..:*
T :
i
L
$.ltd f :l
'E
&J""3{ilis" P' (e*rJ
; ceJt; A g.,rn l, {,. l-/,n.n;rg ( Sl,,Ji",
1. --co.{_,,.r
q,
(
Pl,l*tlel7hr c,-tltt) tt' t- lSj
o(". P,..tl."i iA -t ,!. knr,'ne,"FrnJ
F Le,,l,ly
.n
Adad,-apla-iddina,
Esagil-kTn-apli,
and the Series
SA.CIC
IRVINGL. FINKET
\-,
In 1956J.V. Kinnier-Wilsonpublisheda recentlydiscoveredpiece of a Nimrud tablet that
containedpart of a catalogueto themedicalomenseriesSA.GIG.IA brokensectionof thattablet
but the name of the king under
describesthe role played by a significantredactor,ESguzi-gin-a,
andhasproveda point of discussion.2
Subsequently,
whom he workedis broken(dX-apla-iddina),
joined,
the samescholaridentified,
and published(in transliteration
only) the remainderof the
Nimrud tablet.3The new piece addedalmostall the remainingincipitsto SA.GIG,and added
similarinformationfor the physiognomicomenseriesAlamdimm0,Katadugg0,and associated
texts.
The identification of a duplicateto the Nimrud catalogue(ND 4358+4366)in BM 41237*now
givesfuller information
for certainthat the nameof the king was Adad-apla-iddina,
establishes
about the editing of the series,and adds the few SA.GIG incipitsthat were previouslyeither
broken,or altogethermissing.
THE NEW MANUSCRIPT
+ 466tr/(81-8-30,73)
+ 47163(81-8-30,685){
BM 41237(81-4-28,785)
represents
slightlymore
than the lower half of a single-columntablet; it measuresT.4x 11.0(at maximum) X 1.8cms., and
there seems every likelihood that when complete it contained the same material as did the
SecondDynasty of Isin (f067-f046B.C.); seealso f. A.
l. Seelrcq l8 (195€)130-l.ltl.
2. I{arduk-apla-iddinawas suggested
in Irag 18 (1950) Brinkman,A PoliticalHistorg of Post-Kassite
Babylonit
1158-722
136;W. C. Lambert proposedNabu-apla-iddina
in JCS ll
8.C.,AnOr 43 (Rome,1968),p. I4l. For thereign
(1957)8; J. A. Brinkmanopted for the samein JCS 16 of Adad-apla-iddina
seerecentlyC, B. F. Walker,in G. van
(1962)96 sub 24.3.3;comparedso StudiesPresentedto A. Driel et al., eds.,ZikirSumim (Leiden,1982),pp. 39&4f7.
3. lraq % (1982)52-82.
Leo Oppenheim(Chicago,f904),p. 37.1.1.A. van Dijk
later showed (VorleufigerBerichttiber die von der Not4. BM 46807and 47163wire joined by C. B. F. Walker
gemeinschaft
Wissenschaft
wasjoinedand the text identifiedby the
der Deutschen
18[Berlin,I962], in 1977;BM 41.237
p. 5l) that the king shouldbe Adad-apla-iddina
of the presentwriter
143
IRVING L. FINKEL
L44
Nimrud tablet ND 4358+4366.The 8f-4-28 and 8l-8-30 collectionsof the British Museumboth
are statedin the
the provenances
consistof tabletsbrought to Englandby Hormuzd Rassams;
quoted.
provenance
has
no
DepartmentRegistersto be Babylonfor 41237and46ffi7,while 47163
ratherthanlater;thesign
The scriptis Bdbylonian,smallandneat,andprobablyNeo-Babylonian
forms are not dissimilarfrom thosein many tabletsin a Babylonianhand from the libraries at
Nineveh. A copy of BM 41237+is given below as Fig. I.
THE EDITORIALWORKON SA.GIG
,
\"
The authorship of the medical and physiognomic omens was anciently attributed to Ea,6but it
is evident that by the turn of the second millennium BC a proliferation of tablets, recensions and
variants required a firm human editorial hand; and in the remarkable passage studied below
(already partly known from ND 4358+) we are informed that order was brought to bear on the
problem by one ESguzi-gin-a.
The name of this scholar-scribe is well-known. The Akkadian equivalent to his name (written
.ds-gri-zi-gi-in-a) is given in VR 44iii447 as^C-sag-g{I-ki-in-ap-li,and he is also listed as one of the
famed of ficial urnman1,"(chief) scholars," in W 20030,7,the Seleucid Lrst of Sagesand Scholarss
in the following context:
,
\-
16 lina tcr-pd'x-x ] -x LUGAL^ A-sag-giL-kd-i-ni- DUMU.Nl^tA urn- rwn' nu
LUGAL^d-sag-gil-ki-i-ni-ubt-ba-(sdcl)utn-rrlan-nu
L7 lina-tar-$r] .dIM-TDUMU.NITAI-MU.SUM
18 lina t ar- gli.dAG-NIc. DU-SES LUGAL* e-sag- gil-ki-i- ni-ub- ba lU (sicI ) um- mnn-nu
Esagil-kini-ubba (Saggil-kinam-ubbib), probably the author of the Babylonian Theodicy,e is
shown to have served as umm.dnu both under Nebueha dnezzar I and Adad-apla-iddina; his
c:ueer thus spanned at least thirty-five years, although the reigns are given in reverse order.r0
Saggil-krnam-ubbib is independently known to have worked under Adad-apla-iddina, from
K.10802rev. I-2.rr On the basis of the present evidence one might hazard that Esagil-kin-apli was
Adad-apla-iddina's first appointed ummdnu, but that he died in office and was replaced by
Saggil-kInam-ubbib, but van Dijk's remarks on W 20030,'l:L6rzmake the expectedrestoration of
Adad-apla-iddina's name unlikely.r3 A text that might have given evidence were it more
complete, is the TDP tablet A U4L Dated in its colophon to ITI APIN UD I7.KAM [MU n.KAM
mdX-DUMU.NIITA-SUM-na
the tablet can now be reasonablydated to the
LUGALKA.ptNCln.nA.KI,14
reign of Adad-apla-iddina, and seen as an example of the Esagil-krn-apli edition.
