AD -567 (X105670)
Astronomical Diary, Neo-Babylonian, Babylon · c. 626 BCE–539 BCE
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| Designation | AD -567 |
|---|---|
| ID | X105670 |
| Museum no. | VAT 4956 |
| Language | Akkadian |
| Period | Neo-Babylonian · c. 626 BCE–539 BCE |
| Genre | Astronomical Diary |
| Find spot | Babylon |
| Coordinates | 32.5434, 44.4222 |
English translation
By ORACC project adsd/adart1 · Via Open Richly Annotated Cuneiform Corpus (ORACC) · CC BY-SA 3.0 (ORACC)
| Line | English |
|---|---|
| Obverse [0:1] o 1o 1–o 1o 1 | Year 37 of Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon. Month I, (the 1st of which was identical with) the 30th (of the preceding month), the moon became visible behind the Bull of Heaven; [sunset to moonset:] ... [...] |
| Obverse [1:2] o 22–o 22 | Saturn was in front of the Swallow. The 2nd, in the morning, a rainbow stretched in the west. Night of the 3rd, the moon was 2 cubits in front of [...] |
| Obverse [2:3] o 33–o 33 | it rained?. Night of the 9th (error for: 8th), beginning of the night, the moon stood 1 cubit in front of the hind leg of the Lion (= β Virginis). The 9th, the sun in the west [was surrounded] by a halo [... The 11th] |
| Obverse [3:4] o 44–o 44 | or 12th, Jupiter’s acronychal rising. On the 14th, one god was seen with the other; sunrise to moonset: 4°. The 15th, overcast. The 16th, Venus [...] |
| Obverse [4:5] o 55–o 55 | The 20th, in the morning, the sun was surrounded by a halo. Around noon, ..., rain PISAN. A rainbow stretched in the east. [...] |
| Obverse [5:6] o 66–o 66 | From the 8th of month XII₂ to the 28th, the river level rose 3 cubits and 8 fingers, 2/3 cubits [were missing] to the high flood [...] |
| Obverse [6:7] o 77–o 77 | were killed on order of the king. That month, a fox entered the city. Coughing and a little rišūtu-disease [...] |
| Obverse [7:8] o 88–o 88 | Month II, the 1st (of which followed the 30th of the preceding month), the moon became visible while the sun stood there, 4 cubits below β Geminorum; it was thick; there was earthshine [...] |
| Obverse [8:9] o 99–o 99 | Saturn was in front of the Swallow; Mercury, which had set, was not visible. Night of the 1st, gusty storm from east and south. The 1st, all day [...] |
| Obverse [9:10] o 1010–o 1010 | stood [...] of Venus to the west. The 2nd, the north wind blew. The 3rd, Mars entered Praesepe. The 5th, it went out (of it). The 10th, Mercury [rose] in the west behind the [...] Twins [...] |
