The Royal Hymns of Shulgi King of Ur: Man´s Quest for Immortal Fame

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VOLUME 71, PART 7 1981

The Royal Hymns of Shulgi King of Or: Man's Quest for Immortal Fame JACOB KLEIN ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR, BAR-IlAN UNIVERSITY INSTIlllTE

OF ASSYRIOLOGY

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VOLUME 71. PART 7 1981

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FOREWORD

TO AHUVA WITH LOVE

Copyright © 1981 by The American Philosophical Society Library of Congress Catalog Card Number 81·65929 International Standard

Book Number 0-87169-717-3

US ISSN 0065-9746

This monograph is an outgrowth of a paper read before the Annual General Meeting of the American Philosophical Society on April 21, 1977. The keen in­ terest that the distinguished members of the Society took in ancient Sumerian poetry and culture encour­ aged me to convert my paper into this modest publi­ cation. The first chapter of the book is a substantially expanded version of the abovementioned paper; it was written to the "taste" of the general reader, who takes interest in ancient literatures and cultures, and has not been initiated into the mysteries of Sumerian lan­ guage and literature. Hence, quotations of Sumerian texts and extensive bibliographical references were usually avoided therein. The second chapter, which contains a definitive edition of a fascinating (albeit fragmentary) hymnal epic describing a divine in­ tercession for the young crown-prince, SUlgi, and his subsequent enthronization in Uruk, is intended mainly for the specialist, and it may serve as an illustration of the numerous problems involved in the study of Sumerian poetry in general, and in the study of the SUlgi hymns, in particular. I would like to express here my deep gratitude to the American Philosophical Society for the generous grants in the years 1968, 1970, and 1 976, which greatly enhanced my research work on the Sulgi

hymns-the objects of the present survey. I would like also to thank the University of Pennsylvania for the Kramer Fellowship in Assyriology, which enabled me to revisit the University Museum, Babylonian Section, in the year 1976, and to reconstruct some of the most important Sulgi hymns from source material available there. The reconstruction of these hymns was also con· siderably facilitated by Professor Miguel Civil's forth­ coming catalog of Sumerian literature (to be published as HKL vol. 4), which he kindly permitted me to con­ sult in the form of a preliminary manuscript. In the editing of SUlgi P (see chap. II), I greatly benefited from using the lexical files of the Sumerian Dictionary project, with the kind permission of Professor Ake Sjoberg, curator of the University Museum tablet col­ lection, and the director of the above named project. I also thank him for permitting me to publish here a copy and photograph of the new fragment CBS 13991. Likewise, I wish to express my gratitude to Mr. Veysel Donbaz of the Istanbul Arkeoloji Miizeleri for his permission to publish here photographs of the Istanbul tablets Ni 2437 and Ni 4420. Ramat-Gan May 30, 1981

J. Klein

BIBLIOGRAPHICAL ABBREVIAnONS

In the bibliographical abbreviations, used for specialized journals, source books, and reference books, we followed those of R. Borger, Handbuch der KeilschriftliteraturII (Berlin 1975), pp. XI-XXXI!. The following additional list of abbreviations is limited mainly to individual monographs and text editions: Akk. ANET3

AOAT 25

AS 16 AS 20

ELA

Epithetes EWO

Exalt. of Inanna Falkenstein, AnOr 30 FTS Gragg, SDI GSGL I-I! Heimpel, Tierbilder Berlin, Ensubkes­ donna

Akkadian James B. Pritchard (edit.), Ancient Near Eastern Texts Relating to the Old Testament, Third Edition sup­ plemented by The Ancient Near East (Princeton, 1969) Kramer Anniversary Volume: Cunei­ form Studies in Honor of Samuel Noah Kramer, ed. by Barry L. Eichler, Alter Orient und Altes Testament 25 (Neukirchen-Vluyn, 1976) Studies in Honor of Benno Lands­ berger, Assyriological Studies, No. 16 (Chicago, 1965) Sumerological Studies in Honor of Thorkild Jacobsen, edited by Ste­ phen J. Lieberman, Assyriological Studies, No. 20 (Chicago, 1975) Enmerkar and the Lord of Aratta, edited by Sol Cohen, "Enmerkar and the Lord of Aratta" ( Disser­ tation, Philadelphia, 1973) M.-J. Seux, Epithetes royales Ak­ kadiennes et Sumeriennes (Paris, 1967) Enki and the World Order, edited by Carlos Benito, " 'Enki and Nin­ mah' " and " 'Enki and the World Order' " (Dissertation, Philadel­ phia, 1969), pp. 77-160 W. W. Hallo and J. J. A. van Dijk, The Exaltation of Inanna (New Haven, 1968) Adam Falkenstein, Die Inschriften Gudeas von Lagas I: Einleitung, Analecta Orientalia 30 (Rome, 1966) S. N. Kramer, From the Tablets of Sumer, (Indian Hills, 1956) Gene B. Gragg, Sumerian Dimen­ sional Infixes, (Neukirchen-Vluyn, 1973) Adam Falkenstein, Grammatik der Sprache Gudeas von Lagas I-II (Rome 1949-1950) Wolfgang Heimpel, Tierbilder in der surnerischen Literatur (Rome, 1968) Adele Berlin, Enmerkar and En­ sul]kesdanna: A Sumerian Nar­ rative Poem (Philadelphia, 1979)

Klein, Sulgi D Jacob Klein, "Sulgi D: A Neo-Su­ merian Royal Hymn" (Disserta­ tion, Philadelphia, 1968) Jacob Klein, "Some Rare Sumerian Klein, Words Gleaned from the Royal "Words" Hymns of Sulgi," Studies in He­ brew and Semitic Languages Ded­ icated to the Memory of Prof Ed­ uard Y. Kutscher, edited by G. B. Sarfatti et alii (Ramat-Gan, 1980) MG Man and His God, edited by S. N. Kramer, Vetus Testamentum, Suppl. 3 (Leiden, 1955); text cited from a revised private manuscript MNS Ake Sjoberg, Der Mondgott Nanna­ Suen in der sumerischen Uberlie­ ferung (Stockholm, 1960) n. note, notes OB Old Babylonian RLA Reallexikon der Assyriologie SGL I Adam Falkenstein, Sumerische Gott­ terlieder!. Teil ( Heidelberg, 1959) SGL I! J. J. A. van Dijk, Sumerische Gott­ erlieder I I. Teil ( Heidelberg, 1960) SKI W. H. Ph. Romer, Sumerische 'Kon­ igshymnen' der Isin-Zeit ( Leiden, 1965) Star 35 Ilman Karki, Die Sprache der su­ merischen Konigsinschriften der friihaltbabylonischen Zeit, Studia Orientalia 35 ( Helsinki, 1967) Sum. Sumerian Edmond Sollberger, The Business TCS I and Administration Correspon­ dence under the Kings of Ur, Texts from Cuneiform Sources I ( Locust Valley, 1966) Ake W. Sjoberg et aI, The Collection TCS I I I of the Sumerian Temple Hymns, Texts from Cuneiform Sources III (Locust Valley, 1969) ThSH Jacob Klein, Three Sulgi Hymns: Sumerian Royal Hymns Glorify­ ing King Sulgi of Ur, Bar-Ilan Studies in Near Eastern Languages and Culture (Ramat-Gan, 1981) TwSH G. R. Castellino, Two Sulgi Hymns (BC), Studi Semitici 42 (Roffia, 1972) Wilcke, Claus Wilcke, Das Lugalbandaepos Lugalbanda (Wiesbaden, 1969)

THE ROYAL HYMNS OF SHULGI KING OF UR; MAN'S QUEST FOR IMMORTAL FAME JACOB KLEIN

Bar-Ilan University Institute of Assyriology II

iii

Foreword Bibliographical Abbreviations Part I. A Thematic and Structural Survey of the Royal Hymns of Shulgi 1. Introduction 2. Hymnal Epics and Prayers 3. Self-Laudatory Hymns 4. Historicity, Authorship, and Function Part II. Shulgi, Ninsun and An: an Epic of Divine Intercession ( Sulgi P) 1. Introduction to Sulgi P a. Content and Literary Structure b. Cultic Setting c. Orthographical and Grammatical Observations 2. Edition of Sulgi P a. Transliteration h. Translation c. Commentary Addenda Sumerian Word Index Topical Index

5

3 5 7 9 14 18 21 21 25 27 34 34 37 38 42 43 48

PART I. A T H EMATIC AND STRUCTURAL SURVEY OF THE ROYAL HYMNS OF SHULGI1 ful foreign occupation by the Gutian hordes.3 Thus, the young and inexperienced king, SUlgi, faced the task of expanding and consolidating the Neo-Sume­ rian Empire by means of sweeping administrative re­ forms' and a series of bloody military campaigns, di­ rected against the restless peoples of the northeastern mountain ranges. s Nevertheless, under his long reign of forty-eight years (that is, between ca. 2094-2047 B.c. ), Sulgi established his reputation as an extraor­ dinarily wise, learned, and pious king. Under his reign, the empire reached unprecedented heights in the areas of political and economic organization, as well as re­ ligious, cultural, and literary activity. 6 One of the areas in which Sulgi exercised a profound influence on his own age and subsequent generations is the politico-religious institution of Neo-Sumerian divine kingship, in whose formation he seems to have played a major role. Although the great Sumerian

"[ commemorate your fame for all generations, so peoples will praise you for ever and ever"

10 (Psalms 45:18)

1. Introduction

15

FIG. I. CBS 13991 (SP, text C) obverse (Enlarged by 1.5)

King Sulgi of Ur, who reigned over Mesopotamia in the twenty-first century B.C., may be labeled as the "Solomon of the Neo-Sumerian Empire." Like Solo­ mon, he was the second king of a new dynasty, which brought with it a political and cultural renaissance for Sumer, the so-called Third Dynasty ofUr.' To be sure, the empire which Sulgi inherited was not as well es­ tablished and pacified as that of Solomon. We know that his father, Urnammu, the founder of the dynasty, met a violent and untimely death, only twenty-four years after Sumer was liberated from a long and painI To avoid extensive bibliographical references, in the first part of this study, whenever possible, the reader will be referred to the author's monograyh Three Sulgi Hymns: Sumerian Royal Hymns GloTifying King Sulgi o/ Ur, Ramat-Gan 1981 (henceforth: ThSH), where all previous pertinent bibliography is indicated. For an overall view on Sumerian History and Civilization see now S. N. Kramer, The Sumerians: Their History, Culture and Character, Chicago

J See S. N. Kramer, "The Death of Urnammu," JCS 21 (1969): pp. 104-122: C. Wilcke, "Eine Schicksalentscheidung fUr den toteo Urnammu", CRRA 17 (1970): pp. 81-92. 4 See ThSH, notes 61-63. 5 See ThSH, n. 60; chap. II 1 b. 6 It has long been established that a great part of the corpus of "classical" Sumerian literature, which formed the curriculum of the Old Babylonian schools (flourishing between co. 1800-1600 B.C.), was created in the Neo-Sumerian period (that is ca. 2100-2000 s.c.). See Falkenstein, CRRA 2 (1951), pp. 12-30; W. W. Hallo, JAOS 83 (1963): pp. 167-176; idem, AS 20 (1975): pp. 181-201.

1963.

2 For the history of the Third Dynasty of Ur see in general C. J. Gadd, The Cambridge Ancient HistoryJ, 1, part 2 (Cambridge, 1971): pp. 595-631: W. W. Halla and W. K. Simpson, The Ancient Near East: A History (New York, 1971), pp. 77-84.

7

8

KLEIN: THE ROYAL HYMNS OF SHULGI

kings and rulers preceding Sulgi's age were deified as a rule only posthumously, we know from his �oyal inscriptions that toward the middle of his reign, Sulgi assumed divinity on his own initiative. This divine sta­ tus was then inherited by all subsequent Neo-Sume­ rian and Early Old-Babylonian kings, from the mo­ ment of their succession.? The assumption of divinity, we may suppose, involved a revolutionary change in the current religious ideas and beliefs, and is duly re­ flected in the royal hymns which were composed in honor of this king. As befitting his greatness and fame, Sulgi was per­ haps the most celebrated Mesopotamian king in hymns and prayers of all kind. As of today, over twenty separate hymns pertaining to this king have been re­ covered and reconstructed from about 200 clay tablets and fragments, scattered in various museums on this and other continents' The Sulgi hymns, varying in length from 50 to 600 lines, represent the finest ex­ amples of this literary genre. They are distinguished by their high literary quality, rich, archaic poetic lan­ guage, and unique spiritual and theological ideas. The royal hymns of subsequent generations are colorless imitations of the literary forms and contents intro­ duced by the poets of Sulgi. The royal hymns of Sulgi, together with the bulk of "classical" Sumerian literature, were no doubt com­ posed during his reign, although we do not have a single copy of these compositions from the Ur III pe­ riod. Instead, all these hymns are available in the form of late copies which were made in the Old-Babylonian period, that is, about four hundred years after their actual composition.' From the point of view of their literary form, the Sulgi hymns, like all subsequent examples of this genre, may be divided into two types: one consists of 7 See ThSH, chap. I 2 with notes 49-59. The royal hymns, of course, describe these kings as divine beings from birth. See further p. 26-27, with notes 134-138 below. 8 For an updated list and biblio&r. aphy of the Sulgi h ymns, num­ bered by the letters A-Z, see ThSH, beginning of chap. I 3, with notes 64-84. In all probability, the above list is incomplete, for there remains a considerable number of Suigi hymnal fragments. which cannot be placed in any of the hitherto reconstructed hymns. ded­ icated to Sulgi. Note also that the Ur III literary catalog YBC 3654, indicates the incipits of at least two more Sulgi hymns, which have not yet been found (c[ W. W. Hallo, JAOS 83, (1963): p. 170, lines 14-15). Accordingly, the original size of Sulgi's hymnal corpus can be estimated at thirty or so hymnal compositions (so also G. Kom­ r6czy. Antik TanuJmanyok 21, 1974: p. 139; idem. A Sumer Iro­ dalmi Hagyomany: Tanulmanyok, Budapest, 1979. p. 379). The only other Mesopotamian king, who was honored by a corpus of comparable size, is ISmedagan of Isin (ca. 1953-1935 B.C.), a faithful admirer and imitator of Sulgi. However, the twenty-five or so hymns, pertaining to this king (see ThSH, appendix 4 b, sub Ismedagan), cannot compare with those of Suigi in length, beauty, and originality. 9 For the problem of the authenticity of the Sulgi hymns see part II, 1 c below.

{TRANS. AMER. PHIL. SOc.

hymns addressed and dedicated to various deities, con­ taining blessings and prayers for Sulgi. These hymns, designated here as "royal prayers," were generally assumed to have belonged to the temple cult. Another type consists of hymns addressed to the king proper, as the principal object of the praise. These hymns, designated here as "genuine royal hymns," were gen­ erally assumed to have belonged to the secular court ceremonial. iO There is, however, one unique feature, which sets the Sulgi hymns apart from the royal hymns of sub­ sequent generations. Whereas the Sumerian royal hymns, in general, express the praise of the kings in general hymnal terms and stereotypic literary cliches, a great many of the Sulgi hymns abound in interesting religious and historical narratives, artistically inserted in a hymnal framework, that is, sandwiched between a hymnal prologue and a hymnal epilogue. Indeed, some of these compositions actually may be viewed as hymnal epics, I I Below, I intend to present the summary of the con­ tent and structure of a representative sample of the Sulgi hymns, but first I would like to outline the major social, political, and theological ideas, fundamental to the Sumerian concept of kingship, as these are re­ flected in Sumerian literature. 1 2 Mesopotamia traditionally consisted of many in­ dependent city-states ruled by petty kings, who derived their authority from the titulary deity of their city. Any Sumerian ruler, who aspired to unify Mesopo­ tamia under his rule, had to secure for himself the support of the great gods of the Sumerian pantheon, who were roughly identical with the titulary deities of Sumer's major cities. The most important of these deities were: the national god Enlil, the chief deity of Nippur, Sumer's all time religious center; An, the patriarchal head of the pantheon, whose temple was located in Uruk (Biblical "Erech"), the birth place of Sumer's ancient heroes; and finally the titulary deity of the king's native city, which was destined to become the new capital of the Sumerian state. A great Su­ merian king who succeeded to unify Mesopotamia under his domain was considered a divine being, and notwithstanding his human parents, he claimed to have descended directly from the gods. \3 What were the major responsibilities of the Su­ merian king? He had to maintain a huge army, with which he could protect the borders of Mesopotamia 10

See ThSH, chap. I 1. See further discussion below, in paragraph

4 of this part. II

See ThSH, chap. I 3, with notes 10 and 12. For a more detailed discussion of the character of 'leo-Su­ merian divine kingship, with pertinent bibliography, see ThSH, chap. I 2. 13 The exact nature of the divinity of these Sumerian kings is still somewhat obscure. For further discussion of this problem see part II b below and addenda. 12

