CDLI Literary 000820, ex. 001 (P346384)

Wisdom or proverb 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

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Chemical Data

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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 > Wisdom or proverb (ETCSL 6.01.28 Proverbs Collection 28 (witness) Proverbs Collection 28)

Language(s)

Sumerian

Measurements

-

tablet
obverse
1. {gesz#}tukul!(TUG2) mu-ni nu-pa3-da
2. su-ni i3-pa3-da
 en: The weapon is not one that utters his name, it is one that finds his flesh
  single ruling
3. iri{ki} mu hu-mu-kur2-kur2
4. mu-gu10 hu-mu-gin6#-na
 en: If the city changes (its) name/year(?), I would (have to) affirm my name/year(?)
  single ruling
5. {d}nin-ka6 ni2 dingir-ra# nu-zu
 en: The mongoose does not know the aura of divinity
  single ruling
6. gesz-szub us2-sa ama-zu hul2-la#
7. kasz4 tuku-ma dingir-zu hul2-la#
 en: Follow your lot and make your mother rejoice, run(?) and make your god rejoice
  single ruling
8. ti8#{muszen#} ka adda#?-kam ba-an-ku4#
 en: The buzzard entered the mouth of a corpse(?)
  single ruling
9. nim ku4-ra-am3 ka-zu ba-HUB2#?-am3
 en: The fly is the one that enters, your mouth is the one that strikes/jumps?
  single ruling
10. {gesz}gidri gu4 ha-pa#-gaz {kusz}a2-si
11. udu ha-pa-szum2#? ki sag-ki nu-gal2-ta
12. lu2 nu-tusz e-ne sukkal-a
 en: If the scepter slaughters the bull, if the whip slaughters the sheep, in the place where there is no assembly/mourning place(?), the man who is not seated(?), he is a vizier single ruling?
13. sza3 {gesz}gidri-kam i3 he2-en-de2
 en: If ... pours oil inside a scepter, (no one will know)
  single ruling
14. lu2 dingir-ra-a-ni nu-mu-un-kal-kal
15. adda-bi ki nu-tum4 ibila-a-ni
16. a nu-de2 {d}gidim#-[...]-nag#
 en: The person who has not valued his god, his corpse is not buried, his heir does not pour water, his ghost does not drink
  single ruling
  sic?
17. ha-ma?-da-gub-be2? [...]
 en: May/if ... stands for me(?) ...
  single ruling
18. er2 geme2-kam u8-[...]
 en: The weeping of the female laborer ...
19. dumu geme2-kam dam# [...]
 en: The child of the female laborer, the spouse of the female laborer? ...
20. sug-a-ni ma2 nu#?-[...]
 en: A boat does not ... her(?) marsh
21. gu2 sug-a-ni x [...]
 en: (On?) the bank(?) ... of her(?) marsh(?) reed(s) do not(?) ...
  single ruling
22. [...] x BU igi x [...]
 en: ...
23. [...] x [...]
 en: ...
  rest broken
reverse
  beginning broken
1'. x SZESZ-SZESZ [...]
 en: ...
  single ruling
2'. dam nu-gar-ra TU# [...]
 en: A malicious spouse ...
  single ruling
3'. TU-ra x-ga lu2# x [...]
 en: Illness? ...
  single ruling
4'. UD-ma e2 nu-tuku e2 x-a-x [...]
 en: ... that does not have a house ...
  single ruling
5'. KAM? TU KA szu bar gal2 sahar nu-x-[...]
6'. nig2-gig {d}utu-kam
 en: ... to not ...dust/earth(?), it is anthema of Utu
  single ruling
7'. nita DU-DU nig2 pa3-da
8'. munus DU-DU nig2 ugux(GUL) bi2-ib-de2#
 en: A man going about is one who has found something, a woman going about has lost something
  single ruling
9'. lu2-hun sze sa-ke4 ha-ab-ib-gi4
10'. sag i-bi2 du11-ga
 en: If a hireling who parches grain returns/answers, (his) head is smoking(?)
  single ruling
11'. e2-gal {gesz}tir-ra-am3 lugal
12'. ur-mah-e {d}nun-gal
13'. {gesz}sa-us2-sa gurusz-e szu4-szu4
 en: The prison is a thicket, the king is a lion, Nungal is a šuša net covering the young men
  single ruling
14'. e2-ta e3 sila-ta ku4-ra?
15'. geme2 nin-a-ni-ta {gesz}bun-ni bi2-in-gar
 en: Having left the house and entered into(?) the street, the female worker set up a banquet apart from her lady
  single ruling
16'. sze nu-gal2 szu? iri{ki}-kam
17'. gi nu#-gal2# nam-|LAL2.SAR|-nam-|LAL2.SAR|-|LAL2.SAR|? diri-ga
 en: No barley being present is the (destructive) hand(?) of the city, no reeds being present is extreme poverty/execessive neighborliness(?)
  single ruling
18'. hu-su ga-me-en aszgab!(LU2)-e-ne
19'. zi {d}en-ki a# lu3 za3-le {lu2}azlag2-e-ne
 en: "I am bent at the thigh” is what the leatherworker (says)(?), “By the life of Enki, murky water flows (away?)” is what the fuller (says)(?)
  single ruling
20'. ku6 al-sze6-ga2 ha-ra-ba-sed6-sed6-de3
21'. [... giri3]-pad-ra2 de5-de5-ga
22'. [...] x ba-DU ga2-e!? [...] x-le-e
 en: May(?) the hot fish cool for you, the bones gathered from the fish ... I ...
  single ruling