| Obverse [10:12] o 1111–o 1212 | The 15th, ZI IR. The 18th, Venus was balanced 1 cubit 4 fingers above α Leonis. The 26th, (moonrise to sunrise ?) 23°; I did not observe the moon. The 27th, 20+x [...] |
| Obverse [11:12] o 1212–o 1212 | Month III, (the 1st of which was identical with) the 30th (of the preceding month), the moon became visible behind Cancer; it was thick; sunset to moonset: 20°; the north wind blew. At that time, Mars and Mercury were 4 cubits in front of α [Leonis ...] |
| Obverse [12:13] o 1313–o 1313 | Mercury passed below Mars to the East?; Jupiter was above α Scorpii; Venus was in the west opposite ϑ Leonis [...] |
| Obverse [13:14] o 1414–o 1414 | 1 cubit. Night of the 5th, beginning of the night, the moon passed towards the east 1 cubit <above/below> the bright star of the end of the Lion’s foot. Night of the 6th, beginning of the night, [...] |
| Obverse [14:15] o 1515–o 1515 | it was low. Night of the 8th, first part of the night, the moon stood 2 1/2 cubits below β Librae. Night of the 9th, first part of the night, the moon [stood] 1 cubit in front of [...] |
| Obverse [15:16] o 1616–o 1616 | passed towards the east. The 9th, solstice. Night of the 10th, first part of the night, the moon was balanced 3 1/2 cubits above α Scorpii. The 12th, Mars was 2/3 cubits above [α Leonis ...] |
| Obverse [16:17] o 1717–o 1717 | [...] The 15th, one god was seen with the other; sunrise to moonset: 7° 30'. A lunar eclipse which passed by [...] |
| Obverse [17:18] o 1818–o 1818 | [... Venus? was be]low the bright star at the end of the [Lion’s] foot [...] |
| Reverse [0:1] r 1'r 1'–r 1'r 1' | [...] ... first part [of the night, ... Mars was] |
| Reverse [1:2] r 2'2'–r 2'2' | 1 cubit [above/below] the middle star of the elbow of Sagittarius ... [...] |
| Reverse [2:3] r 3'3'–r 3'3' | When 5° of daytime had passed, the sun was surrounded by a halo. The 19th, Venus was 2 1/2 cubits below β Capricorni. Night of the [...] |
| Reverse [3:5] r 4'4'–r 5'5' | That month, the equivalent (of 1 shekel of silver was): barley, 1 kurru 2 sūtu; dates, 1 kurru 1 pānu 4 sūtu; mustard, 1 kurru ... [...] |
| Reverse [4:5] r 5'5'–r 5'5' | Month XI, (the 1st of which was identical with) the 30th (of the preceding month), the moon became visible in the Swallow; sunset to moonset: 14° 30'; the north wind blew. At that time, Jupiter was 1 cubit behind the elbow of Sagittarius [...] |
| Reverse [5:6] r 6'6'–r 6'6' | The 4th, the river level rose. The 4th, Venus was balanced 1/2 cubit belowsic Capricorn. Night of the 6th, first part of the night, the moon was surrounded by a halo; Pleiades, the Bull of Heaven, and the Chariot [stood in it ...] |