VOL

1 7 , PT. 7, 19811

THEMATIC AND STRUCTURAL SURVEY

from the invasion of barbarian hordes; to uphold law and order in the land, and make the multitudes of his people dwell in peace and harmony; and, finally, it was his duty to secure for his land economic stability and prosperity. This was achieved not only by the creation of an efficient administration, but, according to Su­ merian theology, also by annual participation in the sacred marriage rite. In this rite, the king, representing the god Dumuzi (Biblical 'Tammuz'), united with a priestess, representing the fertility goddess Inanna (Akkadian 'IStar'), in order to strengthen the forces of life and fe.tility in nature as well as in society, and thus to create prosperity in the land!' 2. Hymnal Epics and Prayers

_ As it has been observed above, a great many of the Sulgi hymns contain a unique religious or historical narrative, inserted in a hymnal framework. The nar­ rative normally recounts the exploits of the king, or the gracious actions of various gods in relation to the king. The hymnal prologue and epilogue of these hymns may contain a praise to Sulgi himself, or a prayer to a deity on his behalf. In these compositions, the divinity of the king and his close relation to the gods are greatly emphasized. There are at least four small cultic hymns ("royal prayers"), containing unique religious narratives, which are preoccupied with Sulgi's pious deeds in relation to Nippur and its chief gods Enlil and Ninlil. A rel­ atively �hort, but very interesti!.1g hymn, which we may label "Sulgi and the Ekur" (SG)!' and whose com­ position was perhaps occasioned by Sulgi's coronation in Nippur (see part I I 1. b below), is a royal prayer, �edicated to Enlil, recounting the miraculous birth of Sulgi in the Ekur temple. Following a short introduc­ tory paean to Enlil (lines 1-8), the poet reveals a secret plan, thought up by this god and announced in the form of a Delphian oracle: "A 'righteous man' will rebuild the Ekur (thereby acquiring) a lasting 'name';1 6 the son of that 'righteous man' will long hold the scep­ ter, (and) their throne will never be overthrown" (lines 9-14). Here follows a dramatic account of the way this oracle came true. The moongod, Nanna, the ti­ tulary deity of Ur, requested from Enlil a "princely son. "1 7 His request was duly granted, and the crown14

For the sacred marriage rite see now S. N. Kramer, The Sacred Marriage Rite (Bloomington 1969); J. Renger and J. S. Cooper, RLA 4, pp. 259-269. See further ThSH, n. 48. The corpus of the Dumuzi-Inanna texts, dealing with the sacred marriage and fertility rites (partially edited by Kramer, in PAPS 107 (1963): pp. 485 ff.). is now being edited by Mr. Yitschak Sefati of Bar-Han University. D_CT 36, pis. 26-27 (an a d a b -hymn, dedicated to Enlil). C[ ThSH, n. 72. 16 In this context, 'name' (Sumerian: m u) seems to refer to 'prog­ eny', rather than to 'fame'. 17 That is, a successor to Urnammu, who is never mentioned by name, in our hymn, only by the epithet 'righteous man',

9

prince Sulgi was born in the temple, as a result of a successful union between the ruling king and a high l?riestess (lines 15_20)1 8 Upon his birth, Enlil gives Sulgi a long name, consisting of a series of royal ep­ ithets, and invests him with the insignia of kingship (lines 21-27)!9 The rest of the hymn describes how Sulgi served as the "steward" of the Ekur, and how the capital city, Ur, was charged with providing the Nippur sanctuary regularly_with lavish meal-offerings. As a reward, Enlil blessed Sulgi with a firm and pros­ perous reign. In a hymnal fragment, also belonging to the Nippur �ycle, which may be labeled "Sulgi and Ninlil" (SY),20 Sulgi boasts in the first person that he installed a golden statue of himself in the courtyard of the trea­ sury of Ninlil's temple in Nippur; that he amassed for the goddess all kinds of treasures; and that he provided her with copious offerings and libations (lines 22-30). The function of the installed statue was, no doubt, to serve as a constant reminder of the king's virtues and piety, with the hope that the goddess will grant him a long life and a lasting reign. The most interesting hymn, belonging to the Nippur cycle, �hich we designate here "Sulgi and Ninlil's boat" (SR),'I commemorates the dedication ceremony of a cultic procession boat, constructed by Sulgi for the goddess Ninlil. The first forty lines of the hymn are addressed directly to the boat, in the second per­ son, recounting in a hymnal language the story of its construction. The construction of the sacred boat, ac­ cording to the poet, was decided by Enki,22 approved by En]il, commissioned by Ninlil, and carried out b y King Sulgi, i n a most extravagant way (lines 1-9). I n the remaining part of this section (lines 10-40), the poet enumerates the various parts of the boat, which was built from huge cedars, felled in the great "Cedar Forest," describing their heavenly beauty in hyper­ bolic terms, rich in similes and metaphors. The second part of the hymn (lines 41 ff.) describes the cultic ceremonies, performed during the dedication of the boat to Ninlil; the solemn and idyllic sailing of the boat to the Tummal, Nippur's holy of holies; and the infinite joy that the boat caused to Enlil, Ninlil, and the Nippurian pantheon seated there at a festive ban­ quet prepared for them by Sulgi. The hymn concludes IS The above passage, recounting S.ulgi's birth, is beset with nu· !]1erous difficulties. According to a former interpretation, it describes Sulgi's birth, as a result of a union between Enlil and Ninli1, and/ or Nanna and a highpriestess. In our forthcoming edition of SG, we hope to disprove these interpretations, and demonstrate that Sulgi's birth is here described only on the human level. 19 For the motif of the naming of the newly born crownprince by his divine father, see n. 136 below. 20 See A. Falkenstein. Iraq 22 (1960): pp. 139-150. 21 Reconstructed by C. Wilcke, in A/O 24 (1973): p. 18. Cf ThSH, n. 77. This is an a d a b-hymn, dedicated to Ninlil. 22 The great Sumerian god of the ocean and sweet waters, the divine patron of all forms of wisdom and craftsmanship.

10

KLEIN: THE ROYAL HYMNS OF SHULGI

",ith the blessings which the great gods heaped upon Sulgi as a reward for the construction of the boat, and the presentation of copious gifts to the temple.23 Another group of small hymns center around the major god� from Uruk and their s'Y'port and legiti­ mation of Sulgi's kingship. In fact, Sulgi's divine sta­ tus was established by depicting him throughout his royal hymns as a junior member of the Urukean pan­ theon. Thus he constantly figures in his hymns as the natural son of Ninsun, an important goddess from Uruk, and her spouse Lugalbanda, himself an ancient deified king from this city. Further, Sulgi refers to himself as the "brother and friend" of Gilgames, an­ other famous ancient hero from Uruk, who was post-

[TRANS. AMER. PHIL SOC.

humously deified and considered to be the son of the abovementioned divine pair 24 Finally, on account of his playing the role of Dumuzi in the sacred marriage rite, he is regarded as the beloved spouse of the fertility goddess Inanna, the tutelary deity of Uruk;" and he speaks of the goddess Gestinanna, Dumuzi's divine sibling, as "my sister Gestinanna."26

In a small but rather interesting hymnal epic, be­ longi!.'g to the Uruk cycle, which we de _ signate here as "Sulgi, Ninsun and An" (SP)," Sulgi's divine mother, Ninsun, intercedes to the supreme god An, her father, on behalf of Sulgi, pleading to him to ap­ prove and legitimize the latter's kingship (sect. a, lines 7 ff.). An, as expected, grants his approval to the king of her choice in the following words:

Sulgi, the king of a propitious reign, For you, the goddess, may he perfect the cultic norms, which are established for the kingship! May he execute perfectly for you the statues of the gods! May he present you the offerings of the New Moon (and) the offerings of the New Year! May you yourself bring to me daily his prayers! (sect. b, lines 5-9). Mother Ninsun, rejoicing at the words of An, takes her son, SUlgi, by his arms, leads him into her sanc­ tuary, seats him on her lofty dais, and addresses him with a lengthy and pathetic eulogy (ibid., lines 1116). In this eulogy, she informs him of An's favorable

decision (ibid., lines 17-21); declares him to be the natural son of herself and Lugalbanda; and pledges him her unlimited divine support of his kingship (ibid., lines 22-42). She concludes her address to Sulgi with these words:

May Gestinanna, the "king's sister," The mellifluous mouth of the gods, Never stop causing you joy In your palace, erected (for you as a) source of happiness! May she (always) stand before me in supplication for you! May she never cease praying for you! (ibid., lines 43-48). The last extant part of this hymn (ibid., lines 49-65) contains a monologue, in which Ninsun seems to de­ scribe the enthronization of Sulgi by her divine par­ ents, An and Urras, in the presence of the Urukean divine assembly. A much larger, but only partially preserved hymnal epic, belonging to the Uruk cycle, is "Sulgi and Gil­ games: Two Brother-Peers" (SO).28 The hymn opens with a praise to the Ekisnugal, the temple-complex of the moon god Nanna-Suen in Ur (lines 1-26). Sub­ sequently, the poet seems to recount how Sulgi in­ stalled a statue of his divine hrother, Gilgames, in one of the chambers of this temple-complex.29 Then, an intimate and exciting meeting between the two brother­ peers is described. In this meeting, the protagonists speak to each other, man to man, in a state of perfect awakening'O in order to enhance mutually their fame and glory (lines 41-48). The remaining portion of the hymn (lin�s 49 ff.) seems to contain a lengthy dialogue hetween Sulgi and Gilgames, in which the divine brothers alternate in singing each others praise and glory. 31

23 The fourth cultic hymn, belonging to the Nippur cycle, is a "royal prayer," which was also probably dedicated to Ninlil (SH). The structure and content of this hymn are still obscure, since the tablet. upon which it is inscribed, is extremely damaged, and may turn out)o have contained a collection of several "royal prayers" (see ThSH. n. 73). 24I t should be pointed out that already Sulgi's father, Urnammu, figures in his royal hymns as the son of �insun and Lugalbanda, . �s well as the brother of Gdgamd (see ThSH, notes 1 1 0- 1 1 1 ; ibid., SD 41-42 and 290-294 with comment). 25 See ThSH, n. 1 1 2. 26

For Gdtinanna in the Sulgi hymns see n. 1 13 below.

27 Edited in part II below. "See J. Klein, AOAT 25. pp. 2 7 1 -292; ThSH, n. 74. 29 Since the text is damaged at this point. we cannot exclude the possibility that it referred to a visit that Sulgi paid to Gilgamei. rather than to the installation of his statue into the temple. JO See our comment on 1. 43 of this hymn, in AOAT 25, p. 2 87, which is now to be corrected in the light of M. Civil's translation of giri-babbar-ra, ibid., p. 92, sub I. 22; and CAD M/2, p. 200, sub munattu.

31 Among the praises that S.ulgi heap s upon Gilgames, two motifs are of special interest to students of literature and folklore: In lines 53 ff. of the hymn, Sulgi praises Gilgames as the hero, who emerged victorious from a battle with Enmebaragesi, king of Kis, and

VOL 71. PT. 7. 1981]

THEMATIC AND STRUCTURAL SURVEY

The annually consummated sacred marriage be­ tween Sulgi and the love and fertility goddess Inanna is the subject of a short but unique hymn, recently I?ublished by Kramer, under the tiJle "Inanna and Sulgi: A Sumerian Fertility Song" (SZ)." This hymn contains, in Kramer's words, "a dialogue between the goddess Inanna and her 'brother' Sulgi, as the incar­ nation of Dumuzi." In this dialogue, the two lovers seem to invite each Jther to SUlgi's fields, gardens, and orchards, presumably in order to fructify them by means of various cultic rites. The dialogue may con­ tain euphemistic allusions to the "hieros gamos. " The hymnal repertoire of Sulgi, however, contains two longer hymnal epics, dedicated to the moon god Nanna, the titulary deity of Ur, which may be re-

11

garded as masterpieces of Sumerian poetry, due to their intricate literary structure and rich poetic lan­ guage and imagery. These hymns provide us with a comprehensive picture of Sulgi's involvement with the major gods of Sumer. The first, which may be entitled "Sulgi King of Abundance" (SF)," is a long hymnal epic of ca. 300 lines. The legible part of the narrative portion of this poem (lines 59-94) describes the dramatic events that led to Sulgi's coronation in his capital city, Ur (see further discussion in part II I. b below), while the bulk of the hymn praises Sulgi as a king, whose reign was blessed with peace and prosperity. It begins with a hymnal prologue (lines 1-29), which falls into three stanzas, each ending with the following refrain:

The hero-his mother, Ninsun, gave birth to him for this (end), Sulgi-his mother, Ninsun, gave birth to him for this (end). In this prologue, we are informed that Ninsun, SUlgi's divine mother, gave birth to her heroic son in order that the granaries of Sumer be stacked with grain; that its storehouses be filled with all kinds of staples; that various species of fish and bird be multiplied in its ponds; that the Ekur, Enlil's temple in Nippur, be yearly provided with copious gifts and firstling offer­ ings, such as eggs, reeds, milk, and fat; that Sulgi may administer justice as the supreme judge of the land; and that the prestige of the capital city, Ur, be en­ hanced. The hymn then continues to tell us that, following Sulgi's birth, An, the head of the pantheon, blessed the land of Sumer with fertility and abundance (lines

30 ff.). 34 Subsequently, Utu, the sun god, apparently

acting upon An's orders, rose for Sulgi over the moun­ tains, and with his rays of light he caused prosperity to prevail in the land; the skies opened their sources of water, and an abundant rainstorm ensued. As a result, the mountain region became covered with green vegetation and the wild animals multiplied there (lines 40-56). This episode ends with a new refrain (lines 57-58), which demarcates the various sections of the main part of the hymn, recurring at least three more times (lines 224-225; 270-271; 296-297)35 The scene now is abruptly shifted to the day of Su[gi's elevation to kingship, when, in the poet's words, Sulgi

Radiated like a fertile m e s -tree, watered by fresh water, Extending (his) blossoming branches toward a pure water-course; Upon his blossoming branches Utu conferred the (following) blessing: 'Being a fertile m e s -tree, he has borne pure fruit, SUlgi, the righteous shepherd of Sumer, will truly spread abundance!' (lines 60-64). "brought over the kingship (that is, the political supremacy in Mes­ opotamia) from Kis to Uruk" (\. 60). This statement seems to con­ tradict the information furnished by the epic literature, which re­ ports of a struggle between Gilgames and Agga, the son of Enmebaragesi, a struggle that brought for Uruk some form of in­ dependence, but not the much coveted political supremacy (cf Kra­

tper, AJA 53, (1949): pp. I ff.). In another passage (lines 91 fr.), Sulgi extolls Gilgames for his legendary journey to the Cedar Moun­ tain, and his vanquishing the monster Huwawa, whom Enlil ap­ pointed as a guardian of the holy Cedar Forest. This episode is the theme of the Sumerian epic "Gilgames and the Land of the Living" (cf Kramer, JCS 1, ( 1 947): pp_ 3 fr.; van Dijk apud P. Garelli, Gilgamei et sa Jegende, 1 960, pp. 69 fr.), as well as that of Tablets I l l -V of the Akkadian Gilgamd Epic. Again, our hymn seems to be independent of the tradition of the epic literature, for it depicts Gilgames as a generous victor, who spared l:;Iuwawa's life, whereas the epics report of the merciless killing of this monster by Gilgames' companion, Enkidu. Apparently, in both of the abovementioned

motifs, the epic tradition yields a much more objective and balanced picture of the events, than the biased hymnal tradition, inspired by royal propaganda (cf D. O. Edzard, ZA 53, 1 959: pp. 22 ff.).

" Iraq 31 Jj

( 1 969): pp. 18-23; cf ThfiH. n. 84. TMHNF IV 1 1 and duplicates. cf ThSH, n. 7 1 . The present

summary is based on the following reconstruction: lines 1-103 TMHNF IV 11 and overlapping duplicates; lines 119-134 = BE 31, 240bv.II; lines 139-182 = SLTN78 obv. III�rev. I; lines 208232 = SLTN 78 rev.II; lines 243-309 = BE 31, rev. I-II = ISET =

I. pis. 22-23. 34 The content of An's blessing (nam-tar) is not specified, unless it had been lost in lines 32-40 of our hymn, which are almost com­ pletely destroyed. However, from the following passage, which de­

scribes the fertilization of the land by Utu, we may infer that An's blessing was probably concerned with fertility and abundance. 35 This two-line refrain, referring to SuIgi's divine sister, GeStin­ anna, as praising the king, is still beset with grammatical difficulties, and eludes a reasonable translation.

