CDLI Literary 000768, ex. 014 (P346238)

Literary tablet excavated in Ur (mod. Tell Muqayyar), dated to the Old Babylonian (ca. 1900-1600 BC) period and now kept in British Museum, London, UK

Museum Collection(s)

British Museum, London, UK

Museum Number

BM —

Period

Old Babylonian (ca. 1900-1600 BC)

Provenience

Ur (mod. Tell Muqayyar)

Artifact Type

Tablet

Material(s)

Clay

Genre / Subgenre(s)

Literary (ETCSL 5.04.02 Enkihegal and Enkitalu (witness) (CHECK))

Language(s)

Sumerian

Measurements

-

Witness

Text

tablet
obverse
  beginning broken
1'. x [...]-ta#? MUNUS# ZI# e3#-[...]
 en: ...
2'. za-e KA DI-bi! nu-ra-x-[...]
 en: You do not speak a conciliatory word(?)
3'. lu2 kiszi4 an-ak-a-gin7 tesz2 la-ba-e-tuku
 en: Like a person whose head is half shaved, you have had no dignity
4'. inim nu-e-szar2 ni2-za ad nu-e-ni-gi4
 en: You have not deliberated, you have not advised yourself
5'. inim-bi sza3-za nu-e-tur-tur
 en: You did not diminish(?) the word in you heart
6'. i-gi4-in-zu szu ab-kar2 na-ab-be2-en# li-bi2-du11
 en: As if insulted, you have not said “do not speak”
7'. ki szu kar2 gi4-zu {gesz}kim nu-ra-ab-tuku
 en: (In) your place where denigration is returned(?) the password (pun?) is not available to you
8'. eme-sig-zu nig2 gux(EME)-u3-dam
 en: Your slander is to be undertaken(?)
9'. ki-umun2 sza3-zu nu-ub-zu-a am3-ti-le-me-en
 en: (And yet) you are dwelling in the place of learning, which your heart does not understand
10'. gi4-me-a-asz-zu-ne nu-ra-ab-lib4-lib4-e-ne ur5-da nir ba-e-gal2
 en: Your colleagues do not attack(?) against(?) you and therefore you were confident
11'. ni2-zu!-a sag-ki# la-ba-e-ni-gar
 en: You did not confront(?) yourself
12'. dub2-dub2-bu lu2-ra gig hul gig gi4-me-a-asz-e-ne
 en: Insulting(?), hurtful(?) to another person, hated by his colleagues(?)
13'. lu2 nig2 hul-dim2-ma sa-hir lu2-erim2-ma
 en: Evildoer, (carrying) net of the enemy
14'. KA hul igi sag3-sag3 lu2 eme si nu-sa2
 en: (Possessor of) an evil mouth/words, (possessor of) a “smiting face,” one of incorrect language
15'. inim kur2 igi bala lu2 nig2 gur3-ru-ma
 en: "Word-changer,” “eye-turner,” “one who carries things"(!?)
16'. ni2-gu10-a sag-ki ba-e-ni-gal2
 en: I (however) confronted(?) myself
reverse
1. e2 ad-da-ga2 ka-ta du11-ga-gu10-usz#?
 en: In the estate of my father, according to my utterance
2'. ab-diri-ge na-an-na# la-ba-an-lal-a ga-ra-ab#?-[...]
 en: It is indeed the case that he(?) has made a surplus, he(?) did not diminish (its value), and I can prove it to you
3. ni2-zu nig2-ka9-ra nu-ra-gal2-la-ta
 en: After you yourself were not present for(?) the account
4. in gi4-me-a-asz-gu10-ne ga-bi2-ib-du11 bi2-du11-a-ta
 en: (As for) (my) insults, after my colleagues have said “I want to say (them too?)
5. in-zu sag-bi-sze3 ga2-e ga-mu-ra-ab-til
 en: I want to put an end to your insults at the outset(?)
6. sza3 min bar min lu2 igi bala
 en: (Possessor) of “two insides and two outsides” (duplicitous, hypocritical?), “eye turner”
7. lu2 nig2 nu-gin6-na ka eme!-sig-gu7!-gu7!
 en: One of injustice, with the mouth of a slanderer
8. lu2-tu15 inim# lul-la bala-bala
 en: Idiot who converses falsely
9. a-na-am3 nig2 ab-til-le-ne-a
 en: What is it that you(?) will putting an end to?(?)
10. ama-zu ninda du8-du8 muhaldim iri!(RA){ki}-ka
 en: Your mother bakes (for) the cook of the city
11. ad-da-zu e2 dam-gar3-ra-ka giri17-zal-sze3! gub-ba-am3
 en: You father gladly served at the house of the merchant
12. szesz-zu-ne szah2 zuh-zuh lu2 iri-a nu-tusz-u3 me-esz
 en: Your brothers steal pigs, they do not dwell in the city
13. nin9-zu-ne lu2 sze sa-sa-me-esz
 en: Your sisters are grain roasters
14. gi-gur szub{+ub} sze sa-sa ganba-ka ab-ta-ab-ta-e3-de3
 en: (Who) bring out roasted grain of the market rate from the cast down/abandoned gigur containers
15. in i-ri-dub2-ba-gu10 gaba-ri-bi mu-e-dub2-ba na-an-na
 en: My insults against you are indeed the equal of that which you insulted (me with)
16. [in]-gu10# in-nu tesz2 la-ba-tuku-tuku
 en: My insults are nothing, they are shameless
17. [...] sza3-sze3 la-ba-gig-gig
 en: My words are nothing, they should not trouble the heart
18'. [...] lu2 e2 du3-a-kam
 en: My mother is a matriarch of a (well established) household
19'. [...] al-sug2-ge-esz
 en: Before her ... serve
20'. [...] lugal#-la-kam
 en: My father is a royal general and judge