| Reverse [6:7] r 7'7'–r 7'7' | the moon was surrounded by a halo; Leo and Cancer were inside the halo; α Leonis was balanced 1 cubit below the moon. Last part of the night, 3° of night remaining, [...] |
| Reverse [7:8] r 8'8'–r 8'8' | sunrise to moonset: 7°; I did not watch. The sun was surrounded by a halo. From the 4th to the 15th, the river level rose 1/2 cubits. On the 16th, it receded. Night of the 18th (and) the 18th, rain PISAN DIB [...] |
| Reverse [8:9] r 9'9'–r 9'9' | when the [...] of Bēl was cut off from its place, two boats ... went away?. The 22nd, overcast. Night of the 23rd, [... Mars?] |
| Reverse [9:10] r 10'10'–r 10'10' | was balanced abovesic the small star which stands 3 1/2 cubits behind Capricorn. Night of the 29th, red glow flared up in the west; 2 double-[hours ...] |
| Reverse [10:12] r 11'11'–r 12'12' | barley, 1 kurru?; dates, 1 kurru 1 pānu 4 sūtu; mustard, 1 kurru 1 pānu; sesame, 4 sūtu; cress, [...] |
| Reverse [11:12] r 12'12'–r 12'12' | Month XII, the 1st (of which followed the 30th of the preceding month), the moon became visible behind Aries while the sun stood there; sunset to moonset: 25°, measured; earthshine; the north wind blew. At that time, Jupiter [... Mercury and Saturn, which had set,] |
| Reverse [12:13] r 13'13'–r 13'13' | were not visible. The 1st, the river level rose. Night of the 2nd, the moon was balanced 4 cubits below η Tauri. Night of the 3rd, beginning of the night, 2 1/2 cubits [...] |
| Reverse [13:14] r 14'14'–r 14'14' | From the 1st to the 5th, the river level rose 8 fingers; on the 6th it receded. Night of the 7th, the moon was surrounded by a halo; Praesepe and α Leonis [stood] in [it ...] |
| Reverse [14:15] r 15'15'–r 15'15' | the halo surrounded Cancer and Leo, it was split towards the south. Inside the halo, the moon stood 1 cubit in front of <α Leonis>, the moon being 1 cubit high. Night of the 10th, first [part of the night, ...] |
| Reverse [15:16] r 16'16'–r 16'16' | Night of the 11th, overcast. The 11th, rain DUL. Night of the 12th, a little rain, ... The 12th, one god was seen with the other; sunrise to moonset: 1° 30'; ... [... Mercury] |
| Reverse [16:17] r 17'17'–r 17'17' | was in front of the “band” of the Swallow, 1/2 cubit below Venus, Mercury having passed 8 fingers to the east; when it became visible it was bright and (already) high. 1°? [... Saturn] |
| Reverse [17:18] r 18'18'–r 18'18' | was balanced 6 fingers above Mercury and 3 fingers below Venus, and Mars was balanced 2/3 cubits below the bright star of <...> towards [...] |