12

KLEIN: THE ROYAL HYMNS OF SHULGI

Encouraged by Utu's blessing, SUlgi, the vigorous young king, enters Nanna, the titulary deity of Ur, and promises him that when his kingship is approved, he will make everything to defend Sumer against its enemies, and will restore the political, social, and cul­ tic institutions of Sumerian civilization (lines 6570).36 According to the Sumerian idea of kingship,

[TRANS. AMER. PHIL. SOc.

however, it is Enlil, the national god, who has to con­ firm upon the king supreme executive power through the mediation of his city god. Accordingly, the poet recounts how Nanna, the city god of Ur, traveled to Nippur, and in the midst of the divine assembly he pleaded to Enlil, his father, for his protege, Sulgi:

My father, Enlil, whose command is irrevocable, The father of the gods, who firmly establishes the m e -s, I have looked (around) in my city, (and) I have made a fateful decision: A son of a righteous man I have chosen in my heart; He is the king, the shepherd Sulgi, filled with charm. Confer upon him a good blessing! May he subjugate the foreign land for me! (lines 78-83). As expected, Enlil's answer to Nanna is most favor­ able: Lord Asimbabbar,37 he whom you have chosen in (your) heart, With his war (campaigns) let him bend the foreign land like . . , in (the whole extent of) heaven and earth! Let the righteous shepherd, Sulgi, destroy the rebellious land! Let him create good words of justice in his city! (lines 85-88). Thereupon, Nanna returns to Ur and joyfully in­ forms Sulgi of his approval as the legitimate ruler of the land (lines 91-94). The rest of the hymn seems to be a self laudation," in which Sulgi praises himself as the king who brought upon his land infinite prosperity (lines 208-269 );39 and who subdued the foreign lands with his effective war­ fare, thus succeeding to tranquilize the borders of Sumer (lines 272-295)." The poorly preserved epi­ logue of this hymn (lines 298-309) contains the wish that Nisaba may cause the eternal fame of Sulgi's kingship to be spread through the literary activity of the scribal schools, and the hymn ends with a final doxology to the moongod Nanna.

VOL.

tences of the pattern "I am an X who is constantly attacking Y ," with the refrain-like expression dUrdurme-en repeated at the end of every line, recurring no less than fifteen times. durdu7 means basically 'to advance forcefully', and it may refer to the goring of an ox, the pounding of a battering ram, the attack of a human or divine being, the onrush of flood waters and so forth (cf. Heimpel, Tierbilder. pp. 300-307). 41 In our monograph ThSH, the first and greater part of this hymnal-epic (SO) is edited separately, under the title "Sulgi the Avenger of Sumer" (cf. chap. II); whereas the second, smaller part (SX TLB II 2 and unpublished duplicates), is edited separately under the title "Sulgi the Favourite of the Gods" (cf. chap. III). However, as C. Wilcke has recognized, SX, with all probability, is not an independent hymnal epic, but it constitutes the missing end of SD (cf ZA 62, 1972: p. 42, n. 13a: 9RRA 19, p. 182: p. 198, n. 87). See further our discussion in ThSH, end of chap. II a, with n. 137. 42 Cf. lines 14-17; 36-39; 61-64. =

\3

(SO 149-189), filling the canals and earth-cracks with their blood (SO 190-196), he will thoroughly depop­ ulate and devastate its territory. Thus he will avenge the former destruction of Sumer at their hand (SO 211-227)46 Finally, he pledges to dedicate the spoil of the foreign land to Enlil and Ninlil (SO 228-234). However, no Mesopotamian king was able to launch a successful military campaign without the approval and support of the gods. Accordingly, the poet tells us that at this point, the Mesopotamian god of dreams, Anzaqar, brought to the king a visionary dream, in which the great gods of Sumer appeared to him, and pledged their support in the forthcoming battle (SO 240-256).47 Furthermore, Sulgi took with him the emblems and statues of those gods, whose shrines he passed on his way to the battlefield, to secure for him­ self the promised divine assistance (SO 288-320). With divine assistance assured, Sulgi launches his campaign, and fulfills his vows to the l ast word:

The hero avenged his city, Whatever had been destroyed in Sumer, he destroyed in the foreign land, He made the god of its city withdraw from it, Its spirit4' (of) the good eye, (and) its angel4' (of) the good eye he caused to stand aside, In its cultivated fields of lustrous barley, he caused weeds to grow, He destroyed its wide and large trees (with) the axe, He tore down its date-palms" by their crown, He uprooted its small trees, In its orchards and gardens, where the 'honey' of fig-trees had been produced, he made weeds grow, So that thistles and thorns broke through the ground. The king-after he destroyed the cities, ruined the walls, Terrified the evil land (like) a flood, so Dispersed the seed of the Gutians like seed-grain, The pure lapis-lazuli of the foreign land he loaded into leather-sacks and leather-bags, Heaped up all its treasures, Amassed all the wealth of the foreign land. Upon its fattened oxen (and) fattened sheep, He invokes the name of Enlil, He invokes the name of Ninlil (SO 334-353).

o my king, who is as mighty as you, and who rivals you?

36 The above concepts are lumped together by the Sumerians, in the pregnant, but still somewhat elusive term "m e," for which see now G. Farber·Fliigge, Der Mythos "lnanna und Enki" unleT be� sanderer berficksichligung deT Lisle deT m e (Rome, 1973), pp. 97 ff.; S. N. Kramer, The Sumerians (Chicago, 1963), pp. 115-117. 37 A common epithet of Nanna-Suen. 38 Due to the fragmentary state of the text, it is not absolutely clear who sings the above paean of praise: Sulgi himself (as presently assumed) or perhaps his divine sister. Gestinanna, who is mentioned in the refrain (cf. n. 35 above). 39 See especially lines 226-269, where the common Sumerian word for abundance, be-gal (Akkadian lJegallu), is repeated no less than twenty-four times. This section ends with the interesting and sum­ marizing statement: uriki_e . . . nam-Iugal-be-gal-Ia i-ak-ke4-en "In Vr, . . . I exercise a kingship of abundance" (lines 268-269). 40 This section opens with the statement: ur-sag ne-ni-da dUrdur me-en "I am a hero, who is constantly attacking by his strength" (I. 72). The whole section then consists of stereotypic. nominal sen-

THEMATIC AND STRUCTURAL SURVEY

In the first two sections of the prologue (lines 1-17; 18-39), SUlgi is praised in general hymnal cliches, which enumerate his royal and priestly titles, hail his superhuman physical might and beauty and so forth. The third section of the prologue (lines 40-64) is more developed and already constitutes a narratival ele­ ment. In it we have another version of the story of the king's miraculous birth. Born to his divine parents Ninsun and Lugalbanda, Sulgi receives the blessings of all major gods of Sumer. Subsequently, the national god Enlil appoints him, with the hearty approval of the divine assembly, to the leadership43 of Sumer. The young and ambitious king, once entrusted with the burden of leadership, decides to launch a military campaign against the land of Gutium, in order to pac­ ify the northeastern borders of his empire, once for all. He announces his decision in a lengthy mono­ logue," which contains a minutely detailed description of the impending battle." Sulgi vows, that after de­ stroying the enemy's ranks with all kinds of weapons

Jhe second hymnal �pic, whiSh mar be entitled "Sulgi, the Avenger of Sumer" (SO + SX), is 12rob­ ably the longest and most developed piece of the Sulgi hymnal repertoire. According to OUT present recon­ struction, it must have contained close to 600 lines, and as a literary masterpiece, it can be compared to the classical Sumerian epics of the Enmerkar and Lugalbanda cycles." The hymnal prologue of this composition (SO 164) is addressed to the king in the second person, and consists of at least three sections, demarcated by the following refrain:

Indeed, who is from birth as richly endowed with understanding as you? May your heroism shine forth! May your might be sweetly praised!42

71, PT. 7, 1981j

The milit�ry expedition having been successfully completed, Sulgi sails to Nippur in his pompous procession boat, amid joyous celebrations, in the course of which his singers sing for him a song of 43

Literally 'shepherdship' (nam-sipa). The circumstances, in which he made this decision, and the beginning of the monologue, were virtually lost in a lacuna, following the prologue. The possibility cannot be excluded that Sulgi arrived at his decision upon divine command, communicated to him in the form of an oracle (see SO 135-138, with comment). In my mono­ graph ThSH, chap. II lb, I insist on my former hypothesis, that the campaign against the "Gutians," described in SO, must have taken place toward the middle, rather than the beginning of Sulgi's reign. Admittedly, C. Wilcke's contention, that we may have here a ref­ �rence to an early, retaliatory expedition by the young crownprince, Sulgi, who wanted to avenge his father's death in a battle against the Gutians, a campaign that led to Sulgi's coronation in Nippur (cf CRRA 19, (I976): pp. 181 f.; p. 117, n. 84), seems to be equally plausible. However, in that case we have to. assume that SD com44

memorates events from the beginning of Sulgi's reign. For i t is hardly conceivable that such a developed literary composition, in which almost all specific historical allusions were suppressed, could have been composed in the early years of the king's political career. There can be no doubt, that the poets who authored such hymnal epics as SD and SF, were also responsible for the composition of the great classical epics of the Uruk cycle, the masterpieces of Sumerian lit­ erature. 45 It is interesting to note that, throughout the entire monologue, the warlike heroic activities are represented by Sulgi, as performed solely by himself. 46 In I. 215 of the hymn, we seem to have the earliest known reference to the deportation by ship of young children captured in battle. 47 The above section is extremely fragmentary and, therefore, the present interpretation is suggested with utmost reserve. 4� Free translation of the Sumerian terms u-dug /udug (Akkadian 4 utukku) and dlama (Akkadian lamassu), which refer to male and remale protective demons, respectively. 49 Literally 'trees of riches', one of the Sumerian synonyms for 'date-palms' . 50 Or perhaps "submerged the evil land in flood water."

14

KLEIN: THE ROYAL HYMNS OF SHULGI

victory (SD 354-374). He enters into _the Duranki, Enlil's temple, with the dedicated spoil (SD 375-381), and obtains there a favorable blessing from Enlil, who reassures him of his royal and priestly prerogatives (SD 382-396). With this, the triumphal procession has not yet ended. On his way back to Ur, Sulgi pays a visit to a number of important shrines, to obtain further bless­ ings and support from their chief gods. His first stop after Nippur is Uruk, where he enters to his divine spouse, Inanna, the goddess of love and fertility, with

[TRA/'-;S. AMER.

PHIL SOC

lavish animal offerings. Inanna, seeing her royal bride­ groom clad in his ceremonial attire, breaks into a spon­ taneous love song, in which she recalls the physical pleasures of her yearly consummated sacred union with Sulgi. Subsequently, she confers upon him a long and favorable blessing, in which she promises him assistance in battle; pledges him support in the divine assembly; and declares him suitable for all preroga­ tives, apparel, and insignia pertaining to kingship. The goddess ends her monologue with the following three­ line wish:

May your loving heart be long of days! An had determined this for you, may he never alter it! Enlil, the decreer of fates, may never change it! (SX 1-72) From Uruk, Sulgi sails to Larsa, where he obtains a similar blessing from the sun-god Utu (SX 75-90); and from Larsa-to EN.DiM.GIG, where he is blessed by Ninazu, another important deity (SX 91-126). In the last episode, we find Sulgi back in his capital city Ur, entering the Etemenniguru sanctuary with lavish animal offerings for N anna-Suen. There, in the royal

chamber of the temple, on the "royal stand," he raises his head in worship, and obtains a final blessing from his city god (SX 127-140). The hymnal epilogue of this great royal epic, as we would expect, contains a final eulogy to Sulgi, de­ picting the justice, harmony, and the p!osperity, which prevailed in Sumer under his reign (SX 141-150):

In the Lofty Palace of Ninegal, on the holy dais, he has taken his seat, He, the 'IStaran of Sumer', the omniscient one from birth, For the land he renders firm judgment, For the land he obtains firm decisions; (So that) the strong does not oppress the weak, The mother says pleasing (words) to her son, The son speaks truth to his father. Under him Sumer is filled with abundance, Ur abounds in prosperity. It is rather interesting and significant, that contrary to our expectations, the concluding lines of the epi­ logue (SX 151-160) are not dedicated to the king, but contain a paean and doxology to his city god, N anna­ Suen. 3. Self-Laudatory Hymns

There is a third, distinctive group of hymns, in which Sulgi is represented as praising himself in the first person, boasting of his achievements in all areas of private and public life. In these hymns, the religious narratives are usually absent, and the king's person­ ality as an ideal human being is brought to the fore­ ground.5 1 5 1 This is not to say that in the self-laudatory hymns the divinity

of the king is denied or diminished, in any way. The divine parentage,

as well as the king's role in the sacred marriage rite are presupposed,

The longest and most representative of these self­ laudatory hymns may be entitled "Sulgi the Ideal King" (SB).52 In this hymn, which contains close to four hundred lines, the king portrays himself as the "ideal ruler: a rare combination of sage, soldier, sportsman, diviner, diplomat, patron of learning and happy provider of all good things for his land and people. "53 A great part of the self-praise consists of a chain of themes, separated by the recurring refrain: and occasionally alluded to, also in these hymns (cf SA 7; 15; 8283; SB 7; 1 1 2- 1 1 3; 1 84-186; 383 ff.; SC 84'-95'; STVe 59, 10; 18). 52 See Kramer, [SET I: pp. 36-37. For an editio princeps see Castellino, TwSH, pp. 30 ff. See further ThSH, n. 67. A revised edition of this hymn is being prepared by Dr. Geerd Haager of Gronigen, and our reconstruction and summary of content is based on his carefully prepared manuscript which he kindly put at our disposal. Needless to say, we are solely responsible for any errors in the translations and interpretations of the quoted lines. 53 So according to Kramer, who was the first to summarize its content, cf JQR 75, ( 1 967): p. 372.

VOL

7 1, PT. 7, 198 1]

15

THEMATIC AND STRUCTURAL SURVEY

Let me extoll all my achievements! The fame of my power has reached very far, My wisdom is full of subtleties, What of mine is not a mistery?" Another large self:laudatory hymn, "Sulgi, King of Name and Fame" (SC), which is very similar in con­ tent and structure to the former, is now being recon­ structed.55 In this latter hymn, which was probably far

less popular in the scribal schools than the former, the various themes of self-praise are also consistently de­ marcated by a refrain, which reads as follows:

I , the hero-let (the people) invoke my name faithfully! I, the shepherd-let them make the prayers shine (for me) like the stars of heaven! Let them sing my great hymns, which are most suitable for recitation!" The text of "Sulgi the Ideal King" (SB) is much The poem, which we labeled "Sulgi the Ideal King," better preserved and complete than that of "Sulgi, begins with a unique introductory passage, in which King of Name and Fame" (SC). We will, therefore the poet seems to ascribe the composition of the self­ present here a full summary of only the former hymn. praise to the king himself. It reads as follows: For additional details, occasionally adduced from the latter hymn, the reader is referred to the footnotes below. That the king might let known his enduring name into distant days, That SUlgi, the king of UrThe hymn of his power, the song of his might, That the wise one-the everlasting name of his preeminence, Unto the offspring of future days might hand down, For the mighty one, the son of Ninsun, The Wisdom of the future was brought to the fore. He praises his (own) power in a song, He exalts his own intelligence, the good that he has acquired from birth (lines 1_9)." In the beginning of the self-praise, Sulgi boasts of having descended from a purely royal lineage (lines 11-12), and describes his education in the e d u b b a,

the Sumerian school, where he studied writing and mathematics:

As a youth, I studied the scribal art in the e d u b b a, from the tablets of Sumer and Akkad, Of the nobility, no one was able to write a tablet like me, In the place where the people attend to learn the scribal art, Adding, subtracting, counting and accounting-I completed all (their courses); The fair Nanibgal, Nisaba," Endowed me generously with wisdom and intelligence (lines 13-19)." 54 Note that the refrain recurs only in lines 52-55; 77-80; 1 141 1 7; 150-153. The themes in the second part of the hymn, that is, from lines 154 ff., are not demarcated by any refrain. The last line of the refrain is somewhat elusive, because of the difficulty in trans­ lating the Sumerian expression ni-duu-ge dab-ba. The Akkadian scribes rendered it by piristu 'mystery', which does not seem to fit smoothly the present context. 55 Cf ThSH. n. 68. For an editio princeps of the first part of this hymn (lines 1 - 1 46) see TwSH, pp. 247 ff. The following summary and quotations are based on a thoroughly revised private manuscript, in which the second part of this still very fragmentary hymn (lines 1 ' - 1 04'), was also reconstructed, on the basis of newly identified texts and fragments. 56 In the extant text, the refrain appears in lines 18-20; 32-34; 50-52; 82-84; 1 1 2- 1 14; 144-145; 18'-19'; 73'-74'; and in the un­ placeable fragment STVC 59, 20-22. Due to the above refrain, which must have recurred throughout the composition, the various themes of self-praise are distinctively separated from each other, and a carefully and well organized structure can be observed.

