YOS 11, 67a // NABU 2019/43a
These parallel texts contain two incantations each. The first, mainly in syllabic Sum. ending with an Akk. address to Enlil, and an Akk. procedure. The second is entirely in Sum. presents the well-known seven-times appellations to heaven and earth, and to different officials. (For similar seven-times repetitions, see Farber in van Dijk/Goetze/Hussey 1985, 44 and recently, the two parallel Sum. incantations published by Murad 2016: 8–9). Interestingly, the reverse of MLC 334 (NABU 2019/43) is oriented at 90° to the obverse, i.e. the lines are arranged as columns. Cunningham (1997, Cat No. 284) suggested that YOS 11, 67a is “possibly directed against evil daimons”. Van Dijk (1985, 44) seems to have taken it an incantation against dogs, for he read d En-líl muḫ-ur-gi 7 -ra-ka (ll. 5, 6). As we read these two lines, they contain an Akk. exclamation muḫur zērâka “pray to your begetter!”, a formula which is unknown from other incantations and is more typical of a prayer. In lack of a colophon, two arguments come in favor of seeing the text as an incantation: the rubric kikiṭṭašû (KI.KI.BI, for KÌD.KÌD.BI) and exclamations on the reverse, repeated seven-times each.
Transliteration
YOS 11, 67 = Text A; NABU 2019/43 = Text B
Obv.
A1 al ⌈mu-mu⌉
B1 al ⌈mu-mu⌉
A2 ki ⌈mu-mu⌉
B2 ki! mu-⌈mu⌉
A3 al-⌈ma⌉ dEn-ki-⌈ke4⌉
B3 al-ma dEn-ki-⌈ke4⌉
A4 ki-ma ⌈d⌉En-ki-ke4
B4 ki!-ma dEn-ki-ke4
A5 dEn-líl mu-ḫu-ur ze-⌈ra-ka⌉
B5 dEn-líl mu-ḫu-ur ze-ra-ka
A6 mu-ḫu-ur ze-⌈ra⌉-[ka]
B6 ⌈mu⌉-ḫu-⌈ur⌉ ze-ra°-ka
A7 kikiṭṭašû(KI.KI.BI) 2 an-ni-a-tim ⌈i-na? É?⌉ [x]
B7 kikiṭṭašû(KI.KI.BI) 2! an-ni-a-tum i-na ⌈x⌉-⌈nim⌉ [...]
A8 la-bi-ri-im ⌈pa-ni ⌈x⌉-[x-x]
B8 la-bi-ri-im pa-ni ⌈x-x⌉-[x]
A9 ta-⌈x⌉-[...]
B9 te?-ṣí-ir-ma i-na bi-ti [(...)]
A10 (rev. 1) ù ⌈il?-ta-nim i?⌉-[ba?-lu?-uṭ?]
B10 [ù(?)] il-ta-nim i-ba-l[u?-uṭ?]
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A11 an an an an an an [an]
B11 (rev. 1) an an an an an an an
A12 ki ki ki ki ki ki ki
B12 ki ki ki ki ki ki ki
A13 en en en en ⌈en⌉ [en en]
B13 en en en en en en en
A14 išib išib išib išib išib išib [išib]
B14 išib išib išib išib išib išib išib
A15 tùr ⌈tùr⌉ tùr tùr ⌈tùr⌉ [ tùr tùr]
B15 tùr tùr tùr tùr tùr tùr tùr
A16 nu-èš ⌈7⌉
B16 nu-èš nu-èš nu-èš nu-èš nu-èš nu-èš nu-èš
A17 la-ga-ge-en ba-ab-x
B17 ⌈la⌉-ga-ge-en ba-ab-du11
A18 gìri x x ud an šà-gal
Translation
Obv.
1–2 The heaven(?) is growing! The earth is growing!
3–4 The heaven(?) ... by Enki; The earth ... by Enki.
5–6 O Enlil! Pray to your begetter! Pray to [your b]egetter!
7–10 Its procedure: You will draw(?) these two in the old … the face of […], as well as in the house, [– in its south side(?)] and north side. He will li[ve].
Rev.
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11 Heaven! Heaven! Heaven! Heaven! Heaven! Heaven! Heaven!
12 Earth! Earth! Earth! Earth! Earth! Earth! Earth!
13 High priest! High priest! High priest! High priest! High priest! High priest! High priest!
14 Purification priest! Purification priest! Purification priest! Purification priest! Purification priest! Purification priest! Purification priest!
15 Courtyard! Courtyard! Courtyard! Courtyard! Courtyard! Courtyard! Courtyard!
16 Temple dignitary! (Temple dignitary! Temple dignitary! Temple dignitary! Temple dignitary! Temple dignitary! Temple dignitary! )
17–18 .... ....
Commentary
1–2: mu-mu is understood as a syllabic reading for mú-mú “to grow”, and the couple al ... ki... is cautiously taken as a variant of an... ki... found in ll. 11–12.
3–4: ma is understood as syllabic reading for ma4, a variant of mú (SAR).
B7: The sign before -nim (seen clearly on the photo) cannot be deciphered (perhaps la?).
A8: In text A (YOS 11, 67a), Cavigneaux/Al-Rawi (1994, 82) suggested pāni a[wīlim], but with text B now available, this restoration cannot be maintained.
B10: The line may end with the promise iballuṭ “he will live”, although it is not clear what is the malevolent agent, nor who is the patient.
11–16: The main part of the reverse is dedicated to a list of repeated words. Based on nu-èš "(temple) dignitary" (l. 16), we read ME as išib = išippu "a purification priest", en as enu "high priest" and tùr = tarbaṣu as a courtyard of a temple. This list, focused on (Enlil's?) temple is likewise an anomaly when compared to other incantations.
Michael P. Streck and Nathan Wasserman, Sources of Early Akkadian Literature (SEAL), seal.huji.ac.il. No commercial use is allowed. Published under CC BY-NC-ND (Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives). Reproduced unmodified. Cite as SEAL no. 7212; view on seal.huji.ac.il.