609 VOTIVE INSCRIPTIONS FROM A PRIVATE COLLECTION 610 SUNDRY EARLY MESOPOTAMIAN ARTIFACTS 1 dnin-isin si-na For Nin-Isina, WITH VOTIVE INSCRIPTIONS 2 FROM A PRIVATE COLLECTION* 2 nin-a-ni-ir his lady, 3 dza-am-bi-ia Zambiya, Jacob KLEIN, 4 lugal kalag-ga the mighty king, Bar-Ilan University 5 lugal ì-si-in/ki-na the king of Isin, and Ori BRENNER, Weizmann Institute of Science 6 lugal ki-en-gi/ ki-uri-ke4 the king of Sumer and Akkad, 7 é-niĝin3-ĝar kug The pure Eniĝinĝar, 8 ezen šà ḫul-la-ka-ni-šè for her festival of heart rejoicing, A. THE VOTIVE INSCRIPTIONS (Jacob Klein) 9 mu-na-dù he built. Commentary 1. Zambīa Nail Head d si-na 1: nin-isin2 : So Edzard, RLA 9, 387ff. sub Nin-Isina (halbsyl- d si This item is a large hard baked clay nail. Only the head labisch); reading nin-isin2 -na is also possible. For a list of votive and the root of the spike are preserved. The diameter of the inscriptions, see Edzard, ibid. 388a (sub § 4). This goddess is iden- head, which is almost intact, measures 12.5 cm. It contains tical with the healing goddess Gula. an intact 8 line inscription. The nail pertains to Zambīya, the 7: For é-niĝin3-ĝar, part of the sanctuary of Gula at Isin, see Sjö- th berg, TempleHymnsTCS 3), pp. 92f.; George, HouseMostHigh 11 king of the First Dynasty of Isin (ca. 1836-1834 BCE). 133, sub No. 886. It is a Sumerian royal inscription of the ‘building and dedica- 8: ezen šà ḫul-la-ka-ni-šè: This expression is attested neither in tion’ type, commemorating the building (i.e. restoration) of Cohen, Calendars, nor in Sallaberger, Kalender. See however the Eniĝinĝar by the king to Nin-Isina, the tutelary goddess Proto-Izi II 424 (MSL 13, 52) ezen-šà-h~úl-la (var. ezen-h~úl-la). of Isin. For Zambiya see W.W. Hallo, “The Last Years of the 2. Ur III Tablet Sealed by Waqartum3) Kings of Isin,” JNES 18 (1959) 54-72; Frayne, RIME 4.1.11 (pp. 91f.). This king has only one other 22 lines inscription, This is a small dark clay tablet, measuring 4x5x1 cm. The commemorating the construction of the wall of Isin. The signs are unusually large, carelessly written with some of ‘wall construction’ inscription, which was first published by them probably written over erasure. In addition, the entire Hallo (ibid.), has the literary structure typical to all its pre- surface of the tablet is covered with multiple, and partly decessors: A. It opens with the RN Zambīya and the king’s superimposed seal impressions. All this makes the reading political and religious epithets, which express his control of (and copying) very difficult. The tablet is dated to Ibbi-Sîn 2 both Nippur and Isin (1-15); B. This is followed by the (ca. 2026 BCE). The provenance is unknown, but it may building record (16-18); C. Concluding with the name-giv- come from Umma or Drehem. The tablet records the expend- ing formula (20-22).1) iture of 3 sheep for the “Boat of Heaven” festival, issued on Our inscription has the typical literary structure of the the 26th day of the 12th month, via Waqartum, “sister of ‘(temple) building and dedication’ inscriptions: A. It opens Šu-Sîn,” and is sealed by her. with the DN Nin-Isina, as an indirect dative object (1-2); B. Followed by the RN Zambīya and three of his major official Obv. ki royal epithets, lugal kalag-ga / lugal ì-si-in -na / lugal ki-en- 11 ⸢udu ḫa?-ma?-zi⸣ki / ⸢nita ⸣?! 1 lamb / , gi ki-uri-ke in the ergative (3-6); C. Ending with the build- 2 Ḫamazi male 4 ⸢ !⸣ ing record, which closes with the mu-na-dù verbal form 2 2 udu eme- gi nita2 2 emegi male lambs, (7-9).2) An absence of an epithet related to Nippur, in this 3 má-an-na unug⸢ki?⸣/ for the Heavenly-Ship ofUnug, inscription, may indicate that at the time of the building of 4 ⸢iti⸣-ta ud 26 ba/-ra-zal on the 26th day of the month, the temple for Nin-Isina, Zambīya was not in control of Nip- pur, which means that the building took place in his second Rev. or third year, probably named after this event. The first known king who introduced the epithet lugal kala-ga in the 5 ki lugal-ni[r-ĝá]l?