57 Cf ThSH, n. 102. Our translation of this introductory passage basically follows that of Kramer (see JQR 75, ( 1 967): p. 372). Accordingly, we believe that all self-laudatory royal hymns are based on the fictitious presupposition that the self-praise is the king's own literary creation. For a different rendering and interpretation of our passage see C. Wilcke, AS 20, p. 241. 58

The patron goddess of the scribal art. In the prologue to the parallel self-praise (SC), Sulgi stresses his divine genealogy, and depicts his awesome and majestic ap­ pearance, using a number of animal metaphors (lines 1 - 1 7). The following section he devotes to the description of his royal and priestly apparel and prerogatives (lines 21-3 1 ) . Scribal education and competence is the theme of the third section (lines 35-49), whose rendering is still beset with numerous difficulties. In addition to the courses of learning enumerated in SB, SC mentions field surveying O. 42) and architecture (I. 45). For a comprehensive sur­ vey of the curriculum of instruction in the Old Babylonian e d u b b a, see now SjOberg, AS 20, pp. 159-179. �9

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16

KLEIN: THE ROYAL HYMNS OF SHULGI

From here, Sulgi shifts to his perfection as a soldier and military leader. He possessed extraordinary phys­ ical strength and bravery, and was expert in the han­ dling of all kinds of weapons. In battle, he always marched at the head of his commando troops, and the fame of his triumph reached everywhere, terrorizing the forei&n lands (lines 21-51). 60 Next, Sulgi boasts of his excellence and bravery in hunting. To illustrate these, he describes in detail how he killed a lion which confronted him in the reed-cov­ ered steppe, while hunting other animals. Unlike an ordinary hunter, he did not lie in ambush behind a safety fence to capture the beast with a net; nor did he hurl at it his battle-axe from a distance. He fought the lion "man to man," and by slaying it, he made the steppe safe for the shepherd and his flock (lines 5674). He also hunted the big wild-ox in the wooded forest, with bow and arrow (lines 82-90); the swift "asses of the plain," and other lightning-fast "four legged creatures," he struck down easily with boo­ merang and slingstone (lines 91-107); and being a swift runner, he was able to chase and capture even a gazelle (lines 108-109). Returning from the hunt, he carried the game to his divine mother Ninsun, as befitting a dutiful son (lines 11O-113). 6 1 From his physical perfection, Sulgi passes on to his intellectual perfection and artistic talents. First, he boasts of having been a master-diviner, thoroughly familiar with the liver-omen series. When he per­ formed extispicy-to investigate the will of the gods in the course of obtaining decisions in major political and cultic matters-even his expert diviner looked on in wonder like an ignoramus; and he, Sulgi, had never made an error in deriving a good omen from a bad omen. In fact, he was able to "read" divine instructions concerning the whole universe, in the entrails of a sin­ gle sheep (lines 131-149)." Sulgi then boasts of his musical talents. As an ac60 I n the parallel hymn (SC), Sulgi describes his military activities only in the eleventh section (lines 20'-7 1'), which is unfortunately very fragmentary. The better preserved paragraphs of this section seem to refer to SUlgi's historical campaign against the land of Gutium. in terms very similar to those used by the poet of the hymnal epic SO (cf. o. 41 above). Thus, the poet stresses, among other things, the thorough and final destruction of the enemy's cities (lines 30'-35'), and the dispersion of its population '!ike sheep which have no shepherd' (I. 60). This section seems to conclude with the general harmony and peace which ensued as a result of the abovementioned military expedition (lines 6§'-7 1 '). 61 In the parallel hymn (SC), the hunting episode is the theme of the tenth section (lines 1 '- 1 6' TwSH, p. 258, N 3994, l ' - 1 5' and dup!.). Here SUlgi boasts of having killed with his spear, a lion whose roar terrorized the land, and then carried its carcass to his city to the admiration of the "black-headed" people. 62 I n the parallel hymn SC (sixth section), Sulgi claims that in addition to extispicy, he was also familar with divination in oil and smoke (I. 102; see J. Klein, "Words," pp. XIV-XXll); and as a sharp-eyed seer, like his divine brother, Gilgames, he was able to tell the righteous from the evil, and dispel all sorts of magic and sorcery (lines 103- 1 1 1 ). =

[TRANS. AMER_ PHIL

SOc.

complished singer, he was familiar with all types of hymns and melodies, and had a clear and sweet voice. As a virtuoso, he learned thoroughly how to tune and play every known musical instrument, even those which fell into disuse over the generations (lines 1 55174). Moreover, not only did he know how to play musical instruments, but he also knew how to cause joy with his music to those around him, including his divine mother Ninsun, who shared with him a life of luxury and happiness in his royal palace (lines 6 175-193) 3 In the section which follows, Sulgi elaborates on his profound political wisdom, which made him a righ­ teous judge of his people and an ideal administrator of his land. In the assembly, everyone was seeking his wise counsel. In court, he was a righteous judge, re­ spected by all, and when he administered justice, he was able to answer the litigants in the five (official) languages of the Sumerian empire, without having recourse to interpreters. Finally, by his eloquence, he succeeded to promote peace and harmony in the land (lines 196-239). 64 At the end of this self-praise, Sulgi points out his piety and reverence of the gods. He knows well how to attend the gods and pacify their hearts and by his virtues, he is most competent to pray for the life of all mankind (lines 240-260). 6 5 63

In the parallel hymn (SC), it is the last section of the recon­ structed text, which is devoted to music (lines 75'-95'). In the be­ ginning of this very fragmentary section, Sulgi states: "Since I am also (a man) full of joy, who loves songs,/ I know how to execute the tremoE of the t i g i, a d a b and m a I g a t u m-drums./ In order to adjust the si-EZEN and s u k a r a -instruments,/ I know how to 'heighten' and 'lower' their (tune)./ I am a virtuoso, who masters the 'seven' musical instruments." After enumerating the seven mu­ sical instruments that he mastered, he seems to add that with his music, he used to entertain his divine sister Gestinanna and his divine mother Ninsun. 64 In the parallel hymn (SC), Sulgi stresses his eloquence and leadership in the general assembly (p u b r u m) (lines 53-65), as we!! as his just verdicts in the court (lines 74- 8 1 ) . Here too, he does not forget to point out that, as befitting a true emperor, he learned Elamite and the language of the primitive Mardu nomads. Here is the way he himself puts it: "[Since] I am also wise and (of) broad ...... understanding (I. 1 1 5)/ . . I verily [learned] the tongue of the Mardu, just like the tongue of Sumer;/ The [Mardu] foreigners, who come from the mountains,; They greet me, and I return (their greetings) in the tongue of the Mardu./ The tongue of Elam I verily learned, just like the tongue of Sumer;/ The envoys of Elam, who carry to me tribute,/ They greet me, and I return (their greetings) in the tongue of Elam" (lines 1 2 1 - 1 26). Possibly, a similar state­ ment. concernin� the tongue of Subir, was lost in the following three­ line break (cf S8 2 1 7). Accordingly, the five official tongues of Sumer could be: Sumerian, Akkadian. the language of the Mardu nomads, Elamite. and Subarian. 65 The extant reconstructed text of the parallel hymn eSC) does not contain a section. dealing with SUlgi's role in the cult. However, the still unplaceable fragment STye 59 (el TwSH, p. 262), seems to mention his care for Gilgames and Ninsun. As for the other unplaceable fragment N 3233 + N 2568 (unpublished), it seems to play on the theme of Sulgi, the king of abundance (el notes 33 and 39 above).

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The remaining part of this remarkable self-lauda­ tory hymn (lines 231-387), wherein Sulgi elaborates on the purpose for which his royal hymns were com­ posed, will be discussed in the following paragraph. The Sulgi hymnal repertoire also contains a much shorter, but equally unique self-laudatory hymn, which was labeled by Kramer as "Sulgi the King of the Road" (SA). 66 In this 1 02-line poem, an interest­ ing narrative is inserted in the hymnal framework. Toward the end of the hymnal prologue (lines 1-35), Sulgi describes how he ordered the construction of highways in Sumer; how he determined and marked

17

the distance of the 'mile';67 and how he built caravan serai on the highways-at measured intervals-for the convenience and safety of travelers. In the main part of the hymn (lines 36-83), Sulgi tells us that one day, in spite of a heavy rainstorm, he made a double trip between Nippur and Ur, celebrating the monthly e s e s -feast in both cities, in the same day. He has accomplished this incredible feat, according to his own testimony, in order to test his speed and endurance as a runner, and to attain thereby universal fame and recognition. The following description of the dramatic return from Ur to Nippur, _we believe, is a truly fine piece of Sumerian poetry (SA 60-83):

(Then) I arose like a hawk, (like) a falcon, (And) returned to Nippur in my vigor. On that day, the storm shrieked, the west wind whirled, The north wind and the south wind howled at each other, Lightning together with the 'seven winds' devoured each other in heaven, The thundering storm made the earth quake, ISkur roared in the broad heavens, The clouds of heaven mingled with the waters of the earth, Their small (hail-)stones and their large (hail-)stones Were striking on my back. I, the king, I feared not, nor was I terrified, Like a fierce lion I gnashed my teeth, Like a wild ass I galloped, With my heart full of joy, I ran onward. Racing like a solitary wild-donkey, (Before) Utu set his face toward his 'house', I traversed a distance of fifteen 'miles'. My sag-ur-sag priests gazed at me (with astonishment): In Nippur and Ur, in one day, I celebrated their e s e s-festival! With my 'brother (and) companion', the hero Utu, I drank beer in the palace, founded by An, My singers sang for me to the (accompaniment of) the 'seven' t i g i-drums, (And) my consort, holy Inanna, the lady, the joy of heaven and earth, Sat there with me at the banquet. 68 66 Editio princeps: A. Falkenstein, ZA 50 ( 1 952): pp. 6 1 -9 1 . Cf, S. N . Kramer, ANET3, pp. 584-586. For a revised edition of this hymn, see ThSH, chap. IV. 67 Sumerian danna, literally 'double hour', that is, a distance cov­ ered by a march of a double hour (ca. 1 0 kilometers) 68 Fully aware of the incredibility of the claim that Sulgi accom­ plished such a long journey in one day (the distance between Ur and Nippur measured in a straight line exceeds a hu.ndred miles), the poet, prior to the final hymnal epilogue, puts in Sulgi's mouth the following concluding statement (lines 84-86): .•

I truly did not praise myself (in vain)! Wherever my eyes cast-there J go! Where my heart prompts me-there I arrive!

It is interesting to note that this fabulous double trip, reported in the above hymn, is also a central theme of SY eSRT 1 3 , 1-33; cf ThSH, n. 81; p. 239), which seems to be a copy of the inscription of a royal statue, on which Sulgi was probably represented in a posture of running toward Nippur, just as the reverse of the same tablet seems to be a copy of the inscription of another royal statue, which represented king ISmedagan of Isin (ca. 1953-1935 B.C.),

Sulgi's great admirer, in a similar posture. In lines 13-22 of this text, Sulgi is praised in such terms as, for example, "a swift runner, a 'hurricane', the strength of his loins is never ending"; or "a runner who emerges in/from the country-sides," "who competes with the tireless (racers) of the road." The actual double-trip episode is re­ counted in lines 22-29 of this text: On a day that rose for prosperity, that was destined (inim garra) for rainy clouds, From the Kiur (of) Nippur he verily ran To the shrine (of) Ur, the Etemenniguru. The princely (sacrificial) bowls of Nanna, stationed in the 'morning-meal hall', he provided with copious rations. On that day, prosperity he (that is, Nanna) decreed for him. In a violent storm, a whirlwind that broke out, Before the sun-god has settled down, He got back to the lustrous Ekur. The semi-legendary trip, described both by the hymn and the

inscription, must be based on a real historical event, for the seventh regnal year of Sulgi is designated as "the year, when the king

18

KLEIN: THE ROYAL HYMNS OF SHULGI 4. Historicity, Authorship and Function

The Sumerian royal hymns in general and the royal hymns of SUlgi in particular raise numerous problems for students of Sumerian literature. One problem is the value of these hymns as historical or biographical sources. It is our conviction that, in spite of their hy­ perbolic style, most SUlgi hymns are based upon a historical kernel. Many of the specific historical and biographical allusions in these hymns are confirmed from external historical and archaeological sources. 69 Hence, it is reasonable to assume that Sulgi was not only one of the greatest political and military leaders of ancient Mesopotamia, but not unlike King Solomon of ancient Israel, or the Great Alexander of ancient Greece, he was also a most outstanding individual of his age: a combination of a hero, educated aristocrat, and patron of the arts and sciences. Like many out­ standing charismatic leaders, he probably became a legendary figure in his lifetime. No wonder, therefore, that the poets portrayed him as an ideal type of a Sumerian king, that is, a kind of a Sumerian "super­ ,, man, 70 Another vexing problem is the question of the au­ thorship of these hymns and the purpose for which they were composed. The cultic setting of the "royal prayers," that is, those hymns which are dedicated to

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a god and contain a prayer for Sulgi, is easily dis­ cernible. But for what purpose were the great hymnal epics and self-laudatory hymns written? And what was the role of the king in their composition? Various so­ lutions to these problems, mostly based on jndirect evidence, have been suggested, since the authors of the royal hymns remain anonymous, and the hymns very rarely allude to the purpose for which they were com­ posed or the circumstances in which they were used. 7 1 Kramer was the first to recognize that the last part of the self-laudatory hymn "Sulgi the Ideal King" (lines 231 -387) has a direct bearing on the question of the authorship and purpose of the Sulgi hymns. 72 However, the only ancient document solely deyoted to these problems is a unique self-praise of Sulgi, which only recently has been reconstructed and trans­ lated by the present writer. In the introduction to this over 250-line hymn of self-praise, designated here as "The Testament of Sulgi" (SE), 73 Sulgi announces that he, the king cho­ sen by Enlil, is going now to sing the praise of his own "prayers and hymns" (lines 1 _ 1 5 ) 74 Then he tells us that he commissioned his master poets to compose for him all types of hymns, in order to commemorate his extraordinary achievements in his personal, as well as public, life (lines 1 6-38). Subsequently (lines 39-46), he swears by the great gods that:

Anything comparable to my melodies and songs no one has ever ordered to be composed, Nor was able to cultivate my prayers, which cannot be imitated! I, Sulgi, have never allowed any praise of 'excessive power' to be (put) into a song!7 5 (lines 44-46).

marched from Ur to Nippur" (cf. Limet, RA 65, (1971): pp. 19 f. et passim). It is not impossible that all the relevant texts reflect a celebration of the opening of a newly constructed road between Ur and Nippur, the two major centers of the Neo-Sumerian empire, or the like (this hypothesis has been suggested to the author by Dr. D. R. Frayne of Toronto, in private communication). 69 For the evaluation of the Sulgi hymns as historical source ma­ terial, see our discussion in ThSH, chap, II b, with n, 139; C. Wilcke, "Zurn Konigtum der Ur IIf-Zeit" (CRRA 19, PP.: 177 ff,), 70 For the problem of the authenticity of the Sulgi hymns, see discussion in part III c below, 7J It was A. Falkenstein, who first suggested that the "Shz im Leben" of the "royal prayers," which are interspersed with liturgical notations, is to be sought in the temple liturgy; whereas the "genuine royal hymns," which lack liturgical notations, must have been at home in the courtly ceremonial (ZA 49, ( 1 949): pp. 83 ff.). The validity of the above theory was questioned by O. Reisman, who contended that the evidence for the divinity of the Neo-Sumerian rulers, and their worship in the cult, makes an argument even for the genuine royal hymns to be at home in the temple cult (cf his dissertation Two Neo-Sumerian Royal Hymns, Philadelphia, 1969, pp. 39-40). C. Wilcke, on the other hand, holds that even a divine hymn, addressed to a deity, cannot be assigned to the cult, unless it contains a prayer. As for the genuine royal hymns with the za­ mi-doxology, he distinguishes in these between purely hymnic com­ positions, to be placed in the courtly ceremonial, and the hymnal epics, such as SO and SF, which should be classified with the epic literature (cf. RLA 4, pp. 543-544). W. W. Halla agrees with the above authors as to the cultic setting of the "royal prayers." But he ascribes the composition of these prayers to the Nippurian priest­ hood, and the transmission of these hymns to the Nippurian scribal

curriculum. The genuine royal hymns, on the other hand, which in his opinion belong to the courtly ceremonial, were probably com­ missioned by the royal court, annually or biennially, and were con­ nected with the official proclamation of the royal date formulae (ef now AS 20, ( 1 975): p. 1 9 1 ). Others stress the role of the scribal schools in the composition of the royal hymns. Thus, Falkenstein assumed that the e d u b b a stood at the service of the king (el WO I, ( 1 948): p. 185). A. Sjoberg, on the other hand, thinks that the schoolmaster (u m m i a) composed hymns upon royal invitation, and also used them in his teaching (AS 20, ( 1 975): p. 172). 72 See his summary in JQR 75, ( 1 967): pp. 375-376. See further p. 20 with notes 85-90 below. 73 UMBS X/2, 7 and 1 3 duplicates (out of these, six duplicates unpublished). See ThSH, n. 70. A manuscript and a provisional translation of this hymn were prepared by the author, for the Su­ merian Dictionary files, during his stay in the University Museum, in the year 1976-1977. An edition of this important Sulgi hymn is now in advanced preparation. 74 The term 'prayers' (sud) probably refers to the "royal prayers" of cultic character; whereas the term 'hymns' (d.-m!), literally 'praises', probably refers to the "genuine royal hymns" of non-cultic character. See notes 10 and 71 above. 75 There is some ambiguity as to the meaning of the last line. According to the present interpretation, Sulgi concludes his oath with the statement that he never allowed any hyperboles or lies to be put into his praises. Cf SA 84, where likewise the self�praise ends with the words: "I have never praised myself (in vain)" (see comment to this line in our ThSH, chap. IV 2 b). An alternative translation of the line from SE, under discussion, could be: "I, Sulgi-no one (beside me) has ever put into song such praises of 'exessive power'!"

