AD -249B (X202492)
Astronomical Diary, Hellenistic, Babylon · c. 330 BCE–141 BCE
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| Designation | AD -249B |
|---|---|
| ID | X202492 |
| Museum no. | BM 46030 |
| Language | Akkadian |
| Period | Hellenistic · c. 330 BCE–141 BCE |
| Genre | Astronomical Diary |
| Find spot | Babylon |
| Coordinates | 32.5434, 44.4222 |
English translation
By ORACC project adsd/adart2 · Via Open Richly Annotated Cuneiform Corpus (ORACC) · CC BY-SA 3.0 (ORACC)
| Line | English |
|---|---|
| Obverse [1:2] o 2'2'–o 2'2' | [... Night] of the 17th, last part of the night, the moon was ⸢x⸣ cubits above β Virginis. Night of the 18th, last part of the night, [...] |
| Obverse [2:3] o 3'3'–o 3'3' | [... Night of the 20th, last part of the night, the moon] stood 1 cubit in front of Jupiter to the west. Around the 20th, Mercury’s first appearance in the west in Capricorn; I did n[ot? watch?]. Night of the 21st, last par[t of the night, ...] |
| Obverse [3:4] o 4'4'–o 4'4' | [... Night of the 23rd, last part of the night, the moon was x]+2 cubits [...] α Scorpii. Night of the 24th, last part of the night, the moon was 8 fingers behind ϑ Ophiuchi, 2 cubits below Venus. The 10+[xth, ...] |
| Obverse [4:5] o 5'5'–o 5'5' | [...] The 27th, moonrise to sunrise: 11°; when I watched, I did not see it; Saturn’s first appearance in the beginning of Capricorn, 2/3 cubit behind Mars to the east, [rising of Saturn to sunrise:] 15°; [(ideal) first appearance on the 26th ...] |
| Obverse [5:6] o 6'6'–o 6'6' | [...] Night of the 28th, last part of the night, overcast, rain shower. The 28th, clouds crossed the sky, rain, but the sandal was not removed. The 29th, cl[ouds ...] |
| Obverse [6:7] o 7'7'–o 7'7' | [... ses]ame, 5 sūtu; wool, 3 minas were sold for 1 shekel of silver. At that time, Jupiter was in Libra [...] |
| Obverse [7:9] o 8'8'–o 9'9' | [... around the 20th, Mercury’s] first appearance in the west in Capricorn; around the 26th, Saturn’s first appearance in the beginning of Capricorn. That month, the river level rose [...] |
| Obverse [8:9] o 9'9'–o 9'9' | [Month X, (the 1st of which was identical with) the 30th (of the preceding month), ...] ... Night of the 2nd, the moon stood 3 cubits behind Mercury to the east. Night of the 5th, beginning of the night, the moon was [...] in front of η P[iscium ...] |
| Obverse [9:10] o 10'10'–o 10'10' | [...] Night of the 6th, beginning of the night, the moon was 4 cubits below β Arietis, the moon having passed 1/2 cubit to the east [...] |