5. See I. E. Reade in E. Leichty, Catalogueof the
BabylonianTablas in the BritishMuseum8: Tabletsfrom
Sippar,l (l,ondon,1988),pp. xxx-xxxii.
6. See/CS16 (1962)u,K.2242-4.
7. See/CS lr (1957)13.
8. Publishedby I. I. A. van Dijk, UVB 18,pp.44-52'
9. CompareW. G. Lambert,/CS U (1957)12;BabU'
IonianWisdomLiterature (Oxford, 1960),pp. 63-64.On
of K.I0802:Isee/CS 16(1962)66,andI' J.
the restoration
A. van Dijk, UVB f8, pp. 46 and51.
,:,
10. See|. A. Brinkman,AnOr 43, p. ll5 n. 841.
ll. SeeW. G. Lambert,BWL63-64;/CS16 (1962)60,
and J. A. Brinkman,AnOr 4i],p. l4l n. 852.
12. UVB 18,p. 51.
13. The transliterationsuggestsa surviving hace of the
RN ("vielleicht Raum frir drei Zeichen"),but this is not
shownin the copy (pl. 27),nor in thatlaterprinted inBagh.
Min. Beiheft2 asno. 89.
14. Collatedbv I. A. Black;seeStudiesOppenheim,p.
37 n. 219.
ADAD-APLA-IDDINA, ESAGIL-KIN-APLI,AND THE SERIESSA,CIC
U
145
Esagil-kin-apli's"father" is shown by the new duplicateto be Asallu[i-mansum(not "I5taranSe5-mansum),15whofunctioned
asapkallu(ttuN.ur),orSage,inthereignof
$ammurapi.ramaru
here evidently must mean"descendant."In the Uruk list the term ap kallu ischieflyur"d fo, those
scholarsdating to pre-Flood Days,rTalthoughtherewas a NUN.MEunder Enmerkar, and the
scholar who lived under Gilgame5rEwas likewise a NUN.ME.No scholar from the reign of
$ammurapi is given in the Uruk list.
The catalogueopenswith the forty incipits to the seriesSA.GIG,and divides the tablets into
sub-seriesas is alsofound in the colophonsknown from the sourcesin Labat TDp.Eachentry is
ruled,and eachincipit is prefacedwith the numberof linesin the tablet.Bothmanuscripts
share
the same format, although where the line totals are preservedin both, there is no agreement.
After the incipits for SA.GIGcomesthe unusualpassagethat describesEsagil-krn-apli's
work.
Appendedto the catalogueasit is,the passage
thusqualifieseffectivelyasa colophon.The style
of the SA.GIG cataloguediffers in both manuscriptsfor the succeedingentriesin that line totals
for the individual tabletsareomitted.It might well be that originallythe catalogueto SA.GIG and
the catalogue to Alamdimmfi and related texts were separate, and were subsequently
amalgamated.This is in somemeasureborne out by the placingof what we have termed the
colophonto SA.GIG.
The end of the Nimrud tabletND 4358+is badly broken,but thephrasenigirli elzidal,"secret
of Ezida" (A 92) fits well with its discovery in Nab0's temple Ezida at Nimrud, and it seems
probable that BM 41?.37+,
if not itself from Borsippa,originatedtextually in a manuscriptfrom
Ezida in Borsippa'Thus we are dealingwith the Borsippaeditionof SA.GIGfrom the Sage
of
Borsippa;seeB 2l' below.
The piecesND 4358and 4366have now been ioined and further cleaned,and A. Black has
J.
recentlyprepared a completenew copy for inclusionin the forthcomingvolume of Late Assyrian
textsfrom the Nab0 templelibrary at Nimrud.teHis very considerablekindnessin making this
copy availableprior to publicationand collatingseveralpassages
hasmeantthat a transliteration
of the tablet, revisedin the light of the Babylonianduplicate,canbe given here.20
The incipits are
thusgiven in full for the convenienceof future workerswith the series.zrOne or two difficulties
still remain, but the forty incipits in this edition of sA.GIG are now complete.
The following transliterationis basedon A : ND 4358+4366,
restoredwhere necessaryafter B
: BM 4I?37+; where B haspreferablereading,however,it is adopted
in the transliteration.
Variationsand sundry observationson new readingsare given in the footnotes.Where the line
totals are preservedin A and B they are quoted in that order.
15. Correct thereforelraq 18 (lg50) 136;UVB lg, p. 51,
etc.
16. On the possible implications of this see W. G.
Lambert,/CS fr (1957)&7.
17. Seedso E. Reiner, OrNS 30 (f961) 7; j. j. A. van
Diik, UVB 18,pp.4&47.
18. If correctlyunderstood;seeUVB 18,pp. 5G51.
19. D. I. Wiseman,J. A. Black,LiteraryTertsfromthe
Nabu Temple (CTN 4), fortbcoming.
2.0.J. V. Kinnier Wilson has commented on these
incipits in the above-mentioned articles, so translations are
not given here.
2I. Labat has rather simplified the manuscript difficulties in TrcitA akkadien de diagnostics et prognostics
m0dicaux (Leiden, l95I); the problem will need investigation if a new edition is undertaken incorporating tbe
many new sources and commentaries, published and
unpublished. Compare, for example, E. Leichty, Af O %
(1975) 82-88.
IRVINC L. FINKEL
146
SA.GIGTABLETSI.XL
Transliteration
Ja se.ctc.uEsMU.x22
MU.MES
[sec oun.uns z S]u.rNIGIN2]
Obv. A t
A2
A3
U
'
,
t'...
A5
[NtctN
A6
L7
A8
AI
A I0
A II
A LZ
A 13
A 14
A 15
A 16
A 17
....']xxxGIBILNUTIL
DU-rkzl
e-nu)-mo anaE rl0.ctcl KA.PIRIG
III t. ' .] ana GIcina TE-ka
IV t. . .l DISSAG.KI
fie-si-ma
KII-Jti
IGI
ls-Jl
DIs
.l
.
v
t.
