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Cuneiform Texts in the Metropolitan Museum of Art

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Cuneiform Texts in the Metropolitan Museum of Art CUNEIFORM TEXTS IN THE METROPOLITAN MUSEUM OF ART EDITED AND TRANSLATED I ALFRED B. MOLDENKE, PH. D. I PUBLISHED FOR THE MUSEUM NEW YORK 1893 PREFACE TO PARTS I. & II. In undertaking the publication of the cuneiform texts in the Metropolitan Museum of Art of New York City, I was prompted by the desire to render this small but interesting treasure accessible to students of the Semitic languages. These two parts are the first of a series of seven parts to be published as quickly as time permits. The texts referred to, are divided into two collections, known as the "Egibi," and the " Ward" collections. The former was purchased in 1878 from the British Museum, and the latter from the Rev. Dr. W. H. Ward of the Wolfe Expedition, by Gen. C. P. di Cesnola, the Director of the Museum. Part I contains 2I texts of the Egibi, and Part II, 35 of the Ward collection. Part I was published by me in June of this year under the title Babylonian Contract Tablets tn the Metrop5olitan iMuseum of Art. The causes that led me to republish it here were numerous and weighty. Chief among them I may mention that the volume was published as a doctor's dissertation, and in the hurry to get the book into print, many typographical errors were overlooked, and mistakes that should have been corrected, were left untouched. I trust that in' the present volume all such errors will have been avoided. Another cause was the desire of the Museum authorities to have some publi- cation of their collections to offer to inquiring strangers and to the learned public. I regret that time did not permit me to have the Babylonian equivalents of many of the Assyrian signs cast. With the type at my disposal, however, the cuneiform text has been made to appear as similar as possible to the original writing on the contract tablets. Also in the transliteration many peculiarities will be found, which I have seen fit to discard in succeeding parts. Part I must, in fact, be considered a book by itself, complete and independent of any other part. The indices of Part I have also been incor- porated in the preface instead of being placed at the end as in the first edition. The correspondence of such letter as I, a, k, etc., to Hebrew letters will be readily seen. Part II will be found to be, I trust, an improvement upon Part I. Not only is the type of the cuneiform text exactly similar (excepting peculiarities of hand-writing of the individual scribes) to the original characters on the contract tablets, but the distinction between the transliteration and the trans- lation is brought out more clearly by the use of Italic type for the former IV Preface to Parts I. & II. instead of Antique Roman. The notes have also been made as short as possible, and they confine themselves to explanations of the text and to refer- ences. They have been relegated to the end. The remaining texts in the Metropolitan Museum of Art have been divided for publication as follows: Part III will contain Nos. i-io of the Egibi, and Nos. I6-45 of the Ward collection, Total: 40 Texts of the reigns of Nebuchad- nezzar, Amelu-Marduk and Nergalsharusur. Part IV will contain Nos. 32-36 of the Egibi and Nos. 66-77 of the Ward collection. Total: 17 texts of the reigns of Cyrus and Cambyses. Part V will contain Nos. 37-56 of the Egibi, and Nos. 78-120 of the Ward collection. Total: 51 texts, chiefly of Darius. Part VI will contain about 50 undated contract tablets, 5 belonging to the Egibi collection. Part VII will contain all the Assyrian, Babylonian and Accadian texts of the Ward collection not included in any of the other parts. In conclusion I wish to express my most sincere thanks to the Museum authorities, especially to Gen. C. P. di Cesnola and to Prof. I. H. Hall, for their kind and liberal treatment and for the manifold facilities that they have courteously placed at my disposal. Also to my brother, the Rev. Dr. C. E. Moldenke, who is at present publishing a catalogue of the Museum's magni- ficent collection of Egyptian antiquities, I wish to express my thanks for his kind help, especially in the drawing and procuring of the signs that are so