The translation on this webpage was adapted from A.K. Grayson, Assyrian and Babylonian Chronicles (1975) and Jean-Jacques Glassner, Mesopotamian Chronicles (Atlanta, 2004).

(Texts: All Artifacts, Color Coding, & Writings in Bold Type With Italics Inside Parenthesis, are Added by Editor R. Brown, not the Authors, Translators, or Publishers!)

(gods in blue…mixed-breed demigods in teal)

The Eclectic Chronicle (ABC 24) is one of the historiographical texts from ancient Babylonia. It deals with events between 1080 and 822 that were important from a Babylonian point of view, but the exact purpose of this text is unclear. Some lines are duplicates of the Walker Chronicle.

The text of this chronicle is inscribed on a tablet, BM 27859 (98-7-11, 124), the top of which is missing. There is also a large piece missing from the lower left-hand corner. The preserved portion, about two thirds of the text, measures 45 mm wide and 60 mm long.

Translation of obverse

Lacuna

1′ […]

2′ […]

3′ he carried off a great booty.

——————————————

(King Marduk-nadin-ahhe, named for & servant to Babylonian patron god Marduk)       4′ Marduk-šapik-zeri (1,082-1,069 B.C.) [1], the son of Marduk-nadin-ahhe (1,100-1,082 B.C.), rebuilt the wall of Babylon. He conquered the

5′ kings of the lands. During his reign, the people of the land enjoyed prosperity.

6′ He made an entente cordiale with Aššur-bêl-kala, king of Assyria.[2]

7′ At that time, the king went from Assyria to Sippar.

——————————————

8′ Adad-apla-iddina (1,069-1,046 B.C.),[3] descendant of Itti-Marduk-balatu (1,146-1,132 B.C.), the Arameans and an usurper king rebelled against him

9′ and desecrated all the sanctuaries centers of the land. Der, Dur-Anki (Nippur).

10′ Sippar, Parsa (Dur-Kurigalzu) they demolished. The Suteans attacked and the booty of Sumer and Akkad

11′ they took home. He made frequent visits to the shrines of Marduk and appeased his heart. He totally restored his cult

——————————————

12′ Simbar-šihu, son of Eriba-Sin, knight of the Sealand,

13′ made the throne of Enlil at Ekur-igigal.

——————————————

14′ In the month of Nisannu of the fifth year of Eulmaš-šakin-šumi (1,004-987 B.C.), the king.[4]

——————————————

15′ The fourteenth year [5]

——————————————

16′ The fourth year of Mar-biti-apla-usur (985-979 B.C.) [6]

——————————————

(Nabu-mukin-apli & spouse before giant Marduk, alien Babylonian god)        17′ The first year of Nabû-mukin-apli (979-943 B.C.), the king [7]

——————————————

18′ The Nth year

Edge

Lacuna

      Translation of reverse

1′ The Nth year of Mar-biti-ahhe-iddina (943-920 B.C.) [8]

——————————————

2′ Adad-nirari was the king of Assyria at the time of Šamaš-mudammiq (920-900 B.C.).[9]

——————————————

3′ At the time of Nabû-šuma-ukin (900-888 B.C.), Tukulti-Ninurta was the king of Assyria.[10]

——————————————

(King Nabu-apla-iddina stands before  Marduk for instructions)       4′ At the time of Nabû-apla-iddina (888-855 B.C.), son of Nabû-šuma-ukin (900-888 B.C.), Aššur-nasir-apli was the king of Assyria.[11]

——————————————

(mixed-breed offspring descendant kings of the giant gods)       5′ At the time of Marduk-zakir-šumi (855-819 B.C.), son of Nabû-apla-iddina, and

6′ Marduk-bêl-usate, Šalmaneser II was the king of Assyria.[12]

——————————————

7′ At the time of Marduk-balassu-iqbi (819-813 B.C.) and Marduk-zakir-šumi (855-819 B.C.)