VI t. . .l DISKIR{'Jti
VII . -[' . .] DISEME'JtisA,-r411
Li>.i;drtar-kdtl
VIII t. . .l DISGESTUG
IX t. . .] DISGIGPa-nu'di sls24
X i. . .] DIScIG r6f'srr12s
XI t. ..1 DlSrit-ta-{ilJd l5KU-r&ir
xt1-[,fti]
XII t. . ' DISIGABA-sz
XIII t. . . DIs sAlGSA'Jri[se']
XIV I. . ' DISsli-l,J I5-Jri [se,-dt]
A18
[NtctN
4nd c]I[c] inaTEka
AI9
t....
.lx2osun.clntl.pab-[tua]
L25
L26
.
DU-ku
e-nu-rnaanaftj rl(r'l'clc KA'PIRIG
t. .
rl0.ctct DU-ku
i. . . DISLUanaL)
L4
A20
A 21
A22
A 23
Atut
'
I
III
XV
t. . .
DISu]D l.xet''t crG-maGARTAG-f[4
100
sILIlr{'ME$rna
DISNIcIN SA.MES-JII
KII-Jd
XVI t. . . DISu]D l.xav crc-masAG-rsur
rRbu-bu:-tair-taJdil
xvII
t. . .] rplsr ina sAGGIG-Jti
XVIII I. . .l DISGIGsu'[&r]
XIX t. . .l DrSi-mirnu SED'
XX t. . .l DIScIGnn-kalll
XXI
22. SignperhapsB[I] or N[E]. To mark tbeheading,the
whole line is in largeiscript ihan the remainder.
23. Signs11L"rJU BIr'
24. Contra lraq 24 (1962)55, evidentlyconfusedtnew
copy unambiguous'
21 Contra lraq L4 (1962)55, evidentlyconfused;new
copy unambiguous'
26. x = lower half of brokenvertical.
ADAD.APLA-IDDINA,ESAGILKIN.APLI,AND THE SERIESSA.GIG
L27
XXII
88
A 28
A 29
A 30
XXIII
XXIV
XXV
103
I37
85
L47
DISclc ris-bdr1I2u327 crGinardel-re-e-tiil-teJn|leb-bu
DISrzEl ep-ru
APIN-'J
DISTGIGT
GIS.HASHUR
DISIZI.GAR
{d ina SAGLIJ.GIG
Kun.nu
Su.NrcrNt4 uS20 DrSuD I.KAMctc-ma sA xzEr54t15gx.s1s1tr
sab-tun
A 31
A32
433
XXVI
XXVIIII
A 34 B l'
435
A36
XXVIII
XXIX
XXX
60
60
DISSUB-trSuB-su-rna
DISNA mi-{it-ti pa-ni ma-Jid-ma
160?1 duma-maSu.crolpt.vAana AN.TA.SUB.BAGUR-Jri
LM
U
rplg al1gg4L.UR.RA rpgurl2e.g1g.1g
DrScrc-rtu KA-JIBAD.BAD-rtu1
SA.GIG
NIGIN4+2 uSzGf[. . . uS S]u[n-t]riSun-su-rna
A 37 B 4'
*SUKUD.GIM
AN.TA.SUB.BA
A
A
L
A
A
38
39
40
4l
42
B 5'
B 6'
87'
B 8'
B 9'
XXXI
XXXII
XXXIII
XXXIV
XXXV
A43 BrO'
Rev. A
A
A
A
A
44
45
46
47
48
B
B
B
B
B
Ll'
12'
13,
L4'
15'
8l
t. .
t. .
t. .
t. .
DISUD.DATtB-su-nl,a
.l DrSrM i,{-biS-su-ma
.] DISrclcr cAR-Jrisp rs4?1-'74-nus
SudME.ME
.] DISrNArond MUNUS-JIi
SA-Jritlrl-{il-ma
.l rptSNer IcI.ME$.fdNIGIN.MES-d,3r
[NtctN] 3+[. . .] uS 5t, DIS UD.DA TtLB-su-rnasuKUD.cIM
XXXVI
XXXVI
XXXVN
XXXIX
XL
L47
{unto-maTU PESn-mc
ucu slAc].rKlr-ff [sIGr]
f t8/98
DrSMUNUS.pESI
crc-rnd
A.JdUD 3.xeu x-JtJ33
MT/T43 DISN,IUNUS
152/82
DrSMUNUSba-ri"{-tii-di-ip rdr-[g]iJ-Ju3{
82+tu1/I44DrSLO.ruRlr-'-l
27. Numerdpossiblyl4S(collationbyBlack).Reading
is-bdr(?) after lraq 18 (1956) copy; I 2 3 after new copy,
quite provisional; the equivalent incipit in TDP 176:t reads
simply IDISGI]C inale-re-e-tiil-te-n$-eb-bu. . . (Tablet
"23"),
which might suggest that this [ne in fact contains
what should be two incipits.
28. x: broken Winkelhaken followed by vertical visible
as rIGII (collation by Black).
29. This tablet has remained unknowu, but now tbe
followingLateBabylonianunpublishedpieceshavebeen
identified by the writer: (i) BM 42310+; (ii) BM 48563;(iii)
BM 56805;and (iv) an unnumbered fragment. BM 3€ii]75is
a fragment of a commentary on this tablet. The sources
suggest that DUT.BI rather than KI.BI is to be read. The
format of this tablet differs noticeably from TDP generally.
The medical problems are linked in the obverse to the age
ofthepatient(DISinaMUn.KAMSUg-su...),andinthe
reverse to the spot where the patient is at the time of attack
(f or example, DIS AN.TA.SUB.BA ,na a-hk gir-ri SUn-su
"omen"
. . .). Each
or diagnosishas a magical/medical
prescription appended, in some caseseven including the
incipits of the incantations to be used. One would scarcely
identify the text as SA.GIG were the first line not preserved.
BM 58605 has on its reverse a mysterious table of astrological significance, a duplicate to wbich is Blv{ 40080.
30. EN clear; rga?l-short, but probable (collation by
Black).
31. A: NIGIN.MESdTT; B: NIGINT-[. . .].
32. A: [NIGIN] r3laJ. . . UIS 5; B: [. . .]+f US 5.
33. x like B[I or TA[8.