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Having stressed the uniqueness of his hymns, Sulgi expresses his wish that his wisdom and greatness should seemly be praised both in his lifetime and after his death, in the Ekur temple at the monthly festivals of Enlil and Ninlil. No matter how long his hymns

19

may be, they do not contain even one line of false boast, but only truthful praises. Hence, all of his hymns, without exception, should regularly be per­ formed by the cultic singers (lines 47-62). In his own words:

My shining like fine silver, My (having a perfect) 'ear', and being an expert in song and speech, I, the shepherd, my attaining a perfect control of anything, In my kingship, let all these be seemly recited! As many lines as there may be in my songs, None of them is false, (all of them) are verily true! 76 My songs, be they royal prayers or supplications, Be they long-ballads, the praises of kingship, Be they psalms, love-poems or love dialogues, 77 Be they flute-songs or drum-songsIn order that they shall never pass from memory, and that they shall never depart from (man's) lips, Let no one neglect them in the cult-places!78 Let them never cease (to be sung) in the lustrous Ekur! Let them be played for Enlil, in his New-Moon shrine! In its monthly-festivals,79 where sparkling beer is copiously libated like water, Let them be firmly established for Enlil and Ninlil, who dwell there together! At this point, Sulgi adjures any future king, who this uniqueness, he describes how, by the powers of like himself will be called by Enlil for the leadership the great gods, he destroyed Gutium and eliminated of Sumer, to see to it that his hymns be performed once for all the Gutian threat, whereby he established regularly, and that his name be invoked in the Ekur for himself an enduring fame and glory (lines 202temple, after his death (lines 63-73). He who will 235). At the end of the epilogue, Sulgi reiterates his neglect his songs or remove his name from them, may ardent wish that his songs may never pass from mem­ be heavily cursed by the great gods (lines 74-1 55). 80 ory (lines 236-247). In order to achieve this goal, he On the other hand, blessings should be heaped upon tells us that he enhanced the prestige of the scribal the king, who will preserve Sulgi's hymns, restore his schools (e d u b b a), wherein his hymns were copied forgotten songs, and reinstitute them in the cult-places and transmitted to future generations. Consequently, it is the sacred duty of the scribe to read out the hymns (lines 1 56-1 90).81 In the long and complex epilogue to this remarkable before the illiterate singer, who in turn shall chant self-praise, Sulgi stresses once again the uniqueness them in the cult-places (lines 248-257). This is how of his kingship (lines 1 9 1 -201). As an illustration of Sulgi himself puts it: I, the upright, the benefactor of the land­ Let my songs be (placed) in every mouth, Let my poems never pass from memory! That these, my paeans, spoken in praise, These (laudatory) words, which Enki established for me, These, the joyfully deliberated wisdom of Gestinanna, Should not be forgotten for distant days76 The correct translation of this line (Sum. lui ba-ra-na M-ge-en) l owe to G. Haager, who kindly communicated it to me in a private letter (for details see his forthcoming paper in the JCS). 77 Nearly all the native Sumerian generic terms, translated above as 'royal prayers', 'supplications', 'long ballads' and so forth, were originally names of musical instruments, which came secondarily to denote various types of hymns. None of these terms, except per­ haps slr-gid-da ('prolonged song') and bal-ba\-e ('dialogues'), refer to the content or literary form of the relevant type of hymn. For these terms see now C. Wilcke, AS 20 ( I 974), pp. 255-262; Klein, "Words," pp. XXII-XXVI. 78 For Sumerian ki-su( -k), probably 'cult -places' see now Klein, "Words," pp. X-XIV. 79 The Sumerian text seems to read here es-es(!), The e s e s fes-

tival, in the Ur III period, was celebrated on the first, seventh, fifteenth, and twenty-fourth day of each month (el CAD vol. 4, p. 373, sub effefu). 80 The ca. eighty-line passage, which contains perhaps the longest list of curses ever found in Sumerian royal or literary texts, is un­ fortunately badly damaged. Nevert�eless, from the extant compre­ hensible lines, one can learn that Sulgi cursed the inimical ruler, among others, with bad luck: an unfortunate reign, hunger, pesti­ lence, poverty, and military defeats; personal leprosy and banishment from all cultic festivals of the city; and perhaps with the singers constantly lamenting him, instead of singing his praise. 81 The above passage, containing a lacuna of six lines, is extremely damaged and hardly legible. The nature of the blessings, heaped upon the amicable future king, therefore, cannot be determined.

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KLEIN: THE ROYAL HYMNS OF SHULGI

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To that end, I made the 'Wisdom-House-of-Nisaba' resplendent with generous gifts82 like the heavenly stars, (So that) nothing (of these hymns) will ever pass from memory, and their name Will never be forgotten; to (these) unshatterable 'heavenly stars', 83 my everlasting lines, May the singer conduct the scribe; may he have him look at them; And may he (the man) of Nisaba's wisdom and intelligence, Read them out for him, like from a lapis-lazuli tablet! May he make my songs shine forth like silver in its ore! Let them be played in the cult-places! In the New-Moon shrine let none of them be neglected! In the music-hall84 of Enlil and Ninlil, At the evening and morning meals of Nanna, I, SUlgi-may my praise, the sweet one, never come to an end! In the light of the above self-praise, we can now gain a better understanding of the parallel section in the last part of the self-laudatory hymn "Sulgi the Ideal King," whose content we indicated in paragraph three of this part," and which is likewise preoccupied with the problem of the purpose and function of the SUlgi hymns. In the beginning of this part, Sulgi tells us that ever since he had been commissioned by Enlil to be the righteous leader of the people, he had never committed an irreverent act against any of his pre­ decessors, whether he was an Akkadian, Sumerian, or even an oppressive Gutian (lines 261-272). Being a person who does not ignore any human knowledge acquired by tradition from the beginning of man­ kind," he never prevented the singers from performing any of their ancient hymns. On the contrary, he took

proper care, that none of these hymns be neglected, and that they should continued to be chanted by the musicians, in his "pleasure-house"87 (lines 273-283). Accordingly, he rightfully expects that any future king as righteous as himself should see to it that the paeans of glorification for SUlgi's wisdom, bravery, and fame be recited in his palace, repeatedly and regularly (lines 286-299). Should there arise an evil and irreverent king who will commit violence against any of his hymns, may the gods chastise him, his words should be obliterated, and his deeds should remain unsung (lines 300-306). To insure that his fame and glory never fade in word and song, SUlgi tells us that he enhanced the prestige of two scribal academies, one in the capital city Ur in the south, and one in the religious center Nippur in the north,88 so that

To the prayers which I established firmly in the Ekur, Let the scribe come, let him take them in his hands! Let the singer come, and let him chant them there! In the school may these never be changed forever! In the place of instruction may these never come to an end! My 'acquired knowledge', now, this, SO,89 Anything (of mine) put into words everywhere, As many songs as there may be in my collections(I swear) by An, Enlil, Utu and Inanna: None of them is false, (all of them) are verily true!'o (lines 314322). The notion that the SUlgi hymns were composed to be chanted repeatedly and regularly, in order to spread the king's fame everywhere, is expressed also in the refrains of the "genuine royal hymns" of this king.

This notion is clearly expressed in the refrains of the great self-laudatory hymns "Sulgi the Ideal King" and "Sulgi, King of Name and Fame," as well as in the

82 The corresponding ambiguous Sumerian word-complex is sub­ ject to two different renderings: ni-de-a-gal-gal 'with generous gifts', or ni-umun-a-gal-gal 'with great scholarship'. 83 'Heavenly stars' seems to be here a metaphor for Sulgi's in­ destructable royal hymns. Alternatively, 'heavenly stars', in this con­ text, may be a poetic expression for the star-shaped cuneiform script, whereby Sulgi's hymns were written (see Sjoberg, TeS 3: p. 138, comment to 1. 480). 84 A free translation of Sumerian ga-tigi 'the house of the t i g i­ drum.' 85 See n. 52 above. 86 Cf lines 273-274: nam-hi.-Ulu an-ta si-ga-ta/ gestu-dab5-ba-ba

na-ga-ab-bi nu-me-en-na "Any knowledge, acquired by mankind, ever since they were lowered from heaven-(since) I am not its ignoramus 87 The term e-du1o-ga, literally 'the good house', which we trans­ lated as 'pleasure house', serves elsewhere as an epithet for a divine 'bed-chamber' (ef. Falkenstein, AnOr 30; p. 125). 88 Cf. SB lines 308-3 1 3 . According to Kramer's interpretation, Sulgi refers here to the actual establishment of scribal schools, in the above two cities. We fail to see here an explicit statement to that effect. 89 For the translation of this line see n. 86 above. 90 For the rendering of this line, see n. 76 above.

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refrain of the hymnal epic "Sul�i the Avenger of Su­ mer," quoted above." Also in "Sulgi the King of the

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Road,"" the self-praise concludes with the following wish:

Among the well protected people of the four regions, may my name be proclaimed! May they praise it in my holy hymns! May they glorify my majesty! (lines 92-94). We can now sum up the testimony of the Sulgi hymns themselves as to their authors and purpose, and draw our conclusions from them. From these ancient documents we learn that the royal hymns of SUlgi were commissioned by the king himself, and were composed by his court-poets, who may or may not have been identical with the masters of the scribal schools (e d u b b a). These hymns were created not only to spread the fame and the glory of the king during his lifetime, but also, and perhaps primarily, to perpetuate his memory after his death. Accordingly, the scribal schools were charged with the task of traditing these hymns, while the temple and palace singers were charged with having them recited quite regularly in the cult and in the courtly cere­ monial and entertainment. But Sulgi's primary con­ cern was to perpetuate his memory in the temple lit­ urgy, and most likely, the hymns used in the cult included more than just "royal prayers"; possibly, also some of the hymnal epics, with the za-mi doxology. If we take the last five lines of "The Testament of Sulgi" at face value, we must conclude that some of SUlgi's hymns were chanted in the Ekur, at least once

a month, whereas in the Ekisnugal, in the cult of the moon-god Nanna-Suen, they were recited daily. The recitation of these hymns was probably connected with the offerings and libations to the statues of the deified and worshipped Neo-Sumerian ruler, both during his reign and after his death.93 91 See above the beginning of paragraph 3, with notes 54 and 56; paragraph 2, with n. 42. 92 Cf n. 66 above. 93 This is not to say that certain hymns were not commissioned for special occasions, such as a coronation ceremony, a triumphal procession, returning from a military campaign, a sportive event, a dedication of a cuI tic object, and so on. But even these very same hymns could be put to a secondary use, namely to be chanted reg­ ularly in the temple or in the court. Finally, we would like to observe, that the royal hymns of Sulgi, and those of all other Neo-Sumerian and Old-Babylonian kings, served more or less the same purpose, as the dedicatory statues and cylinders of Gudea, the famous ruler of Lagas, who must have lived just one or two generations before Sulgi (for the Gudea inscriptions see A. Falkenstein's monumental work Die Insehriften Gudeas von Lagas: I Einleitung, Rome, 1 966). The strikingly close literary links between "The Testament of SUlgi" (SE) and Statue B of Gudea, will be demonstrated and discussed in detail, in our forthcoming edition of SE. In that study, we also intend to elaborate on the problem of the authorship and function of the Sumerian royal hymns.

PART II. SHULGI, NINSUN AND AN: AN EPIC OF DIVINE INTERCESSION (SULGI P ) I.

Introduction to Sulgi P

a) Content and Literary Structure

The poem edited below is probably part of a hym­ nal-epic in which the poet describes the gracious ac­ tions of t�e goddess Ninsun on behalf of her royal protege, Sulgi. 94 Since portions of unknown length from the beginning and end of the hymn are missing, and since the extant text is highly fragmentary, con­ taining two lacunae, we can offer only tentative sug­ gestions as to its original extent, purport, and literary structure.95 94 See further n. 1 1 8 below. 95 The recognition that fragment Ni 4220 (=A) is part of our hymn, and that it should be placed before SLTN 80 and the other variants, is to be credited to C. Wilcke, who also transliterated and translated lines 4- 1 6 of this fragment, on the basis of D. O. Edzard's collation (ef his Luga/banda. p. 52, n. 1 73: CRRA 19, 1 8 1 : 195, n. 78). That Section b of the hymn (SLTN 80 and dupls.) opens with An's approval of Ninsun's request on behalf of Sulgi has been

The hymnal prologue, if there was any, and the beginning of the narrative are now missing. In the beginning of the extant text (Sect. a 1-6), someone­ perhaps Lugalbanda-addresses Ninsun directly, urg­ ing her to intercede to her divine father, An, on behalf of SUlgi, so that the former may "cause his (Sulgi's) branches to blossom" (literally 'to shine') like the branches of a cedar, planted among l::I asur-cypresses.96 In response to this request, so the poet tells us, Ninsun undertakes a fateful decision, together with Lugalfirst pointed out by Th. Jacobsen (el BASOR 102, ( l 946): p. 16; see now also Kramer, TMHNF 4: p. 12). Note further the following treatments of small excerpts from our hymn: van Dijk, BiOr 11 ( 1 954), p. 85 (SLTN 80. 3-9): SGL 2: p. 80 (SLTN 80, 43-48): Falkenstein, ZA SO ( 1 952): pp. 73 ff. (SLTN 80, 1 1 -25; 38-39); SGL 1: pp. 100 f. (SLTN 80, 43-46); Wilcke, Lugalbanda, p. 1 3 1 (SLTN 80, 43-48).

96 The present interpretation assumes that Lugalbanda's address is introduced by m! mu-na-ni-du 1 1 in I. 3 and actually begins in 1. 4. The possibility cannot be excluded that lines 2-3 are part of the address.

22

KLEIN: THE ROYAL HYMNS OF SHULGI

banda: She resolves to "step up to the word of An."" Subsequently, she indeed proceeds to An, to the UbSu 'ukkinna, the divine assembly hall, and there she intercedes to him on behalf of Sulgi (lines 7 -10). Right in the beginning of her pat�etic address to An, she announces that she selected Sulgi from the multitudes of the people for kingship over Sumer, and she ex­ presses her wish that he become their "righteous shep­ herd" (lines 1 1- 14).�8 She then seems to support her request by likening Sulgi to a rn e s -tree, which reg­ ularly brought for her rich yield, and to a spikenard­ herb, which grew for her stout of roots (lines 1 5- l S).99 In these_ somewhat mystical metaphors she perhaps praises Sulgi as the source of abundance and pros­ perity for her (and for Sumer). After three unintel­ ligible lines (lines 1 9-21), there is a gap of unknown length. The text resumes by two fragmentary lines (lines 1 '-2'), inscribed on the left edge of text A, where the city of Ur is mentioned in an obscure context, and which end with the imperative request: "grant (him) kingship!" WO Following another gap of unknown length, the text seems to resume in the middle of An's favorable answer, in which he approves Ninsun's re­ quest. In the beginning of the extant text, An (in ac­ cordance with the symbolical terminology used by Ninsun in Sect. a 1 5 ff. ), seems to refer to Sulgi in terms of a tree l O l whose roots sank deep into the earth, and he pledges support to Ninsun in her plea (Sect. b 1_2).' 02 An, then, solemnly promises to Ninsun that In accordance with her wish Sulgi will surely perfect for her the "cui tic norms" and "divine statues" of the kingship (the religious obligations of the royal palace toward the gods), seeing to it that the New-Moon and New-Year offerings be brought to her regularly;1 03 and that she will have the privilege of forwarding to him (to An) the king's prayers (Sect. b 3-9). An con­ cludes his answer to Ninsun by referring once again 97 The underlying Sumerian idiom (inim-e gub) may refer to prayer or intercession. 98 For literary parallels to the motif of the "divine selection for kingship," see comment to Sect. a 1 2- 1 4 below. 99 A reference to a third type of tree was probably lost in the break at the beginning of 1. 1 8 . I � T�e imI?erativ� verbal form ba-mu, which does not contain any dative mfix, IS ambiguous. Assuming that Ninsun is still speaking here, it could be translated alternatively "grant (me) kingship," in . which case Ninsun would request the kingship for herself, in order to transfer it to her earthly representative, Sulgi. 101 The actual name of this metaphorical tree was probably lost in the gap, preceding Sect. b. 102 For another possible interpretation of these lines, see comment to Sect. b2 below. 103 For the 'cultic norms' (pi-Ius-da) and 'divine statues' (gis-bur), whose implementation was the king's sacred duty, and which con­ sisted primarily of offerings and other cultic rites, pertaining to the New Moon and New Year festjvals, see comment to Sect. b 8 below; SKI. p. 1 33; pp. 173 ff. That Sulgi indeed piously carried out these and other cultic duties is indicated by SR 41-42, where we read: ezen-ku pi-Ius-da-gal-gal sipa-zi sul-gi-re ki-bi-se mu-ga-ar-ga-ar «a holy festival (consisting of) the great 'cultic norms,' Sulgi firmly instituted."