Text content

Genre(s) Literary (ETCSL 5.04.02 Enkihegal and Enkitalu (witness) (CHECK))
Language(s) Sumerian

Chronology

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

Composites

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

Record

LOD URI https://cdli.network/entity/P346238

Physical information

Artifact type Tablet
Dimensions
Weight
Material(s) Clay
Preservation

Provenance

Provenience Ur (mod. Tell Muqayyar)
Written In
Archive
Excavation Number U 16867
Findspot
Stratigraphic Level
Elevation

Collections

Collection(s) British Museum, London, UK
Museum Number BM —
Accession Number

External resources

External Resource Identifiers
Ancient Records of Middle Eastern Polities (ARMEP) P346238
Ur Online Project (UrOnline) 17763

References

  • history: UET 6, 0153

    [Gadd1963UET6] Gadd, Cyril J., and Aaron Shaffer. 1963, 1966, 2005. Ur Excavations Texts Vol. VI.

Revisions and credits

Created Creator Type Authors Project Reviewer Status Action
2023-06-28 at 23:15:35 Rattenborg, Rune Artifact metadata Hafford, William B.; Rattenborg, Rune Geomapping Landscapes of Writing Rattenborg, Rune Approved View
2023-06-15 at 20:34:30 Rattenborg, Rune Artifact metadata Rattenborg, Rune Geomapping Landscapes of Writing Rattenborg, Rune Approved View
2019-05-29 at 21:01:58 Englund, Robert K. Transliteration Englund, Robert K. CDLI Approved View
2006-11-02 at 00:00:00 CDLI Artifact metadata Foxvog, Daniel A.; Guerra, Dylan; Peterson, Jeremiah; Veldhuis, Niek; Wolfe, Jared N. CDLI Approved View

Cite this Artifact

“CDLI Literary 000768, Ex. 014 Artifact Entry.” (2006) 2023. Cuneiform Digital Library Initiative (CDLI). June 28, 2023. https://cdli.earth/P346238.
CDLI Literary 000768, ex. 014 artifact entry (No. P346238). (2023, June 28). Cuneiform Digital Library Initiative (CDLI). https://cdli.earth/P346238 (Original work published 2006)
CDLI Literary 000768, ex. 014 artifact entry (2023) Cuneiform Digital Library Initiative (CDLI). Available at: https://cdli.earth/P346238 (Accessed: May 18, 2026).
@misc{2023CDLI,
	note = {[Online; accessed 2026-05-18]},
	year = {2023},
	month = {jun 28},
	title = {CDLI {Literary} 000768, ex. 014 artifact entry},
	url = {https://cdli.earth/P346238},
	howpublished = {https://cdli.earth/P346238},
}

TY  - ELEC
DA  - 2023/6/28/
PY  - 2023
ID  - P346238
LB  - CDLI:P346238
M1  - 2026/5/18/
TI  - CDLI Literary 000768, ex. 014 artifact entry
UR  - https://cdli.earth/P346238
ER  - 

Cite this Artifact

“CDLI Literary 000768, Ex. 014 Artifact Entry.” (2006) 2023. Cuneiform Digital Library Initiative (CDLI). June 28, 2023. https://cdli.earth/P346238.
CDLI Literary 000768, ex. 014 artifact entry (No. P346238). (2023, June 28). Cuneiform Digital Library Initiative (CDLI). https://cdli.earth/P346238 (Original work published 2006)
CDLI Literary 000768, ex. 014 artifact entry (2023) Cuneiform Digital Library Initiative (CDLI). Available at: https://cdli.earth/P346238 (Accessed: May 18, 2026).
@misc{2023CDLI,
	note = {[Online; accessed 2026-05-18]},
	year = {2023},
	month = {jun 28},
	title = {CDLI {Literary} 000768, ex. 014 artifact entry},
	url = {https://cdli.earth/P346238},
	howpublished = {https://cdli.earth/P346238},
}

TY  - ELEC
DA  - 2023/6/28/
PY  - 2023
ID  - P346238
LB  - CDLI:P346238
M1  - 2026/5/18/
TI  - CDLI Literary 000768, ex. 014 artifact entry
UR  - https://cdli.earth/P346238
ER  - 
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