——————————————

8′ For N years there was no king in the land.[13]

——————————————

9′ Eriba-Marduk (769-761 B.C.), descendant of Marduk-šakin-šumi,

10′ took the hand of Bêl (Marduk) and the son of Bêl (Nabû) in his second year.

11′ The Aramaeans who had taken by murder and insurrection the fields of the inhabitants of Babylon and Borsippa,

12′ Eriba-Marduk slew by the sword, and he brought about their defeat.

13′ He took the fields and orchards away from the and gave them to the [Arameans?] and Borsippeans.

14′ In that same year, he set of the throne of Bêl (Marduk) in Esagila (Marduk’s residence in Babylon) and Ezida  (Nabu’s residence in Borsippa) […]

15′ […] Eriba-Marduk […] to Babylon.

——————————————

16′ […] Eriba-Marduk went out from […]

——————————————

17′ […] Nabû-Nasir (748-734 B.C.).[14]

——————————————

18′ […]

——————————————

19′ […] Tiglath-pileser III, king of Assyria, ascended the throne.[15]

——————————————

20′ Šalmaneser, king of Assyria, ascended the throne.”[16]

——————————————

Lacuna

Note 1:
King of Babylonia between 1081 and 1069.

Note 2:
Ruled 1073-1056.

Note 3:
Adad-apla-iddina was king of Babylonia from 1068 to 1047; Itti-Marduk-balatu from 1139 to 1132. The section is identical to several lines from the Walker Chronicle.

Note 4:
This king ruled from 1004 to 988; his fifth year is 1000 BCE.

Note 5:
In this period, only Eulmaš-šakin-šumi had more than thirteen regnal years, so his fourteenth year, 991 BCE) can be meant.

Note 6:
Mar-biti-apla-usur was king of Babylonia from 984 to 979; his fourth year is 981.

Note 7:
This king ruled from 978 to 943.

Note 8:
Became king of Babylonia in 942.

Note 9:
Adad-nirari II ruled from 911 to 891.

Note 10:
Tukulti-Ninurta II was king of Assyria in 890-884.

Note 11:
Aššur-nasir-apli II of Assyria reigned from 883 to 859.

Note 12:
Šalmaneser III of Assyria was king from 858 to 824. His contemporaries can not be dated more accurately.

Note 13:
In fact, an Assyrian king must have ruled over the country The events mentioned in the next section can not be dated exactly.

Note 14:
King of Babylonia, 747-734.

Note 15:
The first full regnal year of Tiglath-pileser III of Assyria is 744; he must have ascended in 745.

Note 16:
The first full regnal year of Šalmaneser V of Assyria is 726; he must have ascended in 727.

Published: Léfébure, Tombeau de Sety I^e, pt. iii, pls. 15-18 (Annales du Musée Guimet, ix).

Translated: Wiedemann, Religion of the Ancient Egyptians, p. 62. (For a description of the tomb of Sety I see the Notes on Legend xi).

(Texts: All Artifacts, Color Coding, & Writings in Bold Type With Italics Inside Parenthesis, are Added by Editor R. Brown, not the Authors, Translators, or Publishers!)

(gods in blue)

This story is sculptured on the walls of a side-chamber off one of the inner halls of the tomb of Sety I (room xii of the guide-books). On one of the walls is a representation of a cow standing under the star-sprinkled vault of heaven

This is Nut, the sky-goddess; she is raised on the uplifted hands of the god Shu, and each leg is supported by two gods; planets, and Boats of the Sun travel across her body. The connection between this representation and the legend is quite uncertain.

The tale occurs only in this one place, but every excavator hopes that he may one day find a tomb with a complete copy of the story sculptured on the walls.

Now the Majesty of Ra (Marduk) reigned over the Two Lands.

He was the second king of Egypt, and in his reign peace was on earth,

and harvests were so plentiful that to this day men speak of the good things

which “happened in the time of Ra.”

By his own power he created himself, and he created heaven and earth,

gods and men, and he ruled over them all.