[TRANS. AMER. PHIL SOc.

to Sulgi in the metaphorical terms of a blossoming tree, the symbol of abundance (Sect. b 10).' 04 In the ensuing short narratival episode (Sect. b 1 1 1 6), whose beginning is marked by the adverbial phrase u4-ba ('on that day'), the poet tells us how �insun, rejoicing over An's favorable answer, took Sulgi-apparently in a motherly gesture-by his right hand, led him into her EgalmaiJ sanctuary,' OS seated him next to her, upon her holy dais, and speaking to him tenderly "at her bosom,"' 06 she reported to him the favorable results of her intercession. In the beginning of her long, intimate, and passion­ ate address (Sect. b 1 7-4S), Ninsun announces to Sulgi that her father An (in accordance with her re­ quest) has spoken in praise of (approved) his kingship (Sect. b 19-2 1 ). Then she solemnly declares him to be (or reassures him of being) the natural child of herself and Lugalbanda (Sect. b 22-23). In the rest of her address, Ninsun describes in detail and in a highly poetic fashion the intimate relationship between Sulgi and her own divine family, as well as 104

As we have pointed out above (see n. 95), it is Jacobsen who is to be credited with the recognition that the person, addressed by An in Sect. bl ff., is not Sulgi, but the goddess Ninsun. Accordingly, we Interpreted dingir-me-en as referring to Ninsun (taking the en­ clitic copula in an appositional meaning, and translating the phrase by 'for you, the goddess' and so forth), and the precative verbal forms in lines 6-8-as 3 p. sing. with a simple transitival connotation ("May he perfect for you . ."). )Jote, however, that Jacobsen. in his The Treasures of Darkness ( 1 976), pp. 97 ff.. translates our Sect. b 5 ff. as follows: "Let Shulgi, king with a pleasant term of reign, perform correctly for m e, A n, the rites instituted for kingship :. Apparently, he reads in the beginning of I. 6 an-me-en, and interprets the verbal infix -ra-, in this context, as an irregular (or rare) variant of the I p. sing. dative infix (see already his remarks in JNES 12, ( 1 953): p. 182. n. 47). van Dijk (cf BiOr 11, ( 1 954): p. 85) reads like us dingir-me-en, but he interprets it as a vocative ("Deesse!" ), and translates the verbal forms as 1 p. sing. present future ("I will perfect f�r you" ). Kramer formerly understood dingir­ me-cn as referring to Sulgi (translating the verbal forms like van Dijk), assuming tha� An elevates Suigi here to the status of a god (cf already Klein, Sulgi D, p. 22, n. 1 ), but now he gave up the above interesting interpretation, and tends to agree with us (by pri­ vate communication). lOS It is not clear whether the e-gal-mab of Ninsun, mentioned in I; 14, was a separate temple in Ur, built for her by Urnammu or Sulgi, or a mere shrine of her, within the confines of the Ekisnugal temple complex. According to Romer (SKI, pp. 185 f.) the Egalmab of Ninisinna in Isin, where the "hieros gamos" took pla�e, was closely �onnected with, or identical to the royal palace. The Egalmab of the Sulgi hymns is normally connected with the goddess Ninegalla, for ':Yhom llrnammu built an unnamed temple in Ur (VET I 38); cf SA 57; SX 1 4 1 e-gal-mab-dnin-e-gal-I[a]-kam bira-ku-ga-a dur ba­ a-gar. On the other hand, the temple. which Urnammu built for Ninsun, is called e-mab (VET I 47), though one of his hymns refers to an e-gai-map as part of the Ekisnugal (el TRS 12, 6; ZA 53, 1959; p. 1 1 8). SC 91 (e-gal-mab ki nam-tar-re-ga) may refer to the above shrine. Unfortunately, the inscription, recording Sulgi's ac­ tivity in behalf of Ninsun (VET I 53), is damaged and obscure. We cannot exclude the possibility that both the Egalmab and the Ubsukkinna (mentioned in Sect. a 1 0 above), were located at Uruk, and that the whole episode takes place there, rather than in Ur. 106 So, rather than 'in her enclosure' (see comment to Sect. b 1 6 below).

VOL.

SHULGI, NINSUN AND AN

7 1. PT. 7, 198 1 ]

the benefits that Sulgi derived in the past and is bound to derive in the future, from his being her natural (or adopted) son. At first (Sect. b 24-34), she elaborates the divine favors bestowed upon Sulgi by herself. As befitting a loving mother of the crown prince, Ninsun raised Sulgi on her pure lap (Sect. b 24 f.), and wrapped his body in her fine m a -garment' 07 (lines 30-31). Being a fa­ vorable child, he is encouraged to prance on her holy knees (line 32), and as a leader, born for (or in) justice, he is urged to trust in her holy words (lines 33-34). He is the "good fortune" that fell in Ninsun's share (lines 26_2 7 ) ,108 and she, on her part, has the privilege of being the "mother of kingship" (lines 2S-29 ) '09 Next (Sect. b 35-42), she describes the favors be­ stowed upon Sulgi by her spouse Lugalbanda. As a divine and true fathe!, 1 1 0 Lugalbanda calls the "newly born" crown prince, Sulgi, an impressive throne-name, a name which is "suitable for pronounciation," and which will "please the flesh of the great gods like fine oil" (lines 35-39). Subsequently, he invests him with a royal crown and scepter (lines 4 1 -42).' 1 1 At last (Sect. b 43-4S), Ninsun promises' l 2 Sulgi that Gestinanna, his divine "sister," the ""mellifluous mouth of the gods," will never cease entertaining him in his palace, and she will always stand in prayer be­ fore her, on his behalf. I I 3 107

The official attire of kings and high-priests. Probably requested by her personally from An (see comment to I. 27 below). 109 In I. 29, Ninsun clearly refers to her beautiful and majestic appearance, which renders her fit for the status of a queen or lady (nam-nin). It is not clear, what is the precise meaning of the title 'mother of kingship' (ama-nam-lugal-la), which she assumes in I. 28. She may boast here of being the divine mother of the kings of the Ur III dynasty (Urnammu and Sulgi), that is, of being the heavenly equivalent of the Akkadian ummi sarri (see AHw, p. 1 4 1 6, sub ummum 2 a), the Egyptian bezel malMi�rj (EA 28, 1 - 10) and the Biblical lfQlrii(2K 10: 1 3 et passim). See further R. M. Whiting, JCS 28 ( 1 976): p. 182. See also addenda. 110 Sumerian a-a-ugu4 Akkadian abu iilidu 'father-begetter' (see Klein, JCS 3 1 , 1979: pp. 1 50-153). III The reading and translation of l. 42, where the 'enduring scep­ ter' (gidri-urul-H-a-ka) is referred to, are problematic (see comment to this line). Note that in 1. 37 An is mentioned as having given to Sulgi a "scepter rendering judgment." The reference to An, in the middle of this episode, seems to be out of context. 112 The verbal forms, used by Ninsun in this context, are 3 p. sing. vetitives (lines 46 and 48) and precatives (I. 47), which are elsewhere characteristic to nam-tar (blessing) formulas (see ThSH. chap. III 1 a). 113 For the goddess Gestinanna see now Edzard's comprehensive summary in RLA 3, pp. 299 ff. Sulgi refers to h�r as "my sister" also in SC 93' (nin9-ne-mu dgcltin-an-na-ra) and SE 21 (inim-nin­ mu dgestin-an-na-ka-ta). As Dumuzi's elder sister, she is considered to be automatically the divine sister of the Sumerian king, who represents Dumuzi in the "hieros gamos." The Sumerian mythopoeic thought apparently was not aware of the seeming contradiction in considering SUlgi, simultaneously, the brother of Gestinanna (the daughter of Turdur) and Gilgames (the son of Ninsun). The function of GeS:tinanna as the divine patroness of musicians and music, in the Sulgi hymns, will be discussed in our forthcoming edition of SE (in comment to lines 20-23). It is interesting to note that she shares 108

=

23

The last extant portion of our hymn (Sect. b 49-

66), furnished by the highly fragmentary text D, seems

to contain a concluding monologue of Ninsun. I n this monologue, Ninsun proudly relates, how her divine parents, An and Urras, in the forum of the Anunna (the assembly of the great gods,' 14 announced their favorable decision concerning her son Sulgi. "' They granted him enduring kingship over the entire popu­ lation of Sumer; made him appear in the land like the sun-god; seated him upon a throne of firm reign, where he was bound to exercise his function as the supreme judge of the land; and invested him with a royal crown ' l 6 At this point, the text breaks off, and the end of our hymn is missing. The fragmentary state of preservation of the texts does not allow us to undertake a full and reliable lit­ erary analysis of our hymn. Nevertheless, we can make some provisional and tentative observations as to its form and structure, and to demonstrate thereby its artistic value. 1 1 7 As already stated, our composition is part of a hym­ nal-epic, glorifying Sulgi," 8 and therefore its now ex­ tant narrative portion may be assumed to have been inserted in a hymnal framework. 1 l 9 with Enki the above function, as well as the epithet ka-Ial-dingir-re­ ne(-k) (see SGL 2, p. 82, l. 34). 114 For the role that the Anunna played in judiciary and political decisions, concerning the fate of individual gods and deified kings, see ThSH, SD 59, with comment; Falkenstein, AS 1 6 ( 1 965): pp. l 3 l ff. 115 The place where this episode is to be located cannot be deter­ mined. It may have taken place in the Ubsu'ukkinna mentioned in Sect. a 1 0 . On the other hand, Sect. b 53 seems to contain the obscure phrase "in their lofty sheepfold," which may refer to a courtyard in the temple of An and Urras ("the temple of [their] residence" in l. 49). Or else, these two abovementioned terms may refer to the same locus. 116 It is interesting to note that the various acts, concerning Sulgi's enthronization, are described by Ninsun as favors, bestowed directly upon her, by her divine parents (cf lines 53-54; see, however, com· ment to these lines); or as favors, bestowed upon Sulgi, for her own sake (lines 58-60). Apparently, it is the poet's intention to stress the idea that the interests of the king and the goddess are intertwined. and that the benefits derived from their association are mutual. 117 For a general survey of the formal aspects of Sumerian liter­ ature see now C. Wilcke, "Formale Gesichtspunkte in der sumer­ ischen Literature" (AS 20: 1974, pp. 205-3 1 6). For some interesting attempts at a literary analysis of Sumerian literary compositions see among others: W. W. Hallo and J. J. A. van Dijk, The Exaltation oflnanna (New Haven, 1968), pp. 44 ff.; B. Alster, Dumuzj's Dream (Copenhagen, 1972), pp. 1 5 ff.; idem, Studies in Sumerian Proverbs (Copenhagen, 1975); J. S. Cooper. The Return ofNinurra to Nippur (Rome, 1978), pp. 14 ff.; A. Berlin, Ensubkefdanna. pp. 9 ff.; idem, JANES to ( 1 978): pp. 35 ff. 118 Typologically, our hymn may be classified as belonging to the type B I n, that is, a genuine royal hymn, glorifying the king in the third person, and containing a narrative (see our classification of the Sulgi hymns in ThSH. appendix 2; cf. n. 1 1 above). C. Wilcke (RLA IV, p. 544, sub 9) refers to these hymns with the term 'Konigsepen'. t 19 Both the prologue and the epilogue could be addressed either to Sulgi himself, or to the goddess Ninsun, or even to the god An. This reconstruction may prove to be erratic, if the extant text will turn out to be only a section within a much larger hymnal epic, whose main theme was furnished by presently missing tablets. For

24

KLEIN: THE ROYAL HYMNS OF SHULGI

The unique character of this hymnal-epic lies in the fact that it consists almost exclusively of portions of direct speech, introduced and connected by short nar­ ratival episodes. Taking these elements as criteria, we can observe in our hymn the following easily discern­ ible parts and strophes: 1 20 A. Lugalbanda's Appeal to Ninsun: Sect. a 1-6. \. Obscure Narrative ( 1 -3) 2. Lugalbanda's address to Ninsun (4-6) B. Ninsun's Intercession for SUlgi: Sect. a 7-2 1 ; 1 '-2'; Sect. b 1 - 10. \. Resolution to Intercede; Approaching An (a 7-10) 2. Ninsun's Plea to An (a 1 1 - 2 1 ) 3 . An's Favorable Answer (b 1 - 10) C. Ninsun's Informative Address to Sulgi: Sect. b 1 1 -48. I . Leading Sulgi to the Egalmab for Intimate Audience ( 1 1 - 1 6 ) 2. Ninsun's Address to Sulgi ( 1 7-48) D. Ninsun's Monologous Report of SUlgi's En­ thronization: Sect. b 49-66. A close examination of the stylistic features of our hymn reveals that the poet used both the elements of repetition and variation, to mold its various parts into a meaningful and artistic unit. Thus, the two narratival strophes B I and C I, which constitute the major turning points in the plot, are mtroduced by parallelly structured stanzas, including the adverbial phrase (characteristic of epic literature) U4-ba, "epithet-divine name" particularizing sequence nin-mu- jdnin-sun-na-ke4, and reference to the "word of An" (Sect. a 7-8/ /Sect. b 1 1 - 12). On the other hand, as to the formula introducing direct speech, the hymn exhibits considerable variation: While Lugal­ banda's intimate address to Ninsun, and the latter's intimate address to Sulgi are introduced by the for­ mula mi mu-na-ni-du l l (Sect. a 3/ /Sect. b 16), Nin­ sun's appeal to An is introduced only indirectly (cf Sect. a 10), and her final monologue is not introduced at all (cf Sect. b 49 ff. ). Instead, the beginning of these two direct speeches are marked by the divine names and epithets, as well as by the enclitic copula -me-en, which identify the addressee and the speaker, respectIvely (Sect. a I l l/Sect. b 49). It is particularly interesting to note the persistent the structure of these types of hymnal epics see in general Wikke, RLA IV, p. 540, sub 'Hymne' 3.2-3.5; ThSH, chap. I 3, with notes 104-107. 120 With 'parts' (marked by capital letters) we refer to the episodes or chapters, which make up the hymnal epic as a whole. In a dra­ matic play, these would correspond to 'scenes'. The 'strophes' (marked by numbers) are 'paragraphs' or larger thematic units which constitute the parts. For the sake of briefness, we abstai� from indicating the division into stanzas (for the definition of the 'st�nza' see now Berlin, EnsubkeSdanna, pp. 10 fL). We will only P?mt out below some of the techniques used by the poet, in forming hiS stanzas.

[TRANS. AMER. PHIL SOc.

use of "tree-metaphors" in the addresses of Lugal­ banda, Ninsun, and An (parts A and B), where Sulgi is likened to a cedar (Sect. a 5), a rn e s -tree (a 1 5), a spikenard-herb (a 1 7 ), an unknown tree of deep roots (Sect. b I ) and a fruit-bearing tree in general (b 10) 1 2 1 The aim of the poet in the persistent use of this motif was probably to demonstrate the divine con­ sensus as to Sulgi's ability to secure prosperity for the land, and the ready response of the _divine protagonists to each other's request concerning Sulgi's selection for kingship. 1 22 Note further the analogous recurrence of the "prayer-motif," at the eng of An's response to Ninsun, and Ninsun's report to Sulgi (Sect. b 9/ /b 47-48). If our interpretation of these lines is correct, then a certain symmetrical hierarchy, in the divine sphere, emerges her,e: Gestinanna is charged with constantly praying for Sulgi to Ninsun, 1 23 while the latter, in turn, is granted the privilege of praying for Sulgi to her father An. Space and time do not allow us to describe in detail the various types of parallelism attested in our poem. Note, however, the following general observations: While clear synonymous parallelisms, where both the content and the structure of the first clause are re­ peated, are quite rare, 1 24 most parallelisms seem to 1 2 1 A further 'tree-metaphor', relating to Ninsun, seems to occur in Sect. b 1 7 (see comment to this line below). 122 A striking parallel to our hymn's preoccupation with tree-met­ aphors is provided by SF 59-64: U4 nam-Iugal-se iI-Ia-na/ si�mes-zi­ gio7 dalla mu-e a-zal-Ie mu-du l l / KI.EN.OL-ku-ga pa-mul mu-su­ e/ pa-mul-mul-Ia-na dutu_u nam bi-in-tal"/ gi�mes-zi-dam gurunr ku mu-H/ sul-gi sipa-zi-ki-en-gi-ra-ke4/ be-gal na-su-e "On the day of his elevation to kingship,/ He radiated like a fertile m e s -tree, watered by fresh water,/ Extending (his) blossoming branches to­ ward the pure water-course;/ Upon his blossoming branches Utu conferred the (followin�) blessing:! 'Being a fertile m e s -tree, he has borne pure fruit,; Sulgi, the righteous shepherd of Sumer, will truly spread abunda!)cel' " Compare also the tree-similes, occurring in the prologue of SO, lines 32-35, where Sulgi is likened to an i I d a g -tree, a m e s -tree, a date-palm of Oilmun and a cedar, growing on the ljasur-cypress mountain. In cuneiform literature the frequent metaphor of the king as var­ ious types of trees gave rise to the fallacious theory that the Me­ sopotamian king was considered actually identical to the vegetation­ fertility god, on the one hand, and to the so-called 'tree of life', on the other (see, for example, L Engnell, Studies in Divine Kingship. Uppsala, 1943 pp. 24 ff.; G. Widengren, The King and the Tree of Life in Ancient Near Eastern Religion, Uppsala, 1 9 5 1 , et passim). Those who developed the above theory overlooked the following facts: (a) Metaphors, just like similes, are used in Mesopotamian literature as pure literary images, not to be taken literally (cl Berlin, Ensul).ke§danna, p. 28); (b) The king is likened to all kinds of trees, and not only to fruit-bearing trees, which may be taken to be rep­ resentations of the 'tree of life'; (c) Side by side with the tree-met­ aphors and sil!liles, the poets use animal-metaphors and similes (cl for example, SD 23 ff.), obviously with no intention of identifying the king with all those animals (cj Heimpel, Tierbilder, pp. 1 5 -42). 123 It is interesting to note, in this connection, that in an U r III economic text from Puzrisdagan ( TDr 5482 iii 12), there is a ref­ erence to GeStinanna "in the temple of Ninsun" (sa-tVnin-sun) 124 See Sect. a 15-16; Sect. b 6-8; 22-23; 24-25; 46-48; 50- 5 1 ; 62-63.