34. Confirmed by H. Hunger , Spdt Babglonische Terte
aus tJruk I (Berlin, 1976), no. 40.
r48
IRVING L. FINKEL
A 49 B 16'
clS.cIS.e
NIGINS*63suS42 uuNus.rrES,r[x] xrl'ab-tu1138
A 50 B t7'
Jd SA.GIG
Su.NlctN40 oun.uns 300Gfx ft [. . . M]U.MES
ZAG.TIL.LA.BI.SE
EDITORIAL WORK
ESAGIL-KIN-APLI'S
.".
A 5I-2
B obv. 18'
"
A 53-4
A 54-5
B rev. 19'
B n'
da ul-tu zl-la suR.G[InIl] rbt gab-tunr] cIM GU.MESrcIL.MES3sSat
NU TUKU
GABA.RI'l3e
'dIM-DUMU.NITA-MU40
LUGALTIN.TIR.KIIICIBtL.nl.sE[x].At"t{2
inaBu-e
^D{-gti-zi-gin-a43Dvugat nassql-hi-fii-ma-an-sum4s
NUN.M[E] '^'fia-alm)-
A 55-6
A 57-8
B zLt
B 22'
mu-ru-p{ LUGAL
re!'ti-i
um-mat d30dlis-siru dna-na-aBARAT.SIPA.KI-i
al.zu.zv16
pa-{i.{
sdna-d.JDUBdi-mat DINGIR.MES
ZABAR.DAB.BtC-zi-da
tV
lv,
'?
A 59-60 B 23'
ntq mit-$ur-tftiyz
be-lettak-n6-etu-li-matnar-mi-dti
i-{ip-puram-ku{d dnin-ztl-z{l-le
A 60-r
B ?A:,
UM.ME.AKUR EME.KUU URI.KIin-dGESTUCIIni-Kil.ti {d 4OIu PAP.PAP'{E
A 6r-2
A 62
A 63-4
B ?,s'
8 Zfi'
B 27'
A 6$-8
A 66-7
A 67-8
A 69
A 70-I
L7I
B 2f.'
B 29'
B 30'
B 3l'
B 32'
B 33'
rA mub-biENc}R.ME[s],
,Y[:;::ri-kiu{-ta-bit-masA.crclo
ana Nlc.zu DU-init-id rpitl-fqad]
[s]un.crnn DIB.MES-rna
sa-kik-kaul
.sr.D,Lso
Jd Nlc.zu NU GUB.BISL
Ne.v.se.Se
[Nlc.z]u.zi.i.SE
DUG..IcA-mu]
fal)am-dtm-rna-aul i-r'ntn-bi sa-kik-kan-fttr clc u ri-kis kfu-ri]sz
h-a-nu di-matNAM.LIJ.UTs.LIU]
alam-dlm-mu-dbu-un-na-an-nt-e
I-ma
ki-lnl-Ia-anx[E]S-sz-nusa
i-{i-rnuJd ES.GAR
dd 40 u rAP.PAP53
ES.BAR
fia:-if zl-ti UN.MES
[a-{i-pu(?))TAR-isss
ka-lil zu-ti li-bi-it lib-ri lib-bi
alam-dtm-rw-a
lsa-klik-ka u
Uii-ta-bil)-ma anaLU3AL ME-cli'{-kun
35. A:4+6; B: #6.
..] GIS.GIS.A;
36. A: MUNUS.P[ES, ....
M U [ N U S ] . r P E S . r [ ( x ) ] x t s a b - t u n 1C I S . I . . . l .
B:
45. Since B has dasal-&j-[i-ma-an-sum.drKAXDl-SESlm a - a n - s u mi n A i s n o w s e e n a s d a s a l t - I i - b i - m a - a n - s u m
(confirmedbyBlack);comparep. 150below.
3 7 .A : S U . N I G I N 4 0 D U B . M E s 3 m 0 + E + 4 r : [ . . . ] ;4B6: . A : l . r B A R . D A B l ;B : Z A B A R . D A B . B AA; :
. .].
Su.NlctN 40l80GF[.
HAL.NI.zu.zu,alsoin newcopy.
aZ.A:sa-ni-qumiltlJburl-t[iJ.
38. The editio princeps offered SUMUN.MES
"obscure
TGIL.MESI,
(seeW. G.Lambert,JCS
originals"
48.At ina UD lR-fttl-t,(collationby Btack);A: 20 (+),
ll [1957]6 and l]14), but the new copy shows a clear
"twisted threads,"thus adopted
GU.MES TGIL.MEST,
"crossed."
On
CIB.MES,
here.Professor
Kdchersuggests
SUR.GIBIL (= za-ra-al seelraq 18 (1956)138,/CS If
(1957)14,and YBC 7123rev. 5' elservhere
in this volume.
39. LU before GABA.RI (seelraq L8 [1956]f3ffi9) is
not visibleat all in the new copy; Jc remainsuncertain.
B: ina,oIM40. A: ina,DdrIMr-DUMU.NITA-SUN{.NA;
DUMU.NITA.MU.
41. A: fKAr,DINGIR.RA.rKr.
42. A.AN now seemsclearcontral-Jd-an;the restoration
proposedin/CS 11(1957)13is thusruledout.An adverbis
'
probably to be restored.
43. L: ^C!-gi-zi-gin-a;8.ntA{-gil1-zi-gi-a.
'
44. A: A.
(worn) u x[ (3 small initial horizontals:new copy); B: 50
(sic)rr PAP.PAP;
seenote62.
riF-[tu; B: SA.CICTA.
49. A: SA.GIG.MES
50. = ana i$zika In teggi; compare it-i-id la te-eg-gi
(/NES 33 [I974] 2007l), and it-id pit-qad h te-gi in the
passagepartly quotedbelow at footnote57.
that CUB bereis an unsupSL The translationassumes
ported ideogramfor kalddu; compareCAD E 47 subifizu
A.
r;t-kir lcu-[n]ri[kds]
52. A: omits SA.Clc,.continues
rCJGI [u n-kisa-di]r-ti.
53. A: .fd40 u [. . .]; B, [. . .] PAP.PAP;
seefootnote62.
il. A: perhapsKA ratherthan KES;B: K[E]S.
