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Letter from Ur-saga to a king fearing the loss of his father's household

Sumerian literature (ETCSL) · 3 - Literary letters and letter-prayers · 14 sections

1. 1

   lugal gud am ⌈?⌉ igi gun3 sun4 {na4}za-gin3 la2-ĝu10-ur2 a-na šar-ri ša ki ⌈al-pi⌉ ši-it-ḫa-⌈ri qi2⌉-bi-⌈ma⌉

   Speak to my lord, the bull wild bull bison (?) with sparkling eyes, who wears a lapis-lazuli beard:

2. 2

   u3-na-a-dug4

3. 3

   alan kug-sig17 ud dug3-ga tud-da ṣa-lamx(LUM) ḫu-⌈ra⌉-ṣi i-nu-mi ṭa-bu <UD.DA>

   Repeat to my golden statue born on a favourable day, to my water buffalo reared in a holy fold, chosen in the heart of holy Inana of holy Inana, …… of Suen , to my lord, the trusted one of Inana:

4. 4

   ab2-za-za amaš kug-ga buluĝ3-ĝa2 šag4 kug {d}inana-ta pad3-da kug {d}inana [X] [{d}]⌈suen-na⌉ wa-tu

5. 5

   en nir-ĝal2 {d}inana-ĝu10-ur2 u3-na-de3-taḫ

6. 6

   za-e dim2-ma-zu dumu an-na-me-en wa-X […] X-ra-ni

   You are fashioned like the son of An. As with the words of a god, what you say is irrevocable all the foreign lands cannot answer (?) your words . Your words, like rain pouring from the skies, are uncountable are uncheckable are uncontrollable (?) : this is what Ur-saga, your servant, says:

7. 7

   dug4-ga-zu inim diĝir-ra-gin7 ḫur nu-gi4-gi4-dam ⌈kur⌉-kur nu-⌈gi4⌉-[…] ḫu-ur la ta-ar

8. 8

   inim-zu im an-ta šeĝ3-ĝe26-gin7 šid nu-tuku-tuku-dam ⌈šid⌉ nu-du3-du3-⌈dam⌉ šid nu-da13-da13-⌈?⌉ X ⌈BI⌉.NA

9. 9

   {m}ur-sag9-ga arad-zu na-ab-be2-a

10. 10

    lugal-ĝu10 bar-ĝa2 en3 bi2-in-tar li-bi2-in-tar dumu urim2{ki}-ma-me-en

    My lord has taken care of me has not taken care of me ; I am a citizen of Urim. If my lord agrees If it pleases my lord , let no one waste my father's household, let no one take away the home of my father's estate my old man's home ! May my lord know this!

11. 11

    tukum-bi lugal-ĝa2 an-na-kam ⌈lugal-ĝu10⌉ u3-na-an-dug3

12. 12

    e2 ad-da-ĝa2 lu2 nam-ba-ab-tum3

13. 13

    ki-ur3 e2 ad-da-ĝa2 ki-ur3 ab-ba-ĝa2 lu2 nam-mu-da-an-kar-re

14. 14

    lugal-ĝu10 ḫe2-en-zu

The Electronic Text Corpus of Sumerian Literature (ETCSL), Faculty of Oriental Studies, University of Oxford. Copyright holders: Jeremy Black, Graham Cunningham, Jarle Ebeling, Esther Flückiger-Hawker, Eleanor Robson, Jon Taylor and Gábor Zólyomi. Licence: CC BY-NC-SA 3.0. Source.