VOL.

7 1 . PT. 7. 1981 1

SHULGI, NINSUN AND AN

belong to the category of "synthetic parallelism." I 25 This is expected in a poem, which consists mainly of monologues and dialogues, and in which the poet strives for brevity and effectiveness of expression. In a number of cases, we were able to observe chiastic arrangement of synthetically parallel clauses. Thus, for example, in Sect. a 7-10, we can observe the following thematic and syntactic chiasms: Ninsun­ An (7)/Ninsun-Lugalbanda (8)/[Lugalbanda-Nin­ sun] (9)/[An-Ninsun] ( 1 0). In Sect. a 1 1 - 14, a synthetic parallelism, with a roughly identical syntac­ tic structure (kalam ni-dagal-ba . . . / /sag-gi, ug-gin, lu-a-ba . . . ), is inserted in another very loose syn­ thetic parallelism (a-a-mu lugal-dingir-re-ne-me­ en/ /sul-gi . . . sipa-zi-bi be-am). Note further the stanza, containing the name-giving motif (Sect. b 35 ff. ). This stanza consists of two synthetic parallelisms (35-36 and 38-39), which begin and end with the keyword mu ('name'). Finally, one should observe the highly frequent oc­ currence of the I and 2 p. sing. enclitic copula me-en, in the first part of Ninsun's pathetic address to Sulgi (cf. Sect. b 17, 20, 22, 23, 26, 28, 30, 33). It serves to emphasize the close intimacy in the relationship between the goddess and the king, her son. l 26 b) Cultic Setting

In our previous discussion of the problem of the authorship and function of the Sulgi hymns, we sug­ gested the possibility that a genuine royal hymn, such as a hymnal-epic, could have been commissioned for a specific religious or historical event, and thereafter put to a secondary and regular use in the temple cult. \27 Accordingly, it seems legitimate to ask the question: What particular event, in Sulgi's royal ca­ reer, could have occasioned the composition of the present hymnal epic? l 28 The main theme of the reconstructed text of our epic seems to be the legitimation of Sulgi's kingship over Sumer, by the Urukean pantheon: He is chosen for leadership by Ninsun (Sect. a 1 2 ff.), who then appeals to An, the ultimate source of divine authority, to approve her choice (Sect. a 10 ff.). As expected, An approves SUlgi's kingship (Sect. I ff.), and later on he invests him with the royal insignia, in the pres­ ence of the assembly of the great gods. Now, if we assume with Jacobsen and others that the kings of the 125 See Sect. a 5-6; 8-9; 12-14; Sect. b 3-5; 1 1 - 12; 1 3 - 16; 2627; 28-29; 33-34; 38-39; 43-44; 56-57; 58-60. For the very loose

and flexible definition of "synthetic parallelism," see Berlin, En­ suhkesdanna, p. 14. 126 For the enclitic copula see now G. B. Gragg, "The Syntax of the Copula in Sumerian" ( The Verb "Be" and its Synonyms, Lan­ guage 9, Supplement, 1968, pp. 86-109). 127 See end of part I , n. 93 above. 128 Since the hymnal framework of our composition is entirely missing, any of the following considerations are bound to be highly speculative.

25

Ur III Dynasty were coronated successively in Nippur, Ur, and ll.ruk, 129 our hymn could be interpreted as reflecting Sulgi's coronation in Uruk. A similar situation is depicted in the great hymnal­ epic SF, 130 where Enlil, the head of the Nippurian pantheon, approves SUlgi's kingship, upon Nanna­ Suen's intercession. 131 In that case, however, the royal protege remains all the time in Ur, and therefore the epic may refer to the central coronation ceremony, which took place in the capital city. As for Sulgi's assumed coronation in Nippur, this event could per­ haps be reflected in SG 20-30, where Enlil calls Sulgi for kingship, bestows upon him a number of royal epithets, and invests him with the regular royal insig­ nia. 1 l2 It is perhaps also relevant to induce, in this context, SD 381 ff., where Sulgi, upon his return from the battlefield, obtains blessings from Enlil, (re)affirming his kingship and e n-ship over Sumer.133

I

I' "

129 See Jacobsen, JCS 7 (1953): p. 36, n. 2; Sollberger, AfO 17 ( 1 954): p. 1 5 ; Wilcke, CZRRA 19, p. 182; Halla, JCS 20 ( 1 966): pp. 1 3 2 ff. See further ThSH, chap, I I I I b, with n. 2 1 8 . 130 See n. 3 3 above,

1 3 1 For further references to intercession in the Sulgi hymns see ThSH, n. 1 1 3. The motif of divine intercession appears also in royal hymns and inscriptions of later generations. Thus, for example, in the cultic Urninurta hymn CT 36, 28-30 and dupls. (cf. Sjoberg, Ancient Near Eastern Studies in Memory ofJ. J. Finkelstein, 1977, pp. 189 ff.), the king, probably during the "hieros gamos" of the New Year festival, is led by his divine spouse, lnanna, before An and Enlil, who then grant him their respective blessings at the god­ dess's request. Similarly, in the Siniddinam hymn CT 45 and dupl. (van Dijk, JCS 19, 1965: pp. 21 f.; SjOberg, RLA III p. 483), we are told that, during the New Year festival, the god Nanna and king Siniddinam traveled from Ur to Nippur, with sacrificial gifts. Having entered the shrine of Enlil and Ninlil, Nanna intercedes for the king, asking his divine parents to bless him. Also in the adab­ hymn of Baba, UMBS Xf2, 14 and dupls. (el SKI. pp. 236 ff.), the goddess leads her royal protege, ISmedagan, into the Ekur, and appeals to her divine father-in-law, Enlil, for a blessing in behalf of the king. Note, finally, the Old Babylonian royal inscription Sam­ suiluna C (cf Borger, Babylonisch-assyrische Lesestiicke, Rome, 1963, pp. 48 f.), where the situation is reversed: There it is the supreme god, Enlil, who commissions, on his own initiative, the divine pair Zababa-IStar to support Samsuiluna in his struggle against his enemies, and to help him rebuild the city of Kis. _ m S�e notes 1 5 - 1 9 above. It is true that another major theme of SG is Sulgi's miraculous birth in the Ekur. However, the birth ep­ isode is abruptly followed by the abovementioned section, which seems to reflect an enthronization ceremony. It is only natural that a hymn occasioned by, or reflecting the coronation of the king, should stress the circumstances of his noble birth, to prove his legitimate right for the throne. Note, however, that the brevity of this hymn, and the fact that it is an a d a b-type royal prayer, render it most suitable for repeated use in the Nippurian cult. 1 33 C. Wilcke considers the possibility that the combined itinerary of SO and SX (cl n. 41 above) may reflect consecutive coronation ceremonies in Nippur, Uruk. and Ur (el CRRA 19, p. 182). Whether this hypothesis is accepted or not, one must assume that SD was composed long after the actual events, described in this epic; so that we have here a retrospective reflection on historical events, that happened in the remote past. This must be true also in respect to other great and highly developed hymnal epics, like SF, and perhaps even SP. For it is hardly conceivable that Sulgi, very close to his accession, could have inspired his poets to compose for him hymnal epics of such magnitude, or that his poets could have brought

I

26

KLEIN: THE ROYAL HYMNS OF SHULGI

Finally, note those hymnal cliches from SA and SE, where Sulgi himself boasts of having been invested with royal insignia in Nippur, Ur, and EriduY4 Closely connected with the legitimation of Sulgi's kingship is another important theme stressed by the

[TRANS. AMER. PHIL. SOc.

poet, namely, the intimate parent-son relationship be­ tween the divine pair Ninsun-Lugalbanda and Sulgi. After informing the king as to An's favorable decision, Ninsun declares:

SUlgi, you are a pure calf, born to me, 1 35 You are the good seed of Lugalbanda" (Sect. b 22�23). Furthermore, the goddess announces Sulgi the "throne name," given to him by his divine father, Lugalbanda: Your father, who begot you, holy Lugalbanda, Called your name: 'Valiant-Whom-An-Knows(-Well)-Among-the-Gods' (Sect. b 38�39). In SF 1 68 ff. (=SLTN 78, rev. i 10 ff.), this "divine birth and naming" theme recurs in a more condensed form. But there NinlJursag, rather than Lugalbanda, is honored by the task of naming Sulgi: l 36 dnin-sun-na-ke4 mu-tud-e-en dnin-lJur-sag-ga-ke, (!) sul:gi su[ I ( ?)-x] *81.).1 an-*ne(!) zu mu-se mu-sa4 "I have been born by Ninsun; NinlJursag gave me as (my) name: 'The-Noble-Lad-the- · . . -Lad-Whom-An(-Personally)-Knows'. 1 37 Note further SD 44, where it is An who is said to have called Sulgi a good name upon his birth (an-ne mu-duw-[ga mu-ra-an-sa,]). the literary genre of the royal epics to such high level of development. We cannot rule out the possibility, that some of these long hymnal epics and self-praises, represent enlarged and refined versions of earlier, more limited and primitive literary compositions ("forerun­ ners"), stemming from the beginning of Su!gi's reign, and having acquired their present form toward the middle or end of his royal career (see also discussion in n. 44 above). 134 See SA 87-89 "An placed the legitimate (and) lofty crown on my head,/ In the lustrous Ekur I seized the holy scepter,/ On a shining dais, a throne of firm foundation, I lifted my head towards heaven" ; SE 5 ff. "Enlil . . in his 'overflowing heart', gave me the scepter./ To me, who was invested with the legitimate crown, in the brickwork of Eridu,/ To me, who bears the shining pectoral from Unug,j To me, the beloved shepherd of Nanna, who is fit for the throne dais,/ The word of Ninlil brought good things from every­ where," 1 35 The likening of Suigi to a young and well-fed calf, born in the enclosure and so forth_, is a motif attested elsewhere in the Sulgi hymns. See especially SF 65, where he is referred to as amar-ku ab­ zi-ge a-e-a "a pure calf, reared by a good cow" (cf also SC 6; SD 3; SX 69). It is perfectly appropriate for Ninsun (,Lady-of-the-Wild­ Cows'), who in Sect. b 52, seems to refer to herself as "the woman the good cow," to call Sulgi "my naturally born calL" For the moti f of the "good cow," who gives birth to kings, in Sumerian literature, see now Sjoberg, OrSuec 21 ( 1 972): pp. 99 ff. Sjoberg tends to identify the "good cow" generally with Ninsun, and suspects an underlying tradition that originated in Uruk. While in general this hypothesis is justified, we are not convinced that the "good cow," who is said to have given birth to Gudea (Cyt. B xxiii 2 1 ), is to be identified with Ninsun, This would run contrary to the fact that throughout the Gudea texts, it is Gatumdug, who figures as Gudea's divine mother (se!? Falkenstein, AnOr 30, pp. 2 f.). 136 The name 'Sulgi' itself may have been a short form of the above lengthy "throne names:' mentioned in our hymn and SF (cf

Sjoberg, OrSuec 21, ( 1 972): p. 1 1 2). Alternatively, the above lengthy epithets could represent "midrashic" elaborations on the personal name 'sul-gi(r), which the king bore from his birth. For the various readings of this name, and its etymology, see J. Krecher, SKLy, p. 108; E. Sollberger, TCS 1: p. 22; H. Limet, Anthropon­ yrnie, pp. 355-356. The motif of giving a "throne name" to the newly born young king, is much favored by Sulgi's poets. It recurs in SG 21 ff., where immediately upon the king's birth in the Ekur, Enlil names him with the following epithets: A lion's seed, who makes the k ti r prosper, the belo[ved of Nin]lil, He who was granted authority in the Ekur, the king of Ur (He of) the radiant heart, the shepherd, the (protective) angel of the land. Apparently, the Sulgi hymns borrowed this motif from the Gudea inscriptions. Cf Gudea, Cyl. A X 1-5; 12-14, where Ningirsu an­ nounces Gudea the names, given him by Enlil and An. 1 37 For a different translation of sui an-ne-zu, see comment to t. 37 below. We opted for the present translation, suggested by Fal­ kenstein (see ZA SO: ( 1 952): p. 75; see also J. Krecher, OrNS 47, ( 1 978): p. 390), assuming the following underlying idea: The Su­ merian King (or ruler), is a man (sag) or a junior deity (dingir), who is chosen by a major god out of the anonymous multitudes (un­ sar-ra) of the black heads (sag-git;-ga). This major patron-god, then, introduces him to one of the supreme gods of the pantheon (An or Enlil), and henceforth the latter also knows him personally. Note that the intimate relationship between God and his prophet is de­ scribed in the Bible in very similar terms. Cf Ex 33: 1 8 , where God says to Moses: "for you have truly gained my favor, and I have known you by name"; Jer I : 5 "Before I formed you in the belly, I have known you." See addenda.

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One wonders whether the above statements of Nin­ sun, in our hymn, should be understood literally, as referring to the day, when Sulgi was actually born; or rather to be interpreted as referring to events that took place on the very day of Sulgi's coronation. In other words: does Ninsun reaffirm here an assumed divine parentage from the king's birth, or does she announce his adoption as a son on the very day that he became the chosen king?13 8 Whether one opts for the first or second interpretation, one fact stands out: the divine status of Sulgi is henceforth firmly estab­ lished.

2)

3)

c) Orthographical and Grammatical Observations

The present writer's continuous preoccupation with the Sulgi hymns led him to the recognition that the duplicates of these hymns, although all stemming from 4) the Old Babylonian period, exhibit a considerable number of deviations from the contemporary OB or­ thographical and grammatical practices. A prelimi­ nary study of these orthographical and grammatical irregularities revealed that the majority of them cor­ respond to standard Ur III practices, and therefore they can be considered as archaic survivals from the Ur III period. l J9 A full and conclusive evaluation of the significance of these findings, in regard to the prob­ lem of the transmission of the Sulgi hymns, will be­ come possible only after a comprehensive and defin­ itive study of their orthography and grammar, against the background of other literary compositions from the OB period. The following tentative observations, 5) therefore, should be accepted with due reserve and criticism: I ) The orthographical and grammatical peculiarities in the Sulgi texts may be regarded as genuine sur138 For arguments in favor and against the theory of "adoption," see now Sjoberg, "Die gottliche Abstammung der Sumerisch-ba­ bylonischen Herrscher", OrSuec 21 (1972): pp. 105 ff. 1 39 Preliminary remarks to this effect were eX ressed by the writer J2 in JCS 31 ( 1 979): p. 1 5 1 , n. 10. See also ThSH, chap. I I 1 d; III I d. That the Sulgi texts contain some features of archaic orthog­ raphy in writing verbal affixes has been independently observed also by W. Heimpel, who in the foreword to his forthcoming monograph The Structure of the Sumerian Prefix Chain (a manuscript which was available to me in the University Museum), points out that, among others, Sulgi D exhibits an archaic orthography, which is "characterized by plene spellings, the choice of ba- before mu-, short spellings of m, as for example i-ma- for im-ma-, phonetic spellings of ga-." A preliminary examination of the Sulgi hymns, vis-a-vis the in­ scriptions of Gudea, revealed that the former were heavily influenced by the latter, not only in respect to their orthography and grammar, but also with regard to their vocabulary, phraseology, and literary motifs. One cannot escape the conclusion that the poets and scribes of the Ur I I I empire draw heavily upon the literary and scribal models of their Lagasite colleagues, when they came to develop their own corpus of royal literature. One should keep in mind, after all, that Lagas, as far as we know, was the greatest and only Sumerian literary and cultural center, immediately preceding the rise of the Ur III D¥nasty, that is, the only center from which the scribes and poets of Sulgi could learn. We hope to substantiate the above hy­ pothesis, in our forthcoming edition of SE.

