CDLI Literary 000635, ex. 001 & 000638, ex. 007 (P256630)

Literary tablet excavated in Nippur (mod. Nuffar), dated to the Old Babylonian (ca. 1900-1600 BC) period and now kept in Penn Museum, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA

Museum Collection(s)

Penn Museum, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA

Museum Number

UM 29-16-008

Period

Old Babylonian (ca. 1900-1600 BC)

Provenience

Nippur (mod. Nuffar)

Artifact Type

Tablet

Material(s)

Clay

Genre / Subgenre(s)

Literary (ETCSL 4.08.04 Inanna and Dumuzi D (witness); ETCSL 4.08.07 Inanna and Dumuzi G ()

Language(s)

Sumerian

Measurements

-

Witness

Text

tablet
obverse
  beginning broken
6'. di#-da#-gu10#-ne di-da-gu10-ne
 en: As I was going, as I was going,
7'. e2 x [di-da-gu10]-ne# di-da-gu10-ne
 en: As I was going to the house,
8'. ga-sza-an-[na-gu10] i-bi2 mu-szi-in-bar
 en: My lady, he looked at you!
9'. szesz#-e# ta#? [...] ma#-ra-an-tah
 en: The brother...what did he give to you again?
10'. sza3 ki#-ig-ga ag2 hi-li ag2 ku7-ku7-dam
 en: A beloved belly and sexual delights are the sweetest things,
reverse
1. ku3-ga-sza-an-na-gu10 ag2-sze3 ma-ra-an-ba
 en: My shiny Inanna, to you he gave them as a gift.
2. ki-bi? i-bi2-gu10 ma-ra-gu10-ne
 en: As I looked upon that place,
3. mu-lu ki-ig ag2-gu10 gaba im-ma-an-ri
 en: My beloved man came to meet (me) here.
4. hi-li mu-e-szi-in-te ASZ mu-e-da-hul2
 en: He was attracted to you, he rejoiced with you alone!
5. szesz-e e2-ni-a im-ma-ni-in-ku4-re-en
 en: The brother brought me into his house,
6. mu-nu2 lal3 hab2-ba bi2-in-nu2-e
 en:He laid me on the bed of dripping honey,
7. ze2-ba kal-la-gu10 sza3-ab-gu10 a-ba-nu2
 en: My precious sweet lay on my belly,
8. ASZ-ASZ-ta eme AK ASZ-ASZ-ta
 en: One by one doing tongues, one by one,
9. szesz i-bi2 sa6-sa6-gu10 ninnu-am3 mu-un-AK
 en: My brother of the beautiful eyes, he did it fifty times!
10. lu2 si-ga-gen7 mu-na-de3-gen
 en: Like a silent man he came to her with it (there),
11. ki-ta tuku4-e-da SI-A mu-na-ni-in-gar
 en: (And) as she trembles from below, he filled her,
12. szesz-gu10 ib2-ba-na szu gub-bu-de3
 en: My brother, (for) setting my hands on his hips,
13. ze2-ba kal-la-gu10 u4 mu-un-di-ni-ib-zal-e
 en: My precious sweet, I pass the time there with him.
14. szu ba-am3-mu-u8 nin9-gu10 szu ba-am3-mu-u8
 en: Release me, my sister, release me!
15. DU# nin9 ki ag2-gu10 e2-gal-la ga-gen
 en: Come, my beloved sister, let me go into the palace,
16. igi#-ad-da-gu10 dumu-tur he2-me-en
 en: In my father’s eyes, you are a small child!
17. {d}#ba-u2 lu2 ha-ba-zu szu ba-e-ri-szi-bar-re
 en: Bau truly knows the man, she will let you go to him!
18. bal-bal-e {d}inanna-kam#
 en: It is a bal-bal-e song of Inanna.
19. [x]-x giri3-ni-i3-sa6#
 en: [Written by?] Girini-isa
20. [x] x# giri3-ni-i3-[sa6]

Text content

Genre(s) Literary (ETCSL 4.08.04 Inanna and Dumuzi D (witness); ETCSL 4.08.07 Inanna and Dumuzi G ()
Language(s) Sumerian

Chronology

Period Old Babylonian (ca. 1900-1600 BC)
Accounting Period

Composites

This artifact is a witness to the following composite(s):

Composite Composite Number Score
CDLI Literary 000635 (Inanna and Dumuzi D) composite (P473747) Q000635 View the score

Record

LOD URI https://cdli.network/entity/P256630

Physical information

Artifact type Tablet
Dimensions
Weight
Material(s) Clay
Preservation
ue. missing, obv. mostly broken, ruled

Provenance

Provenience Nippur (mod. Nuffar)
Written In
Archive
Excavation Number
Findspot
Stratigraphic Level
Elevation

Collections

Collection(s) Penn Museum, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
Museum Number UM 29-16-008
Accession Number

External resources

External Resource Identifiers
The Electronic Text Corpus of Sumerian Literature transliterations (ETCSL transliterations) 4.8.4
The Electronic Text Corpus of Sumerian Literature translations (ETCSL translations) 4.8.4
Penn Museum (Penn) 566848
Electronic Babylonian Library (eBL) UM.29-16-8
Ancient Records of Middle Eastern Polities (ARMEP) P256630

References

  • history: PAPS 107 (pp. 485-527), 485, UM 29-16-008

    [Kramer1963PAPS107] Kramer, Samuel N. 1963. “Cuneiform Studies and the History of Literature: The Sumerian Sacred Marriage Texts.” Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society 107 (6): 485–527.