| Obverse [10:11] o 11'11'–o 11'11' | [... Night of the 8th, beginning of the night, the moon was] 2 1/2 cubits [in front of α] Tauri. The 8th, sunset to setting of Mercury: 17°. Night of the 9th, beginning of the night, the moon was [...] in front of β/ζ Tauri [...] |
| Obverse [11:12] o 12'12'–o 12'12' | [... Night of the 11th, beginning of the night, the moon was] 3 cubits [below] α Geminorum, the moon being 1/2 cubit back to the west. Around the 11th, [Mercury’s] last appearance in the west in Aquarius. Ni[ght of the 12th, ...] |
| Obverse [12:13] o 13'13'–o 13'13' | [... Night of the 13th, beginning of the ni]ght, the moon was 1 1/2 cubits in front of ε Leonis. The 13th, sunrise to moonset: 50'. [...] |
| Obverse [13:15] o 14'14'– | [...] cubits. The 15th, in the morning, [...] |
| Reverse [0:1] r 1'r 1'–r 1'r 1' | [... must]ard, 2 kurru; cress, 1 pānu? 4 sūtu; sesame, [...] |
| Reverse [1:2] r 2'2'–r 2'2' | [... at the end of the mo]nth, in Aquarius. That month, the river level rose 4 fingers, total: [nn was the na na-gauge ...] |
| Reverse [2:4] r 3'3'–r 4'4' | [...] he made to Bēl and Bēltiya in Esangil [...] |
| Reverse [3:4] r 4'4'–r 4'4' | [Month XI, the 1st (of which followed the 30th of the preceding month) ...] ... Jupiter back to the west. Night of the 4th, last part of the night, Venus was [...] below β Cap[ricorni ...] ... [...] |
| Reverse [4:5] r 5'5'–r 5'5' | [Night of the 7th, beginning of the night, the mo]on was 1 cubit behind ζ Tauri. The 7th, the cold became seve[re. Night of the 8th, begi]nning of the night, the moon was [...] behind γ [Geminorum ...] |
| Reverse [5:6] r 6'6'–r 6'6' | [...] Night of the 11th, beginning of the night, the moon was 2 1/2 cubits behind ε Leonis. Night of the 12th, beginning of the night, the moon [...] behind ρ [Leonis ...] |
| Reverse [6:7] r 7'7'–r 7'7' | [... Night of the 13th, ...] clouds, I did not watch; overcast; beginning of the night, rain shower; last part of the night, the moon was 1 1/2 cubits behind β Virginis [...] |
| Reverse [7:8] r 8'8'–r 8'8' | [Night of the 15th, last part of the night, the moon was nn cubi]ts [above α Virginis,] the moon having passed 2/3 cubit to the east. Night of the 16th, last part of the night, the moon [stood] 1 cubit in front of Jupiter to the west [...] |
