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
Image
© [see publications]
Transliteration
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