/-⸢la⸣-t[a] from Lugal-nirĝal, Isin titulary was Enlil-bāni, and this epithet appears hence- 6 ĝiri ?! ba-gàr-tum . forth in all the ‘(temple) building and dedication’ inscriptions 3 via Waqartum of the following Isin-kings (Zambīya, Ur-dukuga, Sîn-māgir, (two lines uninscribed) Damīq-ilīšu). As a matter of fact, from Enlil-bāni No. 6 on, 7 itu ⸢d⸣dumu-zi Month of Dumuzi all this type of royal inscriptions have the three component (=12th month). titulary, attested in our Zambīya inscription: lugal kalag-ga, 8 mu en dinana! unug/ki ⸢máš-e Year: The high-priestess of ki lugal ì-si-in -na, lugal ki-en-gi/ ki-uri-ke4. ì-pàd⸣ Inana of Uruk was chosen by extispicy (=Ibbi-Sîn 2) *) The objects published in this article are in the private collection of co-author Ori Brenner. Dr. Brenner has provided details about the prove- nance of the objects which satisfies the Editorial Board that they conform with our policy regarding publication of objects from private collections and which adheres to the relevant Unesco conventions. 1) For the typical structure of inscriptions recording the construction of walls, see Klein 2010, pp. 177ff. 2) For the typical structure of inscriptions recording the construction of 3) We are most grateful to David I. Owen, Piotr Michalowski and religious buildings, see Klein 2010, pp. 174ff. M. Stol for useful and critical comments to this part of the article. 611 BIBLIOTHECA ORIENTALIS LXX N° 5-6, september-december 2013 612 Commentary also in the early OB period; cf. e.g. Kraus, ARN 7, where the PN Wēdum-lībūris written consistently We-du-um-li-bur (ll. 2, 4 and Obv. 8), but the seal impression offers ; and conversely Sim- The correct reading of these two lines was suggested to us by Bi-du-li-bur 1-2: mons, JCS 15, 54, No. 126:21, where we find Dawid Owen. udu ḫa-ma-ziki seems not to be attested elsewhere. wa-aq-ra-am “claim” (instead of the expected ). For udu eme-gi (GI seems to be written over erasure of a ZI) see ba-aq-ra-am itu dumu-zi – 12th month of the Umma calendar (Cohen, especially UET 3, 1232:obv. 3 (1 udu-nita eme-gi). See further 7: Calen- 2 186ff.; Sallaberger, 10). Note also itu ezen-dumu-zi ITT 2, 620:rev. iv 8 (udu eme-gi); AnOr 1, 303:obv. 4 (udu eme- dars Kalender (6th month in Girsu). gi-ra); ASJ 18, 159. 3:obv. 17 (udu eme-gi ḫi-a); BPOA 7, Cf. mu en dinana unugki máš-e ì-pàd (Ibbi-Sîn 2; so Sigrist- 2450:rev. 5’ (ki sipa udu eme-gi-ra-ke -ne-ta) passim. This breed 8: 4 Gomi, 371 sub Unugki; however, ibid. p. 355 this YN is of sheep is attested mainly in administrative texts from Umma and Catalogue not listed). Acc. to Sigrist-Gomi, ibid. 248, from Ibbi-Sîn 2, 12th Ĝirsu. Note that NITA seems to be written on erasure of a RA. 2 month, we have ca. 60 documents. Only one from the 25th day and For the festival of the “Boat of An/Heaven” (ezen má-an-na), 3-4: one from the 30th day. The present document seems to be dated to see M.E. Cohen, 215-220; Sallaberger, 216 ff. Calendars Kalender the 26th day (see obv. 4). According to Cohen (ibid.), Drehem texts refer to this festival in Uruk in the 10th month, and it is possible that this month was named after this festival, which Seal Inscription lasted for 5 days. According to Sallaberger (ibid.), this festival took place usually twice a year (on months 6 and 11). Expenditures are dŠu-dSîn usually dated between 20-30 day of the month. Both of these fes- tivals were especially women festivals, and the provisions were lugal-⸢kala⸣-ga Wa-qar-tum 4 given to high ranking, royal women. ) Cf. in this respect especially lugal uri ki-ma nin -a!-ni YBC 16241 (J. Klein, ZA 80, 32), 1-9: 1 gud 2 udu niga ezen má- 2 9 an-na Še-le-pu-tum dumu-mí lugal Šà-ta-kù-zu rá-gaba maškim itu lugal an-ub-da limmu2-ba ud 22 ba-zal ki-dŠul-gi-a-a-mu-ta ba-zi iti ezen dŠul-gi. Klein (ibid.), Cohen (ibid.), and F. Carroué (ASJ 15, 51f.) consider the Commentary possibility that má-an-na was the processional boat of Inana, in As has been observed by C. Suter, seals of royal women survived which the goddess made her mythological trip from Eridu to Uruk, almost exclusively in ancient impressions, either because they were and that the festival constitutes the Sitz-im-Leben of the Inana-Enki reused, or more probably because they accompanied their owners myth (cf. Inana and Enki 34 passim). This hypothesis is rejected by to the grave (Suter 2008, pp. 4f.; 13). Our seal impression shows a Sallaberger (ibid.). typical presentation scene to a deified king, in this case to be iden- For further references to the “Boat of Heaven” in Ur III administra- tified as Šū-Sîn.