| Reverse [8:9] r 9'9'–r 9'9' | [...] ... Night of the 19th, last part of the night, the moon was 1 1/2 cubits behind α Scorpii. Night of the 20th, last part of the night, the moon was [...] behind ϑ O[phiuchi ...] |
| Reverse [9:10] r 10'10'–r 10'10' | [...] clouds and haze crossed the sky, a strong storm blew from south and east. Night [...] |
| Reverse [10:11] r 11'11'–r 11'11' | [... th]ick rain shower, it thundered once, gusty south and east winds blew [...] |
| Reverse [11:12] r 12'12'–r 12'12' | [...] the moon being 1/2 cubit low to the south, it stood [nn] cubits in front of Mercury to the west. The 26th, [...] |
| Reverse [12:13] r 13'13'–r 13'13' | [...] end of the month, 3 pānu 2 sūtu; mustard, 2 kurru pānu [...;] sesame, 5 sūtu; wool, [...] |
| Reverse [13:14] r 14'14'–r 14'14' | [...] That month, the river level receded 4 fingers, total: 20+[x was the na na-gauge.] That [month,] rains were cut off [...] |
| Reverse [14:15] r 15'15'–r 15'15' | [... a message] came to [...] and the Babylonians as follows: seed ... [...] |
| Reverse [15:17] r 16'16'–r 17'17' | [... from] the xth until now, all [...] |
| Reverse [16:17] r 17'17'–r 17'17' | [Month XII, (the 1st of which was identical with) the 30th (of the preceding month) ...] ... Night of the 3rd, the moon was in front of [...] |
| Reverse [17:18] r 18'18'–r 18'18' | [... cr]ossed?, gusty north and west winds blew; Mercury’s last appearance in the east in Pisces; I did not watch. Night of the 5th, [...] |
| Reverse [18:19] r 19'19'–r 19'19' | [... Ni]ght of the 7th, beginning of the night, the moon was 1 cubit 4 fingers below β Geminorum. Night of the 8th, beginning of the ni[ght, the moon was ... Cancri ...] |
| Reverse [19:20] r 20'20'–r 20'20' | [... Night of the 10th, beginning of the night, the moon was] 2 cubits [... ρ] Leonis. Night of the 11th, beginning of the night, the moon was [...] behind ϑ Leonis [...] |
| Reverse [20:21] r 21'21'–r 21'21' | [...] a strong south wind blew. Night of the 14th, moonrise to sunset: 4°; I did not watch; very overcast, strong gusty south wind. The 14th, [...] |
| Reverse [21:22] r 22'22'–r 22'22' | [... Ni]ght of the 17th, last part of the night, the moon was 2 above α Scorpii. Night of the 18th, last part of the night, the moon was [...] behind ϑ O[phiuchi ...] |
| Reverse [22:23] r 23'23'–r 23'23' | [... The 22nd, equinox;] I did not watch. Night of the 23rd, last part of the night, the moon was 2/3 cubit in front of δ Capricorni [...] |
| Reverse [23:24] r 24'24'–r 24'24' | [...] The 26th, clouds were in the sky. The 27th, moonrise to sunrise: 11° 20'; clouds and haze crossed the sky, storm [...] |