55. A: unidentifiedtrace(x ASl) corresponding
approx-
l\
ADAD-APLA.IDDINA,ESAGIL-KIN.APLI.AND THE SERIESSA.CIG
B Obv. 18'
B Rev. l9'
20'
2T'
22'
?3'
2A:'
2l.'
r49
Concerningthat which from old time had not received an [authorised]edition,
and accordingto'twisted threads'forwhich no duplicateswere available,so
In the reign of Adad-apla-iddina,
King of Babylon,to work it anew . . . ,
Esagil-kin-apli,sonof Asallufi-mansum,the Sageof King Hammurabi,
the ummatuslof Sin,Lisi and Nanai,a prominentcitizen of Borsippa,
the zabardabbaof Ezida,ssthe pa.3E{u
of Nabusgwho holds the gods'Tablet of
Fate, and can reeoncileconflicting things,
the ilippu andramku priest of Ninzilzil,oolady of loving trust, 'sister'6rof his
loved one,
the (chief) scholarof Sumer and Akkad, through the incisive intelligencethat Ea
and Asallufi/Marduk(?)82
had bestowedon him,
deliberatedwith himself, and produced the authorisededitions for SA.GIG,
frorn
head to foot,63
26' and establishedthem for knowledge.Take carel Pay [attentiont]
27' Do not neglectyour knowledge!He who doesnot attain(?)knowledgemustnot
2u'
:
29'
30'
U
speak dloud the SA.GIG
omens,
nor must he pronounceout loud Alamdimm0l sA.clc (concerns)all diseases
and
all (forms of) distress;
Alamdimmri (concerns)externalform and appearance(and how they imply) the
fate of man
which Ea and Asallu[i/Marduk(?)ordainedin Heaven.(Regarding)the twin i
series,their arrangementis one.s{
58. The Uruk commentaries to TDP available in SpBTU
vol. I are consistently described where preserved as being
dapiummdni/ummdni,"aecording to the Sage(s)."Admittedly this attribution occurs in commentaries to other texts,
but does it here perhaps mean that Esagil-k-rn-apli also
wrote explanations of the dilficult passages?
57. The terrr, um-rrlat occurs also in CRRAI 19, p. 436
12, but its meaning remains uncertain. The present passage
shows that the citation inAlfto, p. l4l5sub ummatu3l c) as
subordinate to m;ukin. . . must be corrected. A meaning
"descendant"
in the Nebuchadnezzar I text seemsprobable, and support for this might be provided by the passage
quoted from Rm 17* and BM 55148+ below, where
SA.nell,.SeL dlie-si.a a corresponds to um -matdS}alh-st<u
dna-na-a.Compare also K 2596rev. iii 18'.20' (drawn to my
attention by W. G. Lambert), a colophon describing the
textual history of tbe incantations against agricultural
pests:
eS(for .) a(PAP).SUKKAL.DUG{. NU.
BAL.BAL u[m-mat. . .)
SU.AN.NA.KI ZABAR.DAB,BAana-bi.u/n [. . .]
GUDU. A-sag-{lu C-zi-dakt-r[. . .]
Forthe name of this scholar-scrjbeseeJCS tl (1957) l3:bl.
58. Compare the scribal ancestor Baba-5um-ibni, in
colophons from Assur, wbo is described as z,abardabbi of
E5arra; seenow O. Peders6n,Archh:es and Libraries in the
City of Aswr part 2, Acta Universitatis Upsaliensis,Studia
SemiticaUpsaliensia8, p. 45 n.22.
59. For nl-zu-zuas a name of Nab0 seeF. Pomponio,
StudiSemttict5r (1978)15&159.
80. nnin-zll-z{l
is givenasEmesalfor Nanaiin MSL4 g:g0
(compare W. G. Lambert, MIO L2/2 [LgSSl45); she is
describedas dna-na-aDUMU.MUNUS [. . .] dd man-zaas-sudd-gu-ube-Iettak-nC-el. . .l in CT 25497-8,and the
syncretistichymn KAR 10922 statesthatin BARA.SIPA.KI
dnin-ztl-z{l-le be-let tak-n4-e zi-kir-!d.
61. It is assumed,thatnarmfi
standsfornaritmu (compare
CAD N/l 381subnarrnri),and refersto Nab0,andthar-jri
refers to Esagil-kin-apli;talimtu must therefore mean
"lover"
here.
62. In line 30', A offers 40 u [. . .] and B t. . .l PAP.PAP
where gods must be meant, and since the ordainingof
human fate must be largely Ea's responsibiUty
(compare
K.2/1482-3 referred to above), 40 may be tmsted; in tbe
parallelphrasein line 23' A hasr30rand B r50rwhich must
be emended. PAP.PAP seemslikely to stand for Asallufi,/Marduk, although no support can be offered;
dPAP.PAP: D U M U. M UN USdnin-Jvblr( Keikchiftt exte
cusAssuroerschiedenenlnhaltsS0
i7-8), explainedasLIJ
KA ru-qid, is no doubt irrelevant.
83. a capite ad calcem (MSL 16, p. 23 and refs.)
expressedin Akkadianl Compare also line A 77 belorv,
TDP 28 8&96,and R. D. Biggs,RA 62 (1968)58 l7'.
64. That is, both organizedby this tablet.
t\
150
IRVING L. FINKEL
3l'
32'
[Let the d.Iipu) who makes the decisions, and who watches over people's lives,
who comprehensively knows SA.cIc and Alamdimm0, inspect (the patient) and
check (the appropriate series),
SiiI' flet him ponder], and let him put his diagnosisat the disposalof the king.ss
Y
U
(= za-ra-al
In many ways this passageis a remarkable one. According to this text, SUR.GIBIL
"canonisation"
so oftendiscussed
by Assyriologists;
a
theprocessof
gabatueffectivelyrepresents
represent
the
standard
version
of
the
composition.
text is establishedfrom disparatesourcesto
in A 19andA 31;comparealsoA 49 (not
is alsoappliedto theindividualsub-series
The expression
and alsoA 4: GIBILNUTIL.Othertechnicaltermshere,stillquite obscure,
apparentlySUR.cIBIL),
Gu)suKUD.cIM
in A 49and A 9I. The passage
is directsupportive
in A 37andA 43,and cIS.cIS.A
are
"canonisation"
in the secondhalf of the second
evidence for the conventionalplacing of
glimpse
provides
major
of a
scholarlyeffort from a masterscribe.
a unique
millennium, and
"incipits
of the
In the Exorcist'sManualKAR 44,the openingsection(obv. 2 - rev. 3) liststhe
(SAG.MES
ES.cAR
series of.d{ipiltu which have been establishedfor knowledge and study"
(rev.
is,
in
The
following
section
F20)
contrast,
kun-nu).