For hundreds and hundreds of years he ruled until he waxed old,

and men no longer feared him, but laughed and said,

“Look at Ra! He is old, his bones are like silver, his flesh like gold,

and his hair like true lapis lazuli (blue-hued gem stone).”

Then Ra was wroth when he heard their jests and their laughter,

and he called to those who were in his train,

“Summon hither my daughter, the apple of my eye,

and summon also the gods Shu and Tefnut, Geb and Nut,

and the great god Nun, whose dwelling is in the waters of the sky.

Do my bidding secretly lest men shouldhear you and see you,

for then would they be afraid and hide themselves.”

In secret went the messengers,

very softly they came to summon the gods and goddesses.

Secretly and softly came the gods and goddesses

to the Mansion of Ra in the Hidden Place.

Naught did men see or hear; and they laughed again at Ra,

not knowing the punishment that should fall upon them.

On each side of the throne came the gods and goddesses,

and they bowed before the Majesty of Ra with their foreheads to the ground,

saying, “Speak that we may hear.”

Then said Ra to Nun, the great god whose dwelling is in the waters of the sky,

“O eldest of the gods and all ye ancestor-gods!

Behold the men whom I have created, how they speak against me.

Tell me what ye would that I should do to them,

for verily I will not slay them till I have heard your words.”

And Nun, the great god whose dwelling is in the waters of the sky, made answer,

“My son Ra, greatest of gods, mightiest of kings, thy throne is set fast,

and thy fear will be upon all the world when thou sendest out thy daughter,

the apple of thine eye, against those who attack thee.”

The Majesty of Ra spoke again,

“Lo, they will flee to the deserts and the mountains and hide themselves,

if fear falls upon their heartson account of their jests and laughter;

and in the deserts and mountains none can find them.”

Then said the gods and goddesses,

bowing before him with their foreheads on the ground,

“Send forth thy daughter, the apple of thine eye, against them.”

And at once there came the daughter of Ra.

Sekhmet is she called, and Hathor (Ninhursag), fiercest of the goddesses;

like a lion she rushes on her prey, slaughter is her delight,

and her pleasure is in blood.

At her father’s bidding she entered the Two Lands to slay those

who had rebelled against the Majesty of Ra,

and had turned their rebellion to jest and laughter.

In the land of Ta-mery she killed them, and on the mountains

which lie to the east and west of the great river.

To and fro she hastened, slaying all who crossed her path,

and before her fled the rebels against Ra.

And Ra looked forth upon the earth and cried to his daughter,

the apple of his eye, “Come in peace, O Hathor (Ninhursag)!

Hast thou done that which I gave thee to do?”

And Hathor laughed as she answered,

and her laugh was the terrible voice of the lioness as she tears her prey.

“By thy life, O Ra,” she cried, “I work my will upon men, and my heart rejoices.”

For many nights the river ran red, and the goddess waded in the blood of men,

and her feetwere red as she strode through the land of Egypt as far as Henen-seten.

Then Ra looked forth upon the earth again,

and his heart was filled with pity for men, though they had rebelled against him.

But none could stop the ruthless goddess, not even the Majesty of Ra himself;

of herself must she cease to slay, for neither gods nor men could compel her.

By subtlety alone could this be accomplished.

Ra gave command, saying,

“Call hither to me messengers who are swift as the blast of the storm wind.”

And when they were brought, he said,

“Run to Elephantine, hasten, go quickly,

and bring back to me the fruit that causes sleep.

Be swift, be swift, for all this must be accomplished ere the day dawn.”

The messengers hastened,

and their speed was the speed of a blast of the storm-wind.

They came to Elephantine,

where the great river rages among the rocks that bar its passage;

they took the fruit that causes sleep,

and with the fleetness of the wind they brought it to Ra.

Crimson and scarlet was the fruit, and its juice was the color of man’s blood;

and the messengers carried to it Heliopolis, the city of Ra.

Then the women of Heliopolis crushed barley and made beer,

and with the beer they mixed the juice of the fruit that causes sleep,

and the beer became the color of blood.