| Reverse [18:19] r 19'19'–r 19'19' | ..., ... The 21st, overcast; the river level rose. Around the 20th, Venus and Mercury entered the “band” of the Swallow. From [... Jupiter,] |
| Reverse [19:20] r 20'20'–r 20'20' | which had passed to the east, became stationary. At the end of the month, it went back to the west. Around the 26th, Mercury and Venus [came out] from the “band” of Anunītu [...] |
| Reverse [20:23] r 21'21'– | the river level receded 8 fingers. That month, on the 26th, a wolf entered Borsippa and killed two dogs; it did not go out, it was killed [...] |
| Top [0:1] t.e. 1t.e. 1–t.e. 1t.e. 1 | Year 38 of Nebuchadnezzar, month I, the 1st (of which followed the 30th of the preceding month): dense clouds so that [I did not see the moon ...] |
| Top [1:3] t.e. 22– | Year 37 [...] |
| Left [0:1] l.e. 1l.e. 1–l.e. 1l.e. 1 | [Year 37 of Nebuchad]nezzar |
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 | MU 37 {m}{d}AG-NIG₂.DU-ŠEŠ LUGAL TIN.TIR{ki} BAR 30 sin ar₂ GU₄.AN IGI x [na ...] | |
| 2 | {d}SAG.UŠ ina IGI SIM 2 ina še-ri₃ TIR.AN ina ŠU₂ GIB GE₆ 3 sin 2 KUŠ₃ ina IGI [...] | |
| 3 | ŠUR GE₆ 9 SAG GE₆ 1 KUŠ₃ sin ina IGI {MULₓ(ab₂)}GIR₃-ar₂-ša₂-UR.A GUB 9 ina ŠU₂ šamaš₂ ⸢TUR₃⸣ [... 11 | |
| 4 | lu 12 {d}SAG.ME.GAR ana ME E₁₁ 14 DINGIR KI DINGIR IGI 4 na 15 ŠU₂ 16 dele-bat [...] | |
| 5 | 20 ina še-ri₃ šamaš₂ TUR₃ NIGIN₂ AN.BAR₇ UGU.ME ŠEG₃ PISAN TIR.AN ina NIM GIB x [...] | |
| 6 | TA 8 ša₂ DIR.ŠE EN 28 3 KUŠ₃ 8 SI ILLU GIN 2/3 KUŠ₃ a-na ILLU ŠU₂ [...] | |
| 7 | ina a-mat LUGAL GAZ{meš} ITU BI KA₅.A ana URU KU₄ su-alu u ri-šu-tu₂ i-ṣa [...] | |
| 8 | GU₄ 1 sin ina šamaš₂ GUB 4 KUŠ₃ šap MULₓ(AB₂)KUR-EGIR-ša₂-MAŠ.TAB-GAL IGI ka-bar AGA a-⸢pir⸣ [...] | |
| 9 | {d}GENNA ina IGI SIM.MAH GU₄.UD ša₂ ŠU₂ NU IGI GE₆ 1 me-hi KUR u ULU₃ ŠAR₂ 1 kal U₄ [... ina IGI] | |
| 10 | dele-bat ana ŠU₂ GUB 2 SI ŠAR₂ GIN 3 AN ana ALLA KU₄ 5 E₃ 10 GU₄.UD ina ŠU₂ ar₂ MAŠ.⸢TAB⸣-[TUR ...] | |
| 11 | 15 ZI IR 18 dele-bat e LUGAL 1 KUŠ₃ 4 U LAL₂ 26 23 sin NU PAP 27 20+[x ...] | |
| 12 | SIG 30 sin ar₂ ALLA IGI ka-bar 20 na SI GIN i-nu-šu₂ AN u GU₄.UD 4 KUŠ₃ ina IGI ⸢LUGAL⸣ [...] | |
| 13 | GU₄.UD šap AN šer-tam DIB SAG.ME.GAR e SI₄ dele-bat ina ŠU₂ ana tar-ṣa GIŠ.KUN-UR.[A ...] | |
| 14 | 1 KUŠ₃ GE₆ 5 SAG GE₆ sin 1 KUŠ₃ MULₓ(AB₂) KUR₄ ša₂ TIL GIR₃ UR.A ana NIM DIB GE₆ 6 SAG GE₆ [...] | |
| 15 | SIG GE₆ 8 USAN 2 1/2 KUŠ₃ sin šap RIN₂-ša₂-SI GUB GE₆ 9 USAN 1 KUŠ₃ sin ina IGI [...] | |
| 16 | ana NIM ⸢DIB⸣ 9 šamaš₂ GUB GE₆ 10 USAN 3 1/2 KUŠ₃ sin e SI₄ LAL₂ 12 AN 2/3 KUŠ₃ ⸢e⸣ [LUGAL ...] | |
| 17 | [...] x 15 DINGIR KI DINGIR IGI 7.30 KUŠ₃ ⸢na AN.KU₁₀ sin ša₂ DIB⸣ [...] | |