  • citation: JNES 59 (pp. 23-30), 024

    [Tinney2000JNES59] Tinney, Stephen J. 2000. “Notes on Sumerian Sexual Lyric.” Journal of Near Eastern Studies 59 (1): 23–30. https://www.jstor.org/stable/546210.

Revisions and credits

Created Creator Type Authors Project Reviewer Status Action
2024-09-15 at 13:34:37 Firth, Richard Artifact metadata, Other metadata Firth, Richard Firth, Richard Approved View
2024-07-25 at 12:41:10 Firth, Richard Artifact metadata, Other metadata Firth, Richard Firth, Richard Approved View
2024-06-15 at 17:56:31 Firth, Richard Artifact metadata, Other metadata Firth, Richard Firth, Richard Approved View
2024-03-15 at 15:21:23 Carr, Christie Translation Carr, Christie Pagé-Perron, Émilie Approved View
2024-03-15 at 14:59:58 Carr, Christie Transliteration Carr, Christie Pagé-Perron, Émilie Approved View
2023-06-15 at 19:55:18 Rattenborg, Rune Artifact metadata Rattenborg, Rune Geomapping Landscapes of Writing Rattenborg, Rune Approved View
2023-01-19 at 10:20:17 Pagé-Perron, Émilie Artifact metadata Földi, Zsombor J.; Jiménez, Enrique; Pagé-Perron, Émilie Electronic Babylonian Library Pagé-Perron, Émilie Approved View
2014-02-28 at 09:07:25 Englund, Robert K. Transliteration Englund, Robert K. CDLI, CDLI Approved View
2011-10-10 at 03:57:22 Wagensonner, Klaus Transliteration Wagensonner, Klaus CDLI, CDLI Approved View
2005-02-24 at 00:00:00 CDLI, CDLI Artifact metadata Fitzgerald, Madeleine; Peterson, Jeremiah CDLI, CDLI Approved View

Cite this Artifact

“CDLI Literary 000635, Ex. 001 & 000638, Ex. 007 Artifact Entry.” (2005) 2024. Cuneiform Digital Library Initiative (CDLI). September 15, 2024. https://cdli.earth/P256630.
CDLI Literary 000635, ex. 001 & 000638, ex. 007 artifact entry (No. P256630). (2024, September 15). Cuneiform Digital Library Initiative (CDLI). https://cdli.earth/P256630 (Original work published 2005)
CDLI Literary 000635, ex. 001 & 000638, ex. 007 artifact entry (2024) Cuneiform Digital Library Initiative (CDLI). Available at: https://cdli.earth/P256630 (Accessed: October 17, 2026).
@misc{2024CDLI,
	note = {[Online; accessed 2026-10-17]},
	year = {2024},
	month = {sep 15},
	title = {CDLI {Literary} 000635, ex. 001 & 000638, ex. 007 artifact entry},
	url = {https://cdli.earth/P256630},
	howpublished = {https://cdli.earth/P256630},
}


TY  - ELEC
DA  - 2024/9/15/
PY  - 2024
ID  - P256630
LB  - CDLI:P256630
M1  - 2026/10/17/
TI  - CDLI Literary 000635, ex. 001 & 000638, ex. 007 artifact entry
UR  - https://cdli.earth/P256630
ER  -

Cite this Artifact

“CDLI Literary 000635, Ex. 001 & 000638, Ex. 007 Artifact Entry.” (2005) 2024. Cuneiform Digital Library Initiative (CDLI). September 15, 2024. https://cdli.earth/P256630.
CDLI Literary 000635, ex. 001 & 000638, ex. 007 artifact entry (No. P256630). (2024, September 15). Cuneiform Digital Library Initiative (CDLI). https://cdli.earth/P256630 (Original work published 2005)
CDLI Literary 000635, ex. 001 & 000638, ex. 007 artifact entry (2024) Cuneiform Digital Library Initiative (CDLI). Available at: https://cdli.earth/P256630 (Accessed: October 17, 2026).
@misc{2024CDLI,
	note = {[Online; accessed 2026-10-17]},
	year = {2024},
	month = {sep 15},
	title = {CDLI {Literary} 000635, ex. 001 & 000638, ex. 007 artifact entry},
	url = {https://cdli.earth/P256630},
	howpublished = {https://cdli.earth/P256630},
}


TY  - ELEC
DA  - 2024/9/15/
PY  - 2024
ID  - P256630
LB  - CDLI:P256630
M1  - 2026/10/17/
TI  - CDLI Literary 000635, ex. 001 & 000638, ex. 007 artifact entry
UR  - https://cdli.earth/P256630
ER  -
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