Nlc.zu
IGLDUs,A
u
MAS.MAS-fd
dd ana
"incipits the seriesof a{ipatu accordingto Esagil-kln-apli(snc.unSES.cAR
of
describedas the
Two new Late Babylonianduplieatesto KAR 44to be publishedby
MAS.MAS-td
dd^e-sag-tl-DU-A).
M. j. Geller(Rm 717* and BM 55148+)offer fuller informationat thispoint, and areparticularly
relevantto the passageunder study: Rm 717+ (with variantsfrom BM 55148+)readsasfollows:
(var.
. .) .{d'd5-gri-zi-gint-ouMUxUS
Rev. 3. Su.tttcrl.ES.cAna-{i-pu-tu(var. MAS.MAS-x[.
^dasal-1il-bi-fma-an^ Cll.-gi-zi- gi-in-a'1DUMU
sufm
olrn-sln
^[a-am-mu-ra-p{
e (var. s t) i-{ipLUCALSU(var. x[. . .]) SA.BAL.BAL
,4. NUN.ME
pu (var.GUDU.)A-zi-da(var. adds t. . .l)
The anonymityof cuneiformliteraturehasbeenstressedby W. G. Lambert,66who emphasized
asbeing exceptionalin approach.The
the importance of the Catalogueof Texts and AuthorsoT
presenttext, now more or lesscomplete,showsboth one individual at work, and the carewith
which thosewho were to usethat work were to proceed.In its rather cryptic useof a colophonstyle mixture of Sumerianand Akkadian and its choiceof unusualwords and gods the passage
embodiesthe protective attitude of the d{ipu to his inherited lore. The closinglineslikewise are
suggestive.It is interestingthat while the d.{ipuis seenas responsiblefor health at large, it is
primarily theking for whom thepracticalvalueof hisknowledgeis to be put to use,unlessthisis
mere diplomatic hyperbole. Furthermore,would it be wholly inappropriateto see in the
injunctionto safeguardthe corpus,study the symptoms,and produce the correctdiagnosison
requesta faint anticipationof the admonitionsof Hippocrates?
,
85. ME-a is taken to stand for qTbu:for passagesin
which this meansa medical diagnosis,construedwith
{akdnu,seeCAD Q, p. %9 sub voce'
66. SeetCS lr (1957)t.
67. See/CSl8 (L902)77.
ADAD-APLA.IDDINA,ESAGIL-KIN.APLI,AND THE SERIESSA.CIG
151
ALAMDIMMU
4 72 B U '
472 835'
A73 836'
473 B37'
474 B38'
474 B38'
474 839'
h75 B 40'
/^75 B 4L'
1^75B 42'
476 B43'
478 B 44'
Y
I
ntS SAG.DUrcl BAR-dtDrNGrR.MEScg
III DISrSA.NrcrNr
Lt safi-ru
[iru sA]c.DU
ru DISSAG.KI
NUTUKU
ry DrSsrc,rcr 15ka-bar
DIS rxIn.t-54 a-ri-ikoe
DISEME-J1nam-rrat1lo
DIS TTE.MURUB.T'I.MEg.fdx-'-x7r
VIII
DrSpa-nu-diGID.DA
IX otS crJ-rsu] cID.DA
X DIScABA-r,ru]6fp.p4zz
XI DIS ruMBINl cIM GU.GAR-in73
K)(II DrSalam-d[m-ma-fa. . . . . .]
V
VI
VII
L77 B 45'
NIGIN12 nus.NlsSalarn-d{m-mu-iTA rnub-birN
cIIRIIzAG.TrL.LA.Br.SE]
NIGDIMDIMMC
L78 B 46'
L78 B 47'
I
II
B 48'
DISpa?m[u? x (x) ]-.ft, 5l gi rganr sa SAs7l
DIS [x] IGI?SAG.DU-sz
x [x]75
.
[tttctx 2] oun.ues fn{g-dhn-dtm-rnu-il
.]tu
KATADUGGO
479 849'
480 850'
U
A8t Bsl'
cAL.MES
SdNAM.LU.IU,,.LUI
[otSx (*)] x DINGIR.MES
lz]a-qt-iq-{dana
EN.LfL-lrt]
[cen-nz] i ka-ta-dug4-gaddana re-te-etr6fx&r-jl d-kin-nu
1 oun Dts kal to-dugn-ga1-i77
88. A: DIS SAG.DUIGI BAR-AfDINGIR.Yg$ I1ME.U)
(after nervcopy, contralraq L4,11962)
55 29a);B: I x KID
B[AR]-atDINGIR.MES.Thlstabletis unidentified.Note
that unusuallythis seriesis namedafter Tablet XII rather
than Tablet I.
69. A: a-nk.
70. A: namJ rat1l;B; namJ rafr clear.
71. A: rDIs TEr [. . .].
72. In this and precedingentry B apparently omits -su.
73. A: DIs f UMBIN] GIM GUl GAR-in;B: DIs GIS.X
G I M ?G U 1 [ . . . ] .
74. Readingfrom A; B: DIS cna DINGIR-$, SA GI x x
t. . .l (AS before SA probablyerasure).
75. ReadingfromA;B:DISLAKAX-&,[. . .];SAGr.DUr
unlikely.
76. This rubric omitted in A. For the restoration compare
K.13280+13818
obv. l0-12: t. . .l 97 ES.CAn alam-dtmmu-u f. . .) a-di BAR.MESntg-dtn-dtm-mu-u1. . . u k)ata-dugr-ga-u(seeS. Parpola,/NES 42 [1983]%-25;F. R.
Kraus, Terte zur babylonischen Physiognomatik, AfO
Beiheft3 (Berlin,1935),no. 5L;Iraq %U98Zl 53).Seealso
CT 54 106 15 and F. Rochberg-Halton,ed.,Language,
Literature and History: Philalogicaland HistoricalStudies
presentedtoEricaReiner,AOS67 (New Haven,fgSZ),p.