Consult previous versions and their differences
Consult sign list of Old Babylonian (ca. 1900-1600 BC)
Consult word list of Old Babylonian (ca. 1900-1600 BC)

  • Artifact type: Tablet
  • Material: Clay
  • Measurements (mm):
  • Weight:
  • Artifact Preservation:
  • Condition Description:
  • Join Information:
  • Seal no.:
  • Seal information:
  • Artifact comments:

  • history: Alster Proverbs, 285

    [Alster1997Proverbs] Alster, Bendt. 1997. Proverbs of Ancient Sumer: The World’s Earliest Proverb Collection.

  • history: UET 6, 0336

    [Gadd1963] Gadd, Cyril J., and Aaron Shaffer. 1963, 1966.

  • Composite No.:
  • Museum No.: BM —
  • Accession No.:

  • Provenience: Ur (mod. Tell Muqayyar)
  • Elevation:
  • Stratigraphic Level:
  • Excavation No: U 16888
  • Findspot Square:
  • Findspot Comments:

Created Creator Type Authors Project Reviewer Status Action
2024-09-02 at 08:45:16 Firth, Richard Artifact Firth, Richard Firth, Richard approved View
2024-09-02 at 07:32:18 Firth, Richard Artifact, Other Entity Firth, Richard Firth, Richard approved View
2024-09-02 at 07:29:31 Firth, Richard Artifact, Other Entity Firth, Richard Firth, Richard approved View
2023-06-28 at 23:15:35 Rattenborg, Rune Artifact Hafford, William B.; Rattenborg, Rune Geomapping Landscapes of Writing Rattenborg, Rune approved View
2023-06-15 at 20:34:30 Rattenborg, Rune Artifact Rattenborg, Rune Geomapping Landscapes of Writing Rattenborg, Rune approved View
2019-06-12 at 10:56:48 Englund, Robert K. Atf Englund, Robert K. CDLI approved View
2019-05-29 at 21:01:59 Englund, Robert K. Atf Peterson, Jeremiah CDLI approved View
2006-11-02 at 00:00:00 CDLI Artifact Foxvog, Daniel A.; Guerra, Dylan; Peterson, Jeremiah; Veldhuis, Niek; Wolfe, Jared N. CDLI approved View

Consult this artifact as presented on the website of collections and projects:

General Notes: -
CDLI Notes: -
Cite this Artifact
“CDLI Literary 000820, Ex. 001 Artifact Entry.” (2006) 2024. Cuneiform Digital Library Initiative (CDLI). September 2, 2024. https://cdli.earth/P346384.
CDLI Literary 000820, ex. 001 artifact entry (No. P346384). (2024, September 2). Cuneiform Digital Library Initiative (CDLI). https://cdli.earth/P346384 (Original work published 2006)
CDLI Literary 000820, ex. 001 artifact entry (2024) Cuneiform Digital Library Initiative (CDLI). Available at: https://cdli.earth/P346384 (Accessed: April 28, 2025).
@misc{2024CDLI,
	note = {[Online; accessed 2025-04-28]},
	year = {2024},
	month = {sep 2},
	title = {CDLI {Literary} 000820, ex. 001 artifact entry},
	url = {https://cdli.earth/P346384},
	howpublished = {https://cdli.earth/P346384},
}


TY  - ELEC
DA  - 2024/9/2/
PY  - 2024
ID  - P346384
LB  - CDLI:P346384
M1  - 2025/4/28/
TI  - CDLI Literary 000820, ex. 001 artifact entry
UR  - https://cdli.earth/P346384
ER  -
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