Unread Atlas
Letter from Šu-Suen to Šarrum-bāni about digging a trench (Q000556)
Literary, Old Babylonian · c. 1900 BCE–1600 BCE
Open in the reader & map →See it among all tablets
| Designation | Letter from Šu-Suen to Šarrum-bāni about digging a trench |
|---|---|
| ID | Q000556 |
| Language | Sumerian |
| Period | Old Babylonian · c. 1900 BCE–1600 BCE |
| Genre | Literary |
| Find spot | uncertain |
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)
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) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | {m}šar-ru-um-ba-ni u₃-na-a-dug₄ | Šarrum-bāni said to him: |
| 2 | {d}šu-{d}suen lugal-zu na-ab-be₂-a | Šū-Sîn, your king, should not say |
| 3 | lu₂-kiŋ₂-gi₄-a mu-e-ši-gi-a-ŋu₁₀ dirig šag₄-še₃ X x | (Sum) You are the one who requites the liar (Akk) You have redeemed the messenger, you have ... to the enemy |
| 4 | ud e₃ a₂ aŋ₂-ŋa₂-ŋu₁₀ ŋa₂-a-gin₇-nam ma-x li-bi₂-ib-dirig-ge | When the storm rises, ... like a flood wave. |
| 5 | ud ed₂-da-zu-ne igi nu-ub-X-x | When you walk, you do not ... |
| 6 | ŋe₂₆-e a-na ma-ab-be₂-en-na-X x | What are you saying to me? |
| 7 | šag₄ ma-da-ka ŋen-a-zu-ne | When you go to the fields of the land |
| 8 | ma-da a-ba e-te ŋi₆ sa₂ na-x | Who ... the land? |
| 9 | lu₂ gal-gal-be₂-e-ne inim u₃-x | The great men ... words |
| tukum-bi niŋ₂ te-na-ŋa₂ nam-ba-x | If a man ... | |
| 11 | KU-ne-ne KUŠ-a-ni x | KU₁-nēne, his skin |
| 12 | lu₂ gal-gal-be₂-e-ne šubtum₆ he₂-mu-e-da-sug₂-x | May the great men stand with you in prayer |
| TUR-TUR-ne-ne ub-ta-ri TUR-ne-ne | They are boys, they are suckling boys. | |
| 14 | e-ne-ne-gin₇-nam ma-da x | Like them, the land ... |
| 15 | tukum-bi u₃ lu₂-ŋarza₂-be₂-e-ne | If the barzars |
| 16 | dib₂-be₂-de₃-aš-am₃ | It is a matter of passing by |
| 17 | burudₓ(U)-da-ne-ne nu-e-da-sig₁₀-ge₅ | “You will not be able to beat him with his arrows! |
| 18 | lu₂-kur₂-ra ŋar-ŋar-bi X | (Sum) The enemy ... (Akk) Its enemy .... |
| 19 | iri-bi zag-bi u₃-ne-eš₂ | They surrounded their city on their side |
| en-na ib₂-ta-ab-ed₃-de₃ na-ab-ta-bal-e-ne bad₃-bi ab-ta-e₃-x | As long as he keeps wandering about, they should not cross over it, they will ... its wall. | |
| 21 | nitah-bi u₃-gaz | its young man killed, |
| munus-bi iri ma-da-ka-zu dib₂-ba-am₃ la-ab-X X erin₂-bi | Its women are wandering about in the cities of your land ... its workers. | |
| 23 | a₂-še₃ mu-e-da-aŋ₂ | he brought with him. |
| 24 | a-na-aš-am₃ ŋa₂-a-gin₇-nam nu-ak | Why do you not act like that? |
| 25 | lu₂ gaz-de₃ igi hul-hul-le-de₃ | To kill a man, to destroy his eyes, |
| 26 | iri gul-gul-de₃ šu-zu-še₃ nu-ŋar-ra | To destroy the city, to not release your hand |
| 27 | nam-nir-ŋal₂ mu-ra-šum₂ | he swore an oath for you |
| 28 | ud bad₃ igi TA DA KAM {d}šul-gi ad-da-ŋu₁₀ mu-un-du₃-a | When the wall was seen, Šulgi, the father who had built it, |
| 29 | za-e-en-ze₂-en in-nu | “You are the one who lies down,’ |
| 30 | {ŋiš}gu-za-ŋa₂ {ŋiš}gu-za {d}šul-gi-ra-ka in-nu | The throne-bearer of Šulgi is dead. |
| 31 | {m}lu₂-{d}en-ki ensi₂ ma-da zi-mu-dar{ki}-še₃ | Lu-Enki ruler of the land of Zimudar |
| 32 | he₂-mu-e-ši-du | may they rise up. |
| 33 | 60 ugnim-ma-ka he₂-tum₂ | he brought sixty troops. |
| 34 | x-ta he₂-mi-ib-gi₄-gi₄ | may he return from ... |
| 35 | x-ti pisaŋ-dub-ba bi₂-tur-e a₂ aŋ₂-ta | ... from the reed basket he will reduce, labor and wages |
| 36 | mu-na-an-šum₂-ma-ta bad₃-bi he₂-du₃-a | After he had brought it to him, may its wall be built. |
| 37 | u₃ za-e erin₂ šu-zu-ta i₃-ŋal₂-la | And you, with your hand he will carry the troops |
| 38 | hi-ri-tum₂ ba-al-la₂ | a reed fence was erected, |
| 39 | ma-da dim₂-ma-bi nu-kur₂-ru-de₃ | In order to change the mind of the land |
| 40 | nam-ba-šum₂-mu-un-ze₂-en | do not give! |
| 41 | en-na ma-da nu-um-gen₇-na-ta | As long as he lives in the land that is not his |
| 42 | erin₂ nam-mu-un-du₈-re-ze₂-en | Do not release the troops! |
| 43 | lu₂-kiŋ₂-gi₄-a-e-ne a₂ aŋ₂-ŋa₂ ma-da | The lingû-priests, labor of labor of the land |
| 44 | {d}utu ed₂-da-bi ha-ma-tum₃ | may Utu bring its paths to me. |
| 45 | a-ma-ru-kam | It is an amaru. |
Sources & licences
- 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 2026-10-18.