Seven thousand measures of beer did they make,

and in hastethey brewed it, for the night was drawing to a close

and the day was about to break.

In haste came the Majesty of Ra, and all the gods and goddesses,

who were with him, to Heliopolis to inspect the beer.

Ra saw that it was like human blood, and he said,

“Very good is this beer. By this I can protect mankind.”

At the dawning of the day, he gave command,

“Carry this beer to the place where men and women have been slain,

and pour it out upon the fields before the beauty of the night has passed.”

So they poured it out upon the fields.

Four palms deep it lay upon the ground, and its color was the color of blood.

In the morning came the fierce Sekhmet, ready to slay,

and as she passed by she looked to this side and that, watching for her prey.

But no living thing did she see,

only the fields that lay four palms deep in the beer that was the color of blood.

Then she laughed with the laugh like the roar of a lioness,

for she thought it was the blood she had shed. And she stooped and drank.

Again and again she drank, and she laughed the more,

for the juice of the fruit that causes sleep mounted to her brain,

and no longer could she see to slay by reason of the juice of that fruit.

Then the Majesty of Ra said to her, “Come in peace, O sweet one.”

And to this day the maidens of Amu are called “Sweet Ones ” in remembrance.

And the Majesty of Ra spoke again to the goddess, saying,

“For thee shall be prepared drinks from the fruits that cause sleep;

every year shall these be made at the great Festival of the New Year,

and the number of them shall be according

to the number of the priestesses who serve me.”

And to this day, on the festival of Hathor (Ninhursag),

drinks are made of the fruits that cause sleep,

according to the number of the priestesses of Ra,

in remembrance of the protection of mankind from the fury of the goddess.

http://fontes.lstc.edu/~rklein/Documents/chronnab.htm

(This translation was made by A. Leo Oppenheim and is copied from James B. Pritchard’s Ancient Near Eastern texts relating to the Old Testament, 1950 Princeton. Some minor changes have been made, based on the new edition by A.K. Grayson.)

In October 539 BCE, the Persian king Cyrus took Babylon, the ancient capital of an oriental empire covering modern Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, and Israel. In a broader sense, Babylon was the ancient world’s capital of scholarship and science. The subject provinces soon recognized Cyrus as their legitimate ruler. Since he was already lord of peripheral regions in modern Turkey and Iran (and Afghanistan?), it is not exaggerated to say that the conquest of Babylonia meant the birth of a true world empire. The Achaemenid empire was to last for more than two centuries, until it was divided by the successors of the Macedonian king Alexander the Great. A remarkable aspect of the capture of Babylon is the fact that Cyrus allowed the Jews (who were exiled in Babylonia) to return home.

Chronicle of Nabonidus

The Chronicle of Nabonidus (scholarly edition) tells us the story of the rule of the last king of independent Babylonia. The text is badly damaged and contains many lacunas. However, it makes clear that the rise of Cyrus was not unexpected. We meet him for the first time in Nabonidus‘ sixth year (=550 BCE), when he defeats the Median leader Astyages. A second reference can be found in year nine, when he defeats the king of a country that can not be identified (547 BCE).

In addition, we learn that Nabonidus was not in Babylon for ten years. Instead, he seems to have tried to subject Arabia. In year three he conquered the kingdom Edom, which controls the direct road from Babylon to the Gulf of Aqaba. From year seven until year sixteen, Nabonidus stayed in the oasis of Temâ in the Arabian desert, from where he could easily go as far south as the oasis Iatribu (modern Medina).

The events of year seventeen look rather desperate: although the New Year’s festival (Akitu) can now be celebrated, several divine guests fail to attend, which suggests that their home towns were under siege. We also learn about a short invasion by soldiers from the Sea Land.

Throughout this text, ‘Akkad‘ means Babylonia; the first years show Babylonian military activity in Syria and the southeast of modern Turkey.

(Texts: All Artifacts, Color Coding, & Writings in Bold Type With Italics Inside Parenthesis, are Added by Editor R. Brown, not the Authors, Translators, or Publishers!)