| Reverse [24:25] r 25'25'–r 25'25' | [... the equi]valent was: barley, in the beginning of the month, 3 pānu 1 i{sūtu}, at the end of the month, 3 pānu measured by the reduced sūtu-measure [...] |
| Reverse [25:26] r 26'26'–r 26'26' | [...] 5 sūtu 3 qa; mustard, 2 kurru 2 pānu 3 sūtu; cress, 1 pānu 4 sūtu; sesame, 5 sūtu; [wool, nn] minas [were sold for 1 shekel of silver ...] |
| Reverse [26:27] r 27'27'–r 27'27' | [... in Pis]ces; around the 4th, Mercury’s last appearance in the east in Pisces; Saturn was [in Capricorn ...] |
| Reverse [28:29] r 29'29'–r 29'29' | (traces) |
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' | [...] [x x] [...] | |
| 2' | [... GE₆] 17 ina ZALAG₂ sin e GIR₃-ar₂-ša₂-A ⸢x KUŠ₃⸣ GE₆ 18 ina ZALAG₂⸣ [...] | |
| 3' | [... GE₆ 20 ina ZALAG₂ sin] ina IGI MUL₂.BABBAR 1 KUŠ₃ ana ŠU₂ GUB in 20 GU₄.UD ina ŠU₂ ina MAŠ₂ ⸢IGI NU⸣ [PAP] ⸢GE₆ 21 ina ZALAG₂⸣ [...] | |
| 4' | [... GE₆ 23 ina ZALAG₂ sin x SI₄ x]+2 KUŠ₃ GE₆ 24 ina ZALAG₂ sin ar₂ MUL₂-KUR-ša₂-KIR₄-šil-PA 8 SI SIG dele-bat 2 KUŠ₃ 10+[x ...] | |
| 5' | [...] 27 11 KUR ki PAP NU IGI GENNA ina SAG MAŠ₂ 2/3 KUŠ₃ ar₂ AN ana NIM IGI 15 [na-su in 26 IGI ...] | |
| 6' | [...] GE₆ 28 ina ZALAG₂ ŠU₂ AN UTAH 28 DIR AN DIB AN E.SIR₂ NU TUH 29 ⸢DIR⸣ [...] | |
| 7' | [... ŠE].⸢GIŠ⸣.I₃ 5(BAN₂) SIG₂{hi.a} 3 MA.NA a-na 1 GIN₂ KU₃.BABBAR ep₂-šu₂ i-nu-šu₂ MUL₂.<BABBAR> ina ⸢RIN₂⸣ [...] | |
| 8' | [... in 20 GU₄.UD ina] ⸢ŠU₂ ina MAŠ₂⸣ IGI in 26 GENNA ina SAG MAŠ₂ IGI ITU BI ILLU GIN [...] | |
| 9' | [AB 30 ...] [x] GE₆ 2 sin ar₂ GU₄.UD 3 KUŠ₃ ana NIM GUB GE₆ 5 SAG GE₆ sin ina IGI MUL₂-KUR-⸢ša₂⸣-[DUR-nu-nu N N ...] | |
| 10' | [...] GE₆ 6 SAG GE₆ sin SIG MUL₂-IGI-ša₂-SAG-HUN 4 KUŠ₃ sin 1/2 KUŠ₃ ana NIM ⸢DIB⸣ [...] | |
| 11' | [... GE₆ 8 SAG GE₆ sin ina IGI is]-le₁₀ 2 1/2 KUŠ₃ 8 17 na ša₂ GU₄.UD GE₆ 9 SAG GE₆ sin ina IGI ŠUR-GIGIR-[ša₂-SI N N ...] | |
| 12' | [... GE₆ 11 SAG GE₆ sin SIG] MAŠ.MAŠ-IGI 3 KUŠ₃ sin 1/2 KUŠ₃ ana ŠU₂ LAL in 11 [GU₄.UD] ⸢ina ŠU₂⸣ ina GU ŠU₂ ⸢GE₆⸣ 12 ...] | |
| 13' | [... GE₆ 13 SAG] ⸢GE₆⸣ sin ina IGI SAG-A 1 1/2 KUŠ₃ 13 50 NINDA ⸢na⸣ [...] | |
| 14' | [...] KUŠ₃ 15 ina ⸢še-ri₃⸣ [...] | |
| r | ||
| 1' | [...] ⸢kas₃⸣ 2(GUR) GUR sah 1(BARIG) 4(BAN₂) ŠE.GIŠ.I₃ [...] | |
| 2' | [... ina TIL] ⸢ITU⸣ ina GU ITU BI ILLU 4 SI GIN PAP [N na ...] | |
| 3' | [...] {d}EN u {d}GAŠAN-ia₂ ina E₂.SAG.GIL₂ ⸢DU₃⸣ [...] | |
| 4' | [ZIZ₂ 1 ...] [x] MUL₂.BABBAR ana ŠU₂ LAL GE₆ 4 ina ZALAG₂ dele-bat SIG SI-⸢MAŠ₂⸣ [N N ...] [x] [...] | |