| 18 | [... dele-bat] ⸢šap⸣ MULₓ(AB₂) KUR ša₂ TIL ⸢GIR₃⸣ [UR.A ...] | |
| 19 | [...] x [...] | |
| r | ||
| 1' | [x] x ⸢USAN⸣ [... AN x] | |
| 2' | MULₓ(AB₂) MURUB₄ ⸢ša₂⸣ [ki]-ṣir 1 KUŠ₃ ⸢ša₂⸣ PA.BIL 1 ⸢KUŠ₃⸣ x x [...] | |
| 3' | 5 UŠ U₄ NIM-⸢a⸣ šamaš₂ TUR₃ NIGIN₂ 19 dele-bat šap-lat MULₓ(AB₂)MURUB₄-ša₂-SI-MAŠ₂ 2 1/2 ⸢KUŠ₃ GE₆⸣ [...] | |
| 4' | ITU BI KI.LAM še-im 1 GUR 2(BAN₂) ZU₂.LUM 1 GUR 1(BARIG) 4(BAN₂) ka-si 1 GUR x [...] | |
| 5' | ZIZ₂ 30 sin ina SIM.MAH IGI 14.30 na SI GIN i-nu-šu₂ {d}SAG.ME.GAR ar₂ ki-ṣir 1 KUŠ₃ ša₂ PA.⸢BIL⸣ [...] | |
| 6' | 4 ILLU GIN 4 dele-bat 1/2 KUŠ₃ šap SUHUR-MAŠ₂ LAL₂ GE₆ 6 USAN sin TUR₃ NIGIN₂ MULₓ(AB₂)MULₓ(AB₂) GU₄.AN GIGIR [...] | |
| 7' | sin TUR₃ NIGIN₂ {MULₓ(ab₂)}UR.A u {MULₓ(ab₂)}ALLA ina ŠA₃ TUR₃ LUGAL šap sin 1 KUŠ₃ LAL₂ ina ZALAG₂ 3 UŠ GE₆ TAG₄ [...] | |
| 8' | 7 na NU PAP šamaš₂ TUR₃ NIGIN₂ TA 4 EN 15 1 1/2 KUŠ₃ ILLU GIN 16 LAL GE₆ 18 18 ŠEG₃ PISAN ⸢DIB⸣ [...] | |
| 9' | ša₂ {d}EN TA KI-šu₂ ki-i ib-bat-qa 2-ta {giš}MA₂{meš} ša₂ gi iš ri SUD 22 ŠU₂-up GE₆ 23 [...] | |
| 10' | e MULₓ(AB₂) TUR ša₂ 3 1/2 KUŠ₃ ar₂ SUHUR-ša₂-MAŠ₂ GUB LAL₂ GE₆ 29 a-ku₆-ku₆-<<ku₆>>-tu₄ ina ŠU₂ KUR 2 ⸢DANNA⸣ [...] | |
| 11' | ŠE 1 GUR ZU₂.LUM 1 GUR 1(BARIG) 4(BAN₂) ka-si 1 GUR 1 PI ŠE.GIŠ 4(BAN₂) sah-⸢le₁₀⸣ [...] | |
| 12' | ŠE 1 sin ina šamaš₂ GUB EGIR {MULₓ(ab₂)}HUN.GA₂ IGI 25 na muš AGA a-pir SI GIN i-nu-šu₂ {d}SAG.ME.GAR [...] | |
| 13' | NU IGI{me} 1 ILLU GIN GE₆ 2 USAN 4 KUŠ₃ sin šap MULₓ(AB₂)MULₓ(AB₂) LAL₂ GE₆ 3 SAG GE₆ 2 1/2 KUŠ₃ [...] | |
| 14' | TA 1 EN 5 8 SI ILLU GIN 6 ILLU LAL GE₆ 7 sin TUR₃ NIGIN₂ {MULₓ(ab₂)}ALLA u LUGAL ina [...] | |
| 15' | TUR₃ ALLA UR.A NIGIN₂ ana ULU₃ TAR ina ŠA₃ TUR₃ 1 KUŠ₃ sin ina IGI he-pi₂ GUB 1 KUŠ₃ sin NIM GE₆ 10 ⸢USAN⸣ [...] | |
| 16' | GE₆ 11 ŠU₂ 11 AN DUL-hat GE₆ 12 ŠEG₃ i UGU.ME 12 DINGIR KI DINGIR IGI 1.30 na UGU.ME DUL-hat [...] | |
| 17' | ina IGI DUR ša₂ SIM.MAH 1/2 KUŠ₃ šap dele-bat 8 U GU₄.UD ana NIM DIB ki IGI KUR₄ u NIM-a 1 ⸢UŠ⸣ [...] | |
| 18' | 6 SI e GU₄.UD u 3 ⸢SI⸣ šap dele-bat LAL₂ u₃ AN 2/3 KUŠ₃ šap MULₓ(AB₂) KUR ša₂ he-pi₂ LAL₂ a-na [...] | |
| 19' | UGU.ME DUL-hat 21 ŠU₂ ILLU GIN in 20 dele-bat u GU₄.<UD> DUR ša₂ SIM.MAH KU₄{meš} TA [...] | |
| 20' | ša₂ ana NIM DIB nen-mud ina TIL ITU ana ŠU₂ LAL in 26 GU₄.UD u dele-bat TA DUR ša₂ A-nu-⸢ni⸣-[tu₄ ...] | |
| 21' | 8 U ILLU LAL-is ITU BI 26 UR.BAR.RA ana BAR.SIP{ki} KU₄ 2 UR.KU{me} GAZ NU E₃ ⸢GAZ⸣ [...] | |
| t.e. | ||
| 1 | MU 38.KAM₂ {m}{d}AG-NIG₂.DU-ŠEŠ BAR 30 DIR KALAG-ma [sin NU IGI ...] | |
| 2 | MU 37.KAM₂ [...] | |
| l.e. | ||
| 1 | [MU 37.KAM₂ {m}{d}AG-NIG₂].DU-ŠEŠ | |
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 2026-10-11.