam | of heaven. |
| 12 | ra-gaba hu-mu-un-gi4-gi4 | may the courier return. |
| 13 | kin ak bulug a-sza3-ga-bi | its work, harvest, and field |
| 14 | inim du11-du11 mu-ni-ib-x-ne | They ... words. |
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 2026-10-18.