163.
77. Comparelraq 24 (1962)53 and 57. In A line 8l is
written over the ruling between80and 82 asif addedlater
(]. A. Black),
IRVINGL. FINKEL
I52
SUUUE SINNISTUQAQQADARABIAT
A82 B 52'
A83 B53'
A 84
I
II
A85
!/'
c^Lat
s]AG.DU
IDISMUNUS
[ntSMUNUS]-x{8ctt-atGIBILNUTIL
15 cun-ru7s
[olS. . . . . .] x SAG,DU-,fii
rctl-at1
[Ntcrru2 oun].unS DISMUNUSSAG.DU
SUUUELIPTU
.
A 86
r
-ipt-Srtpi tu {ti i[orSrec-tu4 ind sAc].DUNABAR-rmu [x]ed lf
A87
A87
A88
. . . . . ] x b i k u[ x x x J s
[orS..
rptSsecl.puNAzaq-pct
ud?en [(x)]
[s],Aum
MINina
.] e.urSSUB.MES
NA
sAc].ou
.
.
.
ina
[.
[DrS
Iz-uIn-x]
(.-
ri ix-(x)-rgit
A 89
A90
rb1-lip)-tte'l
[Nrcwsr . . . DUn].rvESr[DIS]
SUMMARY
A 9r.
[Su.NlclN
zAc.rIL.LA.BI.SE
ES.cAnal.a]m-dtm-mu-il
DUB.MES
CIS.GIS.A
A 92
[Su.NrcrN
dal
alnm-dtrn-mu-ilrsel.SnSrd-[zisA.c]IG.MES
DUB.MES
...] e,l'.ru.RASuM.MA.rvst182
t....
It is evident from the summarythat Nigdimdimm0, Katadugg0,SummaSinniItu,and Summa
Liptu were consideredthe sub-seriesto Alamdimmt. The uncertaintyooncerningthe number of
tablets to SummaLiptu meansthat the missingfinal totals cannot be filled in for certain.]. V.
Kinnier Wilson suggestedsix tablets for the latter case, so the resulting total would be
40+L2+2+I*2*8 : 63 tablets for the twin seriesSA.cIc and Alamdimm0, representingthe
editorial achievementof the Sageof Borsippa.
A93
medieal omens we may conclude with a text of a very
While on the subject of the SA.GIG
joined by the writer, and given in
different stamp.This is BM 47687+485U(8I-1I-3,392+1223),
.
?8.A:[...]GAL-clB,...lxx[...;theGIBILNU
TIL here,in view of A obv. 4 above,showsthat this entry is
not to be taken as a third seriestablet incipit.
Zg. Seelraq% (1962)58 n. 31.
80. Rm 288+ (TBP no. 50) givesthe incipit for Tablet II
as DIS GIG.PESina SAG.DU LU GAR-in NA BI [. . .h
,:.'
shouldonereadthen. . .NlA BI ku-[. . .]?
8 1 . T h e c o r r e c t t o t a l h e r e a n d u n d e r s t a n d i nl ignoefs
8&90 must await new evidence;compareS.Parpola,/NES
42 (1983)28'
82. SuM.MA.MEistakentostandforJUrnmti,"theifs,"
that is, the medical omensthemselves.ME?is followed by
a sma]llow subscriptsignlike ZA.
-t
ADAD.APLA.IDDINA, ESACILKTN.APLI, AND THE SERIESSA.CIC
r53
copy asFigure II. This single-columntablet is likewiseregisteredasbeing from Babylon,and is a
record of miscellaneous
materialcopied from a wooden tablet.The obversecontainswhat might
"Poor
Man's TDP," sincethe authorhaswith great despatchreducedthe complexity
be styled a
forty
the
tablets
of se.cIG to a single statement for each part of the body, arranged
of
approximately (paceline 20) i^dtuqaqqadi adi dEpA,oI which the following diagnosessurvive:
:.
BM 47687+
Transliteration
Obv. 1
2
3
4
5
6
7
Svaa-nlmtu[. . .J
f. . . i!-ta-ncJ-a+sd
Suo[.. .]
t. . . . . .-JdKIIJ.KtI-sri
su'u'[.. .]
t. . . . . .-&iKlrl.Krl-Jri
x-[. .
x-[. .
x-[. .
x-[. .
.-.ftiK]I1.KO-JII
Su d[. . .]
.-,fiiK]O.KII-Jd
Su'd'[. . .]
.-,ftixtl.x]t1-Jri
Su'o'[. . .]
.-.fiiKU.K]Il-rftisu d'[. . .J
8 t....
:_:,
i
t-
, .ii.iil :
i;-:.
I
i:r
!:
9
l0
1l
LZ
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
2l
n
;
...Slu.[e]uen.uru
x.x-rJrjl[xf.rtt-Jri] SVaa-nim
rx,tl-Jri [xtt.x0-J]riSudIM
EME-Jri((u)
mut-ta-bil-t[a-{nKO.K(t]-JriSUdrlie'r-s.i{r
cABA-srx[(t.x0-J]ri rSuodl-tor
BAR.SIL
MrNLfl rx6t.[xtr-.triSUdp]Au dLUcAL
A ItJd KU.K[O-ftiS]u'qif-rarr
{ 150-Jr,rx0t.r[U-JriS]u a1.. .,
SA.MES_S.;
sAR.rMESr-b[a
S]u o[. . .]
rSut o[. . .]
MURUBT.MES-JIi
KCI.KtI-Jri
o[.
Su . .]
GIRl5-Jri KTI.KIJ-S|,
rls0r-Jd
cIR
Sud[. . .]
[x]rJ.xrJ-Jri
rucu] mo-bi-l$ . .)l Sv aza-fban-banl
t(.
x [x (x)-,ff x]U.rxU-JriSudr[. . .]
Sud. . .]
t. . . . . .-.fiilrKll.Kgt-[Jri
(Remainder,perhapstwo lines,lost)
The reverse of BM 47887+,missing perhaps a single line at the top, lists and equatesthe
watchesof the night (l'-3'), and givesprescriptionsfor salves(andin onecasea fumigant) against
fever (4'-8'), the evil olt (7'-9'), and madness(10'-1I'). The scribe'sname survives,and the
eolophon may be restoredwith someconfidenceas follows:
.:!ijj.