(gods in blue …mixed-breed demigods in teal…)

[First line destroyed]
Accession year (556/555 BCE):

… he lifted.

The king brought their [lacuna] to Babylon.

First year (555/554):

They did [unintelligible] and he did not lift his [lacuna].

All their families [lacuna].

The king called up his army and marched against the country Hume

[i.e., Cilicia].

[lacuna]

Second year (554/553): In the month Tebêtu, in the country of Hamath,

it was cold.

[lacuna]

Third year (553/552): In the month of Âbu, to the Ammananum [in Cilicia], the mountains of [many?] fruit trees.

All kinds of fruits he sent to Babylon.

The king fell sick, but he recovered.

In the month Kislîmu, the king called up his army, [he sent?] to Nabû Bel-Dan of Amurru, and marched to [lacuna].

Against the capital of Edom they pitched camp [lacuna] the gateway of Šintini [lacuna] he killed [lacuna] troops.

Fourth year (552/551): [lacuna]

Fifth year (551/550): [lacuna]

Sixth year (550/549):

King Astyages [litt: Ištumegu] called up his troops and marched against Cyrus [Kuraš], king of Anšan,

in order to meet him in battle.

The army of Astyages revolted against him and in fetters they delivered him to Cyrus.

Cyrus marched against the country Agamtanu [the Median capital Ecbatana]; the royal residence he seized;

silver, gold, other valuables of the country Agamtanu he took as booty and brought to Anšan.

The valuables of the army of [lacuna]

Seventh year (549/548):

The king stayed in Temâ; the crown prince, his officials and his army were in Akkad.

The king did not come to Babylon for the [New Year’s] ceremonies of the month of Nisannu;

 (life-sized statue of giant alien god Nabu, in our image & likeness)

the image of the god Nabû did not come to Babylon,

the image of the god Bêl (Marduk) did not go out of Esagila in procession,

the festival of the New Year was omitted.

But the offerings within the temples Esagila and Ezida were given according to the complete ritual;

the urigallu-priest made the libation and asperged the temple.

Eighth year (548/547): [blank]

Ninth year (547/546):

Nabonidus, the king stayed in Temâ; the crown prince, his officials and his army were in Akkad.

The king did not come to Babylon for the ceremony of the month of Nisannu;

the god Nabû (Marduk‘s son) did not come to Babylon,

  (Marduk & animal symbol & spade / rocket symbol)

the god Bêl (Marduk) did not go out of Esagila in procession, the festival of the New Year was omitted.

But the offerings within the temples Esagila and Ezida

for the gods of Babylon and Borsippa were given according to the complete ritual.

In the month of Nisannu the fifth day, the mother of the king died in the Walled Camp,

which is on the banks of the Euphrates, above Sippar.

The crown prince and his army were in deep mourning for three days, an official weeping was performed.

In Akkad, an official weeping on behalf of the mother of the king was performed in the month of Simanu.

In the month of Nisannu, Cyrus, king of Persia, called up his army and crossed the Tigris below the town of Arbela.

In the month of Ajaru he marched against the country U[…], defeated its king,

took its possessions, put there a garrison of his own.

Afterwards, his garrison as well as the king remained there.

Tenth year (546/545):

The king stayed in Temâ; the crown prince, his officials and his army were in Akkad.

The king did not come to Babylon for the ceremonies of the month of Nisannu;

Nabû did not come to Babylon, Bêl did not go out of Esagila in procession, the festival of the New Year was omitted.

(Bel / Marduk & son Nabu the scribe)

But the offerings within the temples Esagila and Ezida for the gods of Babylon and Borsippa

were given according to the complete ritual.

In the month Simanu, the twenty-first day [lacuna] of the country of the Elamites in Akkad [lacuna]

The governor of Uruk [lacuna]

Eleventh year (545/544):

The king stayed in Temâ; the crown prince, his officials and his army were in Akkad.