frequently used in Part II, and will be required for the publication of the remaining parts. NEW YORK CITY, I Oct. Ist, 1893. A. B. MOLDENKE. PART I. LIST OF BOOKS QUOTED, AND ABBREVIATIONS. ABEL UND WINCKLER, Keilschrifttexte zum Gebrauch bei Vorlesungen. (Sanhe- rib, Asarhaddon) Berlin 1890. Beitrage zur Assyriologie und Vergleichenden Semitischen Sprachwissenschaft, herausgegeben von Fr. Delitzsch und P. Haupt. Leipzig 1889 -1892. .. B. BRtNNOW, R. E., A Classified List &c. Leyden 1889. DELITZSCH, FR., Assyrische Grammatik. Berlin 1889. " Assyrische Lesestiicke. Dritte Auflage. (Sintflutbericht) Leipzig 1885. " Assyrische Studien. Heft I. Leipzig 1874. Babylonian and Oriental Record. London. BOB HOFFMANN, Ausziige aus syrischen Acten persischer Martyrer. Leipzig 1880. HOMMEL, F., Geschichte Babyloniens und Assyriens. Berlin 1885-1889. JENSEN, P., Die Kosmologie der Babylonier. Strassburg 1890. LAGARDE, P., Agathangelus. (Abhandlungen der Koniglichen Gesellschaft der Wissenschaften zu Gottingen, Vol. XXXV) 1887. LOTZ, W., Die Prisma-Inschrift des assyr. KInigs Tiglathpileser I. Leipzig 1880. LTP PEISER, F. E., Babylonische Vertriige des Berliner Museums. Berlin 1890. Bab. Ver. ,, Keilschriftliche Actenstiicke. Berlin 1889. POGNON, H., L'inscription de Bavian. Paris 1879. SAYCE, A. H., Lectures on the Origin and Growth of Religion (Hibberd Lectures). London 1877. SCHR(EDER, Phonicische Sprache mit Entwurf einer Grammatik. Halle 1869. Sitzungsbericht der Koniglichen Akademie der Wissenschaften zu Berlin. 1889. SMITH, P., Thesaurus Syriacus. Clarendon Press, Oxon. 1879. SMITH, S. A., Keilschrifttexte Asurbanipals. Leipzig 1887 - 1889. STRASSMAIER, J. N., Babylonische Texte, Heft I- VII. lnschriften von Naboni- dus, Nabuchodonosor und Cyrus, von den Thontaftln des Britischen Mu- seums copiert &c. Leipzig 1887-1890. Strass. Nabn., Nbk., Cyr. STRASSMAIER, J. N., Inschriften im Museum zu Liverpool. Leyden 1885. Verhandlungen des 5 ten lnternationalen Orientalisten Congresses zu Berlin. 1881. TALLQVIST, K. L., Die Sprache der Contracte Nabfi-na'ids. Helsingfors 1890. illq. TIELE, C. P., Babylonisch-assyrische Geschichte. Gotha 1886-1888. Zeitschrift fiir Assyriologie. Leipzig 1883 -1892. A. Zeitschrift der Deutschen MorgenlAndischen Gesellschaft. ZDM INDEX OF PROPER NAMES. The superiornumerals refer to the lines of the tablets, while the other numerals referto the tablets. I. CITIES. l 2 6 6 1 4 [din]Babilu 11 1 21 12 2 22 13 i 10 14 26 Babilu 14 16 17 1 20 9 4 1 29 23 15 1 16 16 7 17 1 182 [1911] 2016 Barsiba 18 21 20 22 22 16 17 23 12 14 24 16 25 18 20 5 1 T alf Bit-gar-i 31 26 22 34 27 13 14 28 15 17 29 30 30 1 31 1 al& Kas-sur (P) 13 s II. MONTHS. Nisannu 26 22 28 15 29 " Tatritu 13 1i Airu 22 4 14 2 Samna 27 4 5 15 1i Simanu 30 1 Samna-am-a 21 20 9 5 Dftzu 25 1 31 12 Sabatu 19 20 14 23 13 24 1 13 1 Ululu 27 17 4 14 Adaru 11 9 12 21 16 18 11 2216 23 III. GODS. 3 Bil 21 19 25 1' Na-na 17 10 30 6 T Gu-la 24 12 Ninip 16 4 1 Za-ri-lu 17 12 25 13 Sa-mai 18 ' :-. PERSONS. Ai 11 4 22 12 Iddin-. ..... 21 ilu I-a-na-§ir 25 f Iddin-Bil 23 9 1 ilu A-ba-ba-ti-la 27 2 Iddin-Marduk 17 1 3 18 1 23 10 24 25 s 1 Ab-la-a 30 1 28 19 Ab-la-da 18 5 Ia-ha-ta 21' 8 Ib-na-a 21 16 Iddin-NabOt 20 11 29 21 31 8 7 s t-gi-bi 12 1418 20 4 13 21 12 22 23 28 Iddin-na-hu-nun-ti-ii-Marduk 28 1 9 o 29 8 31 2 26 2° Iddin-na-Nabft 21 10 10 Idanin-Nabf 18 Aha-ba-ni 17 14 25 16 ttir-Marduk'22 13 Id-da-a 256 ttir-a-na-nim 12 The Metropolitan Museum of Art. L U-ka-ga-tu-ra-iad 30' Bil-i-tir 31 1 9 4 2t ilu tllatu-u 11 14 25 Bil-i-_i-ru 11 29 9 I-mid-su 19 Bil-kasir 12 19 Amtu 28 ' Bil-Marduk 27 8 I-sag-gil-ai 26 6 Bil-naiir 25 22 2 8 A-pak-kal-ia 26 O Bil-apal-iddin 11 12 19 24 9 12 1 ' Ipi-ii-ilu 13 2 14 '9 22 14 30 l1 Bil-pat-ta-nu 12 5 Itbi-[Marduk] 29 6 Bil-iki-Sa 16 13 30 2 Ilifia-apla 26 19 Bil-ri-man-ni 12 20 24 5 2 3 4 Iki-§a-apla 17 2 18 23 24 2 25 28 Bil-Aum-iSku-un 23 10 7 6 31 s Bil-iu-nu 12 17 19 30 A-ra-bi 17 3 Bani-ia 29 14 T Ir-ba-Marduk 14 24 Bani-i-a 11 s 29 4 Ardi-ia 29 24 Bani-um-ma-gu 27 1T 5 Arad-Bil 13 14 1" 22 1 29 6 Ba-ni-ia 12 2 15 16 9 10 20 1(?) 3 1 Arad-Marduk 21 18 22 2 17 Bani-a-tu-i-sag-ila 16 6 19 Arad-Nirgal 22 12 25 1 Bit-ti-ia 21 25 11 A-Sa-a-na-Sad 25 8 It-ik-kal-a 15 3 Gu-la-ri-nin-ni 11 2 121 10 13 It-ti-.........
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