| 5' | [GE₆ 7 SAG GE₆] ⸢sin⸣ ar₂ ŠUR-GIGIR-ša₂-ULU₃ 1 KUŠ₃ 7 ŠED₇ ⸢šir⸣ [GE₆ 8 ⸢SAG GE₆⸣ sin ar₂ MAŠ.[MAŠ-ša₂-SIPA N N ...] | |
| 6' | [...] GE₆ 11 SAG GE₆ sin ar₂ SAG-A 2 1/2 KUŠ₃ GE₆ 12 SAG GE₆ sin ar₂ ⸢MUL₂⸣-[TUR-ša₂-4-KUŠ₃-ar₂-LUGAL N N ...] | |
| 7' | [... GE₆ 13 ...] DIR NU PAP ŠU₂ SAG GE₆ AN UTAH ina ZALAG₂ sin ar₂ GIR₃-ar₂-ša₂-A 1 1/2 KUŠ₃ [...] | |
| 8' | [GE₆ 15 ina ZALAG₂ sin e SA₄-ša₂-ABSIN N] ⸢KUŠ₃⸣ sin 2/3 KUŠ₃ ana NIM DIB GE₆ 16 ina ZALAG₂ sin ina IGI MUL₂.BABBAR 1 KUŠ₃ ana ŠU₂ [GUB ...] | |
| 9' | [...] [x] GE₆ 19 ina ZALAG₂ sin ar₂ SI₄ 1 1/2 KUŠ₃ GE₆ 20 ina ZALAG₂ sin ar₂ MUL₂-⸢KUR⸣-[ša₂-KIR₄-šil-PA N N ...] | |
| 10' | [...] DIR u hi AN DIB me-hu-u₂ ULU₃ u KUR KALAG GIN GE₆ [...] | |
| 11' | [... AN] ⸢kab UTAH⸣ {d}IM 1-en-šu₂ GU₃-šu₂ ŠUB ULU₃ u KUR ŠAR₂{me} GIN{me} [...] | |
| 12' | [...] sin 1/2 KUŠ₃ ana ULU₃ SIG ina IGI ⸢GU₄.UD⸣ [N] KUŠ₃ ana ŠU₂ GUB 26 [...] | |
| 13' | [...] ⸢TIL⸣ ITU 3(BARIG) 2(BAN₂) kas₃ 2(GUR) 1(BARIG) [x x x] ŠE.GIŠ.I₃ 5(BAN₂) SIG₂ [...] | |
| 14' | [...] ⸢ITU⸣ BI ILLU 4 SI LAL PAP 20+⸢x⸣ [na ITU] BI ŠEG₃{meš} TAR-uʾ [...] | |
| 15' | [...] [x] u {lu₂}E{ki}{meš} tat-⸢tal⸣-ku um-ma ŠE.NUMUN [x] [...] | |
| 16' | [...] KAM₂ EN in-ga-a ⸢gab⸣-bi [...] | |
| 17' | [ŠE 30 ...] ⸢GE₆ 3 sin ina IGI⸣ [...] | |
| 18' | [...] ⸢DIB⸣ SI u MAR ŠAR₂{me} GIN{me} GU₄.UD ina NIM ina zib{me} ŠU₂ NU PAP GE₆ 5 [...] | |
| 19' | [...] ⸢GE₆⸣ 7 SAG GE₆ sin SIG MAŠ.MAŠ-ar₂ 1 KUŠ₃ 4 SI GE₆ 8 SAG ⸢GE₆⸣ [sin x MUL₂-x-ša₂-ALLA-ša₂-x N N ...] | |
| 20' | [... GE₆ 10 SAG GE₆ sin x MUL₂-TUR]-ša₂-4-KUŠ₃-ar₂-LUGAL 2 KUŠ₃ GE₆ 11 SAG GE₆ sin ar₂ GIŠ.KUN-[A N N ...] | |
| 21' | [...] ⸢ULU₃⸣ KALAG GIN GE₆ 14 4 ME NU PAP ŠU₂.ŠU₂ ULU₃ ŠAR₂ KALAG 14 [...] | |
| 22' | [...] ⸢GE₆⸣ 17 ina ZALAG₂ sin e SI₄ 2 KUŠ₃ GE₆ 18 ina ZALAG₂ sin ar₂ MUL₂-KUR-[ša₂-KIR₄-šil-PA N N ...] | |
| 23' | [... 22 LAL₂-ti₃] NU PAP GE₆ 23 ina ZALAG₂ sin ina IGI MUL₂-ar₂-ša₂-SUHUR-MAŠ₂ 2/3 KUŠ₃ [...] | |
| 24' | [...] 26 DIR AN ZA 27 11.20 KUR DIR u hi AN DIB me-⸢hu⸣-[u₂ ...] | |
| 25' | [... KI].⸢LAM⸣ še-im ina SAG ITU 3(BARIG) 1(BAN₂) ina TIL ITU 3(BARIG) PI ina {giš}BAN₂ LAL-tu₄ [...] | |
| 26' | [...] 5(BAN₂) 3 qa kas₃ 2(GUR) GUR 2(BARIG) 3(BAN₂) sah 1(BARIG) 4(BAN₂) ŠE.GIŠ 5(BAN₂) [SIG₂ N] ⸢MA.NA a⸣-[na 1 GIN₂ KU₃.BABBAR ep₂-šu₂ ...] | |
| 27' | [... ina zib]{me} in 4 GU₄.UD ina NIM ina zib{me} ŠU₂ GENNA [ina MAŠ₂ ...] | |
| 28' | [...] | |
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.