The king did not come to Babylon for the ceremonies of the month of Nisannu;

                  (Esagila, Marduks ziggurat residence in Babylon;               Ezida, son Nabu’s ziggurat residence in Borsippa)

Nabû did not come to Babylon, Bêl did not go out of Esagila in procession, the festival of the New Year was omitted.

But the offerings within the temples Esagila and Ezida for the gods of Babylon and Borsippa

were given according to the complete ritual.

[large lacuna, containing years #12, #13, #14, #15]… the river.

              (Inanna; her ziggurat residence in Uruk)

In the month of Addaru the image of Ištar (Inanna) of Uruk [lacuna]

The army of the Persians made an attack.

Seventeenth year (539/538):

             (Marduk with son Nabu leading Babylonian king by the hand)

Nabû went from Borsippa for the procession of Bêl [lacuna]

The king entered the temple of Eturkalamma;in the temple he made a libation of wine.

Bêl went out in procession.

They performed the festival of the New Year according to the complete ritual [4 April].

In the month of [Âbu?] Lugal-Marada (NInurta’s son) and the other gods of the town Marad,

Zabada and the other gods of Kish, the goddess Ninlil and the other gods of Hursagkalama visited Babylon.

Till the end of the month Ulûlu all the gods of Akkad – those from above and those from below– entered Babylon.

               (Borsippa & Sippar ruins)

The gods of Borsippa, Cutha, and Sippar did not enter.

In the month of Tašrîtu, when Cyrus attacked the army of Akkad in Opis on the Tigris,

the inhabitants of Akkad revolted, but he [Cyrus] massacred the inhabitants.

The fifteenth day [12 October], Sippar was seized without battle.

Nabonidus fled.

The sixteenth day, Gobryas [litt: Ugbaru], the governor of Gutium, and the army of Cyrus entered Babylon without battle.

Afterwards, Nabonidus was arrested in Babylon when he returned there.

Till the end of the month, the shield carrying Gutians were staying within Esagila

but nobody carried arms in Esagila and its buildings.

The correct time for a ceremony was not missed.

In the month of Arahsamna, the third day [29 October],

Cyrus entered Babylon, [unidentified objects] were filled before him – the state of peace was imposed upon the city.

Cyrus sent greetings to all Babylon.

Gobryas, his governor, installed subgovernors in Babylon.

From the month of Kislîmu to the month of Addaru,

the gods of Akkad which Nabonidus had made come down to Babylon, were returned to their sacred cities.

In the month of Arahsamna, on the night of the eleventh, Gobryas died [6 November].

In the month of Addaru, the [lacuna] day, the wife of the king died.

From the twenty-seventh day of Adarru till the third day of Nisannu

[20-26 March], an official weeping was performed in Akkad.

All the people went around with their hair disheveled.

When, the fourth day [27 March] Cambyses, son of Cyrus, went to the temple of [unintelligible],

the epa-priest of Nabû who [lacuna] the bull [lacuna]

They came and made the weaving by means of the handles

and when he led the image of Nabû [lacuna] spears and leather quivers,

from [lacuna] Nabû returned to Esagila, sheep offerings in front of Bêl and the god Mârbîti (unidentified?).

Extracted from the website http://www.livius.org/cg-cm/chronicles/cm/nabonidus.html

The following chronographic document is a damaged part of what may have been a Babylonian chronicle from the Seleucid or Parthian age. It describes events from the second and third years of the reign of Nabonidus (556-539).

(Texts: All Artifacts, Color Coding, & Writings in Bold Type With Italics Inside Parenthesis, are Added by Editor R. Brown, not the Authors, Translators, or Publishers!)

(gods in blue …mixed-breed demigods in teal…)

Translation

[The second year of Nabonidus (554/553):] (…) “an entu-priestess […] heaven and earth […]

whom he asked me […] among the women of my country?”

“Yes.”

“Is she […], whom a god will beget?”

“Yes/No.”

“Is she […], whom a god will beget?”

“No.”

 (Utu / Shamash, son to Nannar, twin to Inanna)

“[…] Šamaš (Shamash / Utu) and Adad (Ishkur), the great gods?”

