UET 6, 0653 (P346690)

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 (Proverbs)

Language(s)

-

Measurements

-

tablet
obverse
  beginning broken
1'. [...] x x-sze3 ga#?-x x [...]
 en: ...
2'. [...] al#-mur10-ra al-kalx(NIR)-ga al-x-[...]
 en: ... the one who is clothed, the one who is mighty/reinforced(!?), the one who is ...
  single ruling
3'. [...]-am3 e2-gi4-a nam-uszbar#-ra-ga2 x x x-zu lu2-nig2-tuku he2-am3
 en: ... is ..., my bride of (i.e. subject to) inlaw status, may your ... be a rich man
  single ruling
4'. [...] gu3# de2 {gesz}kiri6 me-te-bi bi2-za-za gu3 de2
 en: ...
5'. [...]-x me-te-bi dar{muszen} gu3 de2 a-gar3 me-te-bi
 en: The pigeon is the ornament of the orchard, the croaking frog is the ornament of the marsh, and the chirping francolin is the ornament of the meadow
  single ruling
6'. [...] x su-lum mar-re-da-kam!? su-lum mar-re kesz2-da
 en: The ... of whom is to slander is bound by that slander
  single ruling
7'. [...]-zu#?-ne-ne-ta-am3 dingir-re-e-ne x-am3
 en: It is by means of/apart from your (pl.)(?) the ... gods are(!)
8'. [...] KA ga am3 x x en!?
 en: ...
  single ruling
9'. [...] x lu2-lu7-am3 nam-za ga#-ra-an nu-me#?-a#!?
 en: ... is a man, in your destiny(!?) there is not a string of fruit(!?)
10'. [...] x ta AN x [...]
 en: ...
11'. [...] x-a#-ke4#? x x [...]
 en: ...
12'. [...] MU#? x [...]
 en: ...
13'. [...] x x x x x x [...]
 en: ...
reverse
1. [...]-ri#?-ib-dul-dul-[...]
 en: ... covered/covers ...
  single ruling
2. [...] sza3 iri?-a si? mu-un-tu11-tu11 sag-kal? sza3 [...]
 en: ... struck with the horns(?) in the midst of the city(?), the steadfast one(?) in the midst of(?) ...
3. [...] x lugal-a-ni-ir# i3-sag3-ge
 en: ... was smiting for his king/master
  single ruling
4. [...] szu x x-na#?-kam#? u3 e-ne munus usz-bar-e#?
 en: ... and she(?), the weaver
5. [...] x KA-na-kam
 en: ... of her mouth/nose/tooth(?)
  single ruling
6. [...] x da? nu-ke3-de3 {gesz}szu-kara2 GIR2 lugal x-a
 en: ... is not to ..., the tool/carpenter(?) ...
7. [...]-ke4? gu2-ni im-ga2-ga2
 en: ... will submit
  single ruling
8. [...]-x-na-kam he2-ti igi-bi ama5-ni-sze3-am3
 en: ... if ... lives(?) its eye/face towards her women's quarters
  single ruling
9. [...] lugal ki-in-da-a-kam
 en: The strong one is the king/master of the earth
  single ruling
10. [...] gal2#?-la#? sa2 nu-ub-du11
 en: ... did not ... regularly/boast(?)
11. [...] x a-ba? al-kikken2-e
 en: ... who seeks ...?
12. [...] x x NIG2 x x [...] x-zu
 en: ...
  rest broken

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:

  • primary: UET 6, 0653

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

  • history: Alster Proverbs, 327

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

    (as UET 6/3, *80)

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

  • Provenience: Ur (mod. Tell Muqayyar)
  • Elevation:
  • Stratigraphic Level:
  • Excavation No: U —
  • 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
2019-06-08 at 12:53:44 Englund, Robert K. Atf Englund, Robert K. CDLI approved View
2019-05-29 at 21:01:58 Englund, Robert K. Atf Englund, Robert K. 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:

    There is no external resource for this artifact yet.

General Notes: -
CDLI Notes: -
Cite this Artifact
“UET 6, 0653 Artifact Entry.” (2006) 2024. Cuneiform Digital Library Initiative (CDLI). September 2, 2024. https://cdli.earth/P346690.
UET 6, 0653 artifact entry (No. P346690). (2024, September 2). Cuneiform Digital Library Initiative (CDLI). https://cdli.earth/P346690 (Original work published 2006)
UET 6, 0653 artifact entry (2024) Cuneiform Digital Library Initiative (CDLI). Available at: https://cdli.earth/P346690 (Accessed: July 19, 2025).
@misc{2024UET,
	note = {[Online; accessed 2025-07-19]},
	year = {2024},
	month = {sep 2},
	title = {UET 6, 0653 artifact entry},
	url = {https://cdli.earth/P346690},
	howpublished = {https://cdli.earth/P346690},
}


TY  - ELEC
DA  - 2024/9/2/
PY  - 2024
ID  - P346690
LB  - CDLI:P346690
M1  - 2025/7/19/
TI  - UET 6, 0653 artifact entry
UR  - https://cdli.earth/P346690
ER  -
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