.i+Rtiti-:
'+vi
.':it!
o*it g.'.
i::+.n:_.
,J.
: :e:j
i,:.;#.i.-:,,
"i'3tr'
[re cr]S.oen-bi crMsuMUN-JrisAR-rrur
[IcI.r{n IGLTABS)v ^Je-mo-'-ia
lA.fri Jd ^)' d'za-ba n-rbd1I - [ NuNuz-SESA ^ e-ti- ra / A-DI-ru]
This tablet belongswith a group of scholarlytextsin a similar hand and style,all found in the
8I-lI-3 collection,whosescribal namesfrom the colophonsinvite comparison:
.., .
t&
IRVING L. FINKEL
(a) BM 47463(81-1I-3,168),
explanatorytext:83
DUB AS de-ma-'-i[ A mA-DI-/u
(b) BM 47451(81-11-3,156),
bil. u5burrudainc.:
^d
A'A-DI-ru
Sulr e-rna-'-idA-Jli{d ^dza-bon-ban-pdr-'u-5ES
(c) BM 47459(81-ll-3,164),ritual:
^e-fi-ru
IM.GID.DA'[.. . . . .f ^oza-ba4-bao-NUNUz-s[E]SDUMU
(d) BM 4749L(8I-l l-3,196\,Frauenkrankheitz
A^e-ti-ru
tM LSde-ma-LrzDUMUJd dza-ban-boo-NUNUZ-SES
A further text must alsobe compared:
(e) BM 47506(81-ll-3,211),medical:
-. . .]x-a$-ruA-dtidd^dza-ban-ban-pir-'u-SB9
A^e-ti-ru
t
etc.), taken together thesecolophonsprovide the following
SinceA may be read e (den-ruu
branch of a scholarlyfamily tree for Babylon in the Persianperiod:
EHru
:
I
Zababa-pir"u-ugru
I
I
l .Sema'a
l
[. . .]x-uqru
It is likely that Zababahereis to be understoodand read asMarduk, in which casetwo further
spellingsmay be compared:
'
Comm. on lvlarduk'sAddress:
(f) BM 47529+47685(81-11-3,234+390),
^e'tli-ru)
A
[. . .]rdlsA.ztJ-pir-'u-us-ru
Alu
omens:
(g) BM 47462(81-11-3,167\,
abttu
A ^ e-t[i-ru)
ASsIRSIRs{-NUNUZ-SES
A third, in which dAMAR.uruis written, adds anothergeneration:
(h) BM 47458(81-11-3,161),
Iqqur-Ipu5:
DUMU Jd 'IR.OKA A'A-DI.TU
5gII OA4\,If,R.UTU-NUNUZ-SES
U
Provisionally,then, one may suggestthe following:
Etiru
Urad-Baba
I
I
Marduk-irfu"u-ugru (floruit: [an] Artaxerxesyear 9)
I
I
s"-*1"
83. Publishedin A. Livingstone,Mgsficcland Mgthological Exphnatorg Works of Assgrianand Babglonian
scholzrs(oxford, 1986),pls. ii!v; seepp.25$210.There
seemsto be no surereasonto assumethat'Je-mcr-c is a
Hebrew scribe,since-ma would be expected.The useof
AS for DIS before the name also in BM 47491and-BM
I
[. . .]x-uqru
47482below showsthat thisis not a mistakein BM 4746i1;
compareK.2590rev. iii 18' at footnote 57 and, e.g.,K.8173
ll'-12': As dl.zu.ZU-ZU-DU.DU A As dKU.KU.x[. . .]
(a'na1ta-mar-ti-hiit'1ur (colophon)'
84. For Sirsir = Marduk see B. Landsberger,lVO I
(1947)38%386.
- l
II
I
.t6*
.:i..
ADAD-APLA-IDDINA, ESAGIL.KIN-APLI, AND THE SERIESSA.CIG
;l:
.1.i".:
,i;ft
.*:j;:.
",-_
i-;i-_:
.i''.::
s,.,
'
155
Note finally one further text from this group:
(i) BM 47447(81-11-3,
152),Comm. on EAE:
IMnde-m.a-'-ra
A.IR-dba-il A^e_tri_ru,
dated ITU.ASUD 23.KAMMU lg.KAM^ar-tak-dat-su
LUGAL.
It is curiousthat Sema'ahasomitted his father'sname. Comparisonof thesecolophonshighlights
the uncertaintiesinvolved in reconstructingscribal families.
The precedingremarkss5arerespectfully dedicatedto the memory of Abraham Sachs,who
J.
was a bit of an apkallu himself. Would but that the presentpublication were his Festschriftand
not his Memorial Volume.
!'
-:r:,-
&5. Itisapleasuretoacknowledgethehelpfuldiscussion
gratefultoProf.FranzKiieherforhiscarefulreadingofthe
/
of severalpointsin thispaperwith J. A. Black,M. J. Celler, manuscript.Sucherrorsas may have escapedremain the
J. V' Kinnierwilson, and w. G. Lambert.I am particularly writer's responsibility.
U
156
IRVING L. FINKEL
FIG. I. BM 4L237+46807+47183
Obverse
ADAD.APLA.IDDINA,ESAGIL.KIN.APLI,AND THE SERIESSA.GIG
j:"
l.:
-.:Y.
FIG. I. BM 4I237+4ffi07+47I83
Reverse
.i:!F;!:
:.qi:,,...
-;ffi,,
a4**-;.
,,t€ir:.,
:
:11
20'
?5'
30'
35'
40'
/
CLAYDEPRESSED
r57
IRVING L. FINKEL
158
FIG. II. BM 47687+485L7
Obverse
l0
15
20
of "+;
ADAD.APLA-IDDINA,ESAGILKIN.API,I,AND THE SERIESSA.GIG
FIG. II. BM 47687+485L7
?
:
'-:'
. r:
inl
:,r I
!j
r '
: t
Reverse
:rl -d,
.Bit.*L
: {-
! f ;:..:
i
l
.r:
t ' ,
I
I
tI
I
IO
I5
M
159