“Yes.”

(Nannar / Sin, son to Enlil, grandson to King Anu)

And then he wrote and […] Sin (Sin / Nannar) responded to him […].

(…)

His face became pale. […]

The scribes brought in front of him from Babylon the basket containing

the tablets of the series “Enuma Anu Enlil” in order to consult them,

but no one whatsoever heeded nor understood their content without his explanation.

             (Bau seated & guard dog on Nebuchadnezzar boundary stone, many symbols of gods)

A stela of Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, son of Ninurta-nadin-scaron;umi,

on which appeared the representation of an entu-priestess

and were described the rites, rules, and ceremonies relating to her office,

was brought with other tablets from Ur to Babylon,

in ignorance of what Sin, lord of kings, wished in giving them to him.

He took a good look at the tablets and was afraid.

He was attentive to Sin’s commandment and […].

He dedicated, En-nigaldi-Nanna, his daughter, his child, to (Nannar) Sin, lord of the kings,

whose word is unchangeable, in the office of (Nannar’s mixed-breed) entu-priestess.

In the month of Ululu, […] of this same year,

  (Sippar ruins)

in the Ebabbar, the temple of Šamaš, which is in Sippar, and in which kings

among his predecessors had searched in vain for ancient foundation –

the ancient dwelling place […] of his kingship that would make his heart glad-

he revealed to him, to his humble servant who worshiped him,

who was constantly in search of his holy places, the sacred enclosure of Naram-Sin, Sargon’s son,

and, in this same year, in a propitious month, on a favorable day,

he laid the foundations of the Ebabbar, the temple of Šamaš,

above the sacred enclosure of Naram-Sin, Sargon’s (The Great) son,

without exceeding or shrinking a finger’s breadth.

He saw Naram-Sin’s inscription and, without changing its place,

restored it and appended his own inscription there.

He saw in this sacred enclosure a statue of Sargon, the father of Naram-Sin:

half of its head was missing, and it had deteriorated so as to make its face hardly recognizable.

Given his reverence for the gods and his respect for kingship,

he summoned expert artisans, restored the head of this statue, and put back its face.

He did not change its place but installed it in the Ebabbar and initiated an oblation for it.

 (Utu with royal descendant animal horn crown, long beard, & familiar image)

For Šamaš, the great lord, his lord, he constructed this Ebabbar in joy and gladness.

He caused 6,000 strong cedar beams to be laid out for its ceiling.

He made this temple shine like the day and raised its topmost height like a high mountain.

For the entrance, he brought outstanding cedar doors,

bronze doorsteps, bolts, and sockets, and he finished his work.

In […] to Šamaš, the great lord, […], in the temple […],

in the month of […], on the Nth day, after the offerings,

he initiated an oblation according to the rite of his lord.

They let him dwell in the dwelling place that makes his heart glad.

A messenger arrived from Hatti land and repeated the information: “[…]”

The great gods […] heart’s content […] distant, the road through the mountain […] a road of death,

he donned his weapons against the people of Hatti.

In the month of Ajaru, the third year (553/552), he took the head of his troops at Babylon,

and, having mustered them, in thirteen days he reached […],

and he cut off the heads of the people who lived in Ammananum [i.e., Cilicia]

and their […] and he piled them up in a heap.

He hung the king on a stake and […] he allocated the town […] of a mountain,

Ammananum, which is situated in the middle of the mountains, orchards […],

their shadow […] he let Girra burn all of it […] whose tops were distant […]

he turned into ruins for all time […] entrance ways […] day, he left […].

(…)

[…] his […] he listened and […] and fell upon him […],

he spoke with him […], stretched his hand and […]

his rites […] with him […] battle array […] his troops […] he bore arms and toward […]

double hours, difficult roads, through territory full of difficulty, dwelling places,

the crossing of which is impossible and where no foot is set […] at the mention of his name […]

plants […] the king of Dadanu […] distant […] he wiped off and

Broken off and lost