27

vivals from the Ur III period, and not as "archa­ isms" artificially and deliberately created by the OB scribes. The orthography and grammar of those Sulgi hymns, which were very popular in scribal circles and formed a basic part of scribal curriculum, such as, SA and SB, were more thoroughly "modern­ ized" then those of the less popular Sulgi hymns, such as, the hymnal epics. These archaic orthographical and grammatical survivals seem to support the theory that at least a great part of the Sulgi hymns were transmitted by a quite accurate literary (written), rather than oral, tradition. The above theory however, has to be substantiated from literary and historical evi­ dence. In the classification of the various manuscripts of the Sulgi hymns according to their variant read­ ings, particular attention should be paid to the de­ gree in which archaic writings were preserved by these manuscripts. Thus, for example, it can be demonstrated that one group of the manuscripts of SE exhibits a tendency for archaic spellings; another group exhibits a tendency for late (OB) spellings, whereas a third group of manuscripts of this hymn exhibits a mixture of both archaic and late spellings. As far as we could determine, the manuscripts stemming from Ur do not show a greater tendency for archaic writings than those stemming from Nippur. Since a considerable part of Sumerian literature available only in OB manuscripts was probably composed in the Ur III period, 1 40 it is not impossible that upon a careful examination of their orthog­ raphy manuscripts of other literary compositions (and not only those of Ur III royal hymns) would exhibit such archaic spellings. Accordingly, ortho­ graphical and grammatical variants of OB manu­ scripts of all Sumerian literary compositions should be analyzed and evaluated also on the basis of their tendency for archaic versus "modern" or­ thography. I' 1 1 40

See n. 6 above. Th. Jacobsen, as early as 1 939, isolated Old Sumerian gram­ matical and syntactical forms from their OB equivalents, in the formulaic passages of the manuscripts of the Sumerian Kinglist. Although he assumed these archaisms to be genuine survivals from the Old Sum period, he regarded them as of low value as indicators of geneological relationship between different manuscripts. In Ja­ cobsen's opinion, the intentional modernization of the orthography and grammar of ancient compositions could be independently made by various individual copyists, who accepted the same norms for correct language (cf AS 1 1 , pp. 36-42). The occurrence of ortho­ graphical and grammatical archaisms in heavily "modernized" OB duplicates of Sumerian literary compositions, such as, the Epic of Lugalbanda, was later pointed out also by A. Falkenstein, in his article "Zur Chronologie der sumerische Literatur" (cf CRRA 2, 195 1 : p. 13). Falkenstein considered these archaisms as supportive evidence for his theory, that the greater part of Sumerian literature, available in copies from the 1 8 - 1 7 Centuries B.C., was composed in 1 4\

I

,;,1

I!:

I

,

!i

28

KLEIN: THE ROYAL HYMNS OF SHULGI

We hope to provide some solid piece of evidence to the above hypotheses, in our forthcoming edition of SE. At present, we intend to discuss briefly only those orthographical and grammatical peculiarities which could be observed in the manuscripts of the hymn under study. ORTHOGRAPHICAL PECULIARITIES

The orthographical peculiarities in the texts of SP can be subsumed under five major headings: ( 1 ) Plene writings of vowels with -a- and -il-; (2) Omission of the morphemes lal and lei in interconsonantal po­ sition; (3) Phonetic (or syllabic) writings; (4) Incon­ sistency in the marking of determinatives; (5) Mis­ cellaneous irregularities. ( 1 ) Plene writings with -a- and -il-. The lengthening of the lal vowel, immediately pre­ ceding the verbal root can be observed in the following A), ma-LaJ-g\lr (a 1 7 forms:' 42 ma-a-tum (a 1 6 A), be-ma-ta-a-giil (b 34 A), mu-na-a-de ( a 1 9 B). The lengthening of the final lal vowel in mu­ ga-ra-a (b 6 and 1 5 B) B) and ni-si-sa-a (b 33 marks the contraction of the locative postposition with a preceding nominalizing I-aj. In dlugal-ban-da-a (b B) it probably marks the contraction of a final 38 lal with the agentive suffix l-ej. l 43 The lengthening of a final lui vowel is attested in bul-la-zu-il (b 46 B, C, D), nam-sita,-sa6-ga-zu-il �

�

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the Ur I I I period. Note further the important studies in archaic versus late orthographies, undertaken by M. Civil-R. D. Biggs (RA 60, ( 1 966): pp. 12-16) and I. M. Diakonoff (AS 20, pp. 99 ff.). We generally agree with the conclusions, reached by the abovementioned scholars, with one reservation: We are of the opinion that whereas the OB scribes were free. to a great extent, to "modernize" the orthography and grammar of their textual "Vorlage;' they were by no means free to replace a modern orthography with an archaic one. In other words. the process of modernization must have been a one­ way street, which could not be reversed. Accordingly, if one or more manuscripts of a literary composition exhibit survivals of archaic writing and grammar, this may be taken (together with other forms of evidence) as a positive indication of Ur I I I authorship. On the other hand, the lack of manuscripts exhibiting a tendency for archaic forms is not to be taken as evidence for late authorship, because, as Jacobsen and Falkenstein observed, in the process of literary transmission, both orthography and grammar could be radically "modernized. " 1 42 We still consider it possible that these lengthenin,.gs are com­ pensatory for the elision of an infixed n or b (see ThSH, n. 176). For a different interpretation of these lengthenings, see now Yosh­ ikava, OrNs 46 ( 1 967): pp. 447 ff. Note that the early Old Baby­ lonian royal inscriptions, which exhibit some tendency for archaisms, and contain a considerable number of plene writings with a final -a, do not show even one lengthening preceding th.e verbal root, so characteristic to the Gudea inscriptions and the Sulgi texts. Also lengthenings with -11- are totally absent from these royal inscriptions (ef Karki, SrO, 35, pp. 1 1 - 14). 1 43 Whether or not the -a- marks a long /a/ in du-a-a[m] (a 5 B), it cannot be determined. = A) and lugma6-PA-a-mu (b 3 1 =

[TRANS. AMER. PHIL SOC.

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7 1 , PT. 7. 1 98 1 ]

SHULGI, NINSUN AND AN

(b 47 C, 0; B omits -il) and probably [x x-m ]u(?)­ A). il (a 18

B); I 53 ra-zu pilluda (b 6 mil[s]; I 52 pi-lus-da B, 0); 1 54 \lrs-ra-as (a-)ra-zu in ra-zu-za (b 48 D). I 55 (dluras (b 50

(2) Omission of the morphemes lal and lei in interconsonantal position.

(4) Inconsistency in the marking of determinatives.

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Occasionally, the texts of SP fail to express in writ­ ing the morphemes lal and lei, when these are ex­ pected to appear between two consonants. This "ir­ regularity" is characteristic also to texts from the Ur I I I period, including those of Gudea. 1 44 The morpheme A); I45 e­ lal is not expressed in ni-dagal-ba (a 1 2 I46 47 ki-nam-tar-ba' (b 57 gal-mab-ni-si: (b 1 4 B); D). 148 The morpheme lei is not expressed in su­ dingir-gal-gal-ne-ke4 (b 36 B).'" �

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�

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(3) Phonetic writings. The texts of SP contain a relatively great number of phonetic (or syllabic) writings. Most of these writ­ ings are characteristic also to the Gudea texts and other sources from the Ur III period: ga-ar gar in bi-ga-a[r ]-x-x (a 4 A); ga-ra gar­ ra in mu-ga-ra-a (b 6 and 1 5 B);' SO ga-ras(KASKAL) mils D);'5 l mus ka-as in [g]a-ras-si-sa (b 63 B; D reads in mus nam-ba-an-tum-mu (b 48 �

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144 In the case of such "defective" writings, Falkenstein simply restored the unmarked /a/, by assuming an alternative reading of CVC signs with an overhanging /a/ vowel (see GSGL I, pp. 1 2 ff.; see also Karki, Star 35, pp. 4- 1 1 ). A linguistically more sophisti­ cated approach to the solution of this problem is exhibited by M. Civil and R. D. Biggs (RA 60. 1966: pp. 1 2- 1 6), as well as by I. . M. Oiakonoff (AS 20, pp. 99 ff.). They point out that the Sumerian writing system never attained a stage in which all grammatical morphemes were fully expressed in writing. It is interesting, and perhaps not insignificant, to note that more than two thirds of these "defective" writings, listed by Falkenstein in the Gudea inscriptions, involve an /r/ or another liquid/nasal consonate (g, I. m, n), pre­ ceding the unmarked /a/ morpheme. As for the remaining 25 forms, 16 involve the consonants s and b. Likewise, out of 36 different words with an assumed overhanging vowel, C()lIected by Karki (ibid.), 29 end with an /r/ or other liquid/nasal consonant (dr, m, n. i); and 4 end with S. 1 4S Contrast, for example, SA 66, where all texts read ni-dagal­ la-ba. 146 CI, for example, Gudea, Stat. E iv 14 (kisal-mal)-na); Stat. A ii 5 (e-mab-ni-a). The omission of /a/ after mal) is also common to the early Old Babylonian royal inscriptions (el Star 35: p. 8). 147 For *ki-nam-tar-a-be-a; cf. e. g. SKI, p. 13, I. 25 ki-nam-tar­ ra-ne. 4 1 8 Note further e-me-en (b 20 = B) for *e-a-me-en. 1 49 Note further the 'broken' morphophonemic spellings mu-da­ B), for -gub-be-en an-gub-en (b 2 = B ) and l)e-ma-tum-en (b 9 and -tum-me-en. 1 50 The above syllabic writings for the !;am!u form of the verb gar, characteristic mainly to the Ur III texts and to the manuscripts of the 5ulgi hymns, will be documented in our forthC()ming edition of SE. 151 Cf comment to lines 62-63 below. Note that this phonetic writing, outside of the Sulgi hymns, is attested only in a pre/early Sargonic literary text (el; JCS 23, ( 1 970): p. 1 19, n. 15). This seems to indicate that in the Suigi hymns it is an archaic orthography, which survived from the Ur III originals. =

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The manuscripts of SP, not unlike the Gudea texts, l 56 exhibit a considerable inconsistency in the marking of the determinatives. Thus determinatives before common names of trees and tools are occa­ sionally omitted. iS7 Divine names are generally marked with the determinative of divinity, except when written D). The writing phonetically (cf \lrs-ra-as in b 50 of a-nun-na without the determinative (cf b 56 C, i D) is noteworthy. S S Note finally the consistent writing of SUlgi's name by all texts without the determinative for divinity. It has been assumed by C. Wilcke 1 59 that �

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I S2

This phonetic writing, already attested in Gudea, t;:yl. B x 6, will be fully documented in our forthcoming edition of SE. 1 53 The �rthography pi-Iu5-da for pilluda(PA.AN/PA.LUGAL) is characteristic to the Old Sum. and Neo-Sum. Lagas inscriptions (cf. GSGL I. p. 29). 4 15 For the above phonetic writing, characteristic to the Ur III period, see comment to b. 48 below. Note that in b 9, text B has the standard Old Babylonian orthography a-ra-zu. If Jacobsen's sug­ gestion as to the etymology of this word is justified (ef JNES 12, ( 1 953): p. 1 82, n. 44), the OB (rather than the Ur III) form should represent a phonetic writing. 155 This phonetic.writing of the ON duras imore properry durras) is attested also in SX 1 5 7 and SRT 1 5, 2 (SQ). See ThSH. chap. III 2 b. comment to SX 157; MSL 1 3 , p. 208, lines 232-234. In lnanna's Exaltation iii 8 1 , this DN is disguised under the form ur­ as-a: pala-nam-ur-a-sa "the royal garb of Urras' office," which was somewhat mistranslated by Akk. te-di-iq da-nu-ti "the royal garb of Anuship" (el Hruska, ArOr 37, ( 1 969); p. 485). durs-ra-as may turn out to be a survival of an archaic orthography. 156 See GSGL I, pp. 34 f. 1 57 Trees: C A) and arina (a 1 7 = A), on the one f mes (a 1 5 hand, to fgl']erin, g'Sba-su-ur-ra (a 5 A), g!!arina (b 1 = B) and g"GiR-gal (b 1 7 B), on the other hand. Tools: Cf gidri (b 37 and C, 0). 42 = B) to gi'gu_za (b 61 1 58 This noun is written in the Old Sumerian period without the determinative; ef a-nun-ke4-ne in the Sargonic mythological text FTS 106, No. 6a iv 5 (see Falkenstein, AS 16, p. 128, n. 1 ; Edzard, RLA V, p. 38). In the Ur III period, the determinative for divinity is introduced, and usually applied (ef GSGL I, p. 34), with a few exceptions (ef a-nun-na in Gudea, Cyl. B i 20; al}d a-nun-na-eridux1 in the Ur III incantation TDr 1 : 4 and I I ). The Sulgi hymns reflect the orthography of the Ur III texts . Thus, in SB 248 we find da_ nun-na-ke4-ne (3 text witnesses); ef also da-nun-na in BE 3 1 , 4 ii 3 (=SH); da-nun-ke4-ne in SO 1 34; da-nun-na-ke4-ne in VET VI 93, obv. I ( =SS). The duplicates of SF, however, still vacillate between the archaic and the later orthographies. Compare da-nun(-na)-ke4ne in 1 . 73 ( TMHNF IV 1 1 , 73 = TRS 86, 8) to a-nun-na in 1 . 248 (BE 3 1 , 24 ii 5). Note also SRT 1 5, 9 (=SQ) dingir-si-sa-a�nun­ ke4-ne. As for STVC 60, rev. 29 ( SR) the sign preceding a-nun­ na is obscure . A perusal of the early OB royal inscriptions (ef Karki, Star 35, p. 50) and the OB literary texts, based mainly on the references collected by Falkenstein, in his article "Die Anunna in der sumerischen Uberlieferung" (AS 16, p. 127 ff.), indicates that these write our noun almost exclusively with the determinative. Writings without the determinative I was able to observe only in a syllabically written bilingual (Sumer XIII, pI. I 1-2; ef MNS. p. 20) and in TRS 79, 23 et passim (a-a-a-nun-na-ke4). 1 59 See CRRA 19, p. 179; p. 189, n. 35. =

=

=

=

=

,

29

those hymns, which spell SUlgi's name without the determinative, were composed prior to his deification, whereas those hymns, which spell his name with the determinative, were composed after his deification. A perusal of the corpus of the Sulgi hymns and hymnal fragments, however, indicates that nearly all of them write the royal name without the determinative. The conspicuously few exceptions to this rule involve mainly the manuscripts of those hymns, whose or­ thography is thoroughly modernized. l 6O The best way to explain the above phenomena, in our opinion, is to assume that originally all hymns, without exception, wrote Sulgi's name without the determinative of di­ vinity, 1 6 1 and that the appearance of the determinative in a number of hymns is a late and secondary devel­ opment. (5) Miscellaneous irregularities. The texts of SP contain a number of isolated in­ stances of orthographical irregularities, which may be considered as survivals of Ur III orthography. These are: The writing of ak-ke4 for lak-el (the mara form of ak 'to do') (b 36 B); I 62 the writing of Idingir­ ene/ as dingir-re-ne;' 63 the writing of the verbal infix Ib/, following an Iii vowel, with -ib- (b 24 and 42 B); 164 the writing of the enclitic copula I-menl with �

�

1 60 Only SS, SY and fragments N 5935 (obv. 3), Ni 9625 (1. 2) and UMBS X I I I 29, 5. write consistently the divine determinative. The manuscripts of SA, as a rule, also exhibit the determinative, with a very few exceptions (cf. ThSH, chap. IV 2 a, SA 10, 26 and _ 55, with textual notes). As for the manuscripts of SB, these seem to have a tendency to omit the determinative, though with a sig­ nificant number of exceptions. 161 Contrary to the royal inscriptions, written after his deification, which do exhibit the divine determinative. For further discussion of this problem see ThSH, n. 42. 1 62 This writing seems to be standard Old Sumerian and Ur III practice (ef for example, Ean. I, rev. i 21; GSGL I, p. 9, with n. 4), which survived, among others, in the less popular hymnal epics of Sulgi (cf. also SO 192 ba-mu-u-ak-ke4). In other SUlgi texts, the later writing, ak-e, is attested (ef SC 75 he-em-ga-am-si-in-ak-ak­ es; 99 im-ma-ak-e et passim). The latter writing appears already toward the end of the Ur III period (ef for example, TCS I . p. 54, No. 199, 6 be-mu-na-ak-e), and seems to be standard for the O B literary texts. Thus for example, a perusal of the proverb collections 1-2, in Gordon's SP. indicates exclusively ak-e. See further MG 9 et passim; AS I I , p. 38, sub d) and e). It is not impossible, that AK-e in the OB period is to be read as-e, rather than ak-e (ef MSL II, p. 72, I. 524; Heimpel, Tierbilder. p. 173). 163 So consistently texts A, B and C (cf. a l l ; b 7, 39 and 44). The above form is standard for the Ur III period, whereas the longer form, dingir-re-e-ne, appears later, and prevails in the OB literary texts. A full documentation of these two forms in the various manu­ scr�ts of the Sulgi hymns, will be given in our forthcoming edition of SE. The early DB royal inscriptions, already exhibit exclusively the late longer form (ef Star 35: p. 13). 164 The standard OB orthography is -ib-. In our forth.coming edi­ tion of SE, it will be demonstrated that whereas many Sulgi hymns use -lb- exclusively, some of them use -ib- side by side with -lb-. The almost exclusive use of -lb- in the early OB royal inscriptions (ef Star 35: p. 3), is part of a tendency for conservatism. Otherwise, these inscriptions exhibit many late orthographic practices. See ad­ denda.

30

KLEIN: THE ROYAL HYMNS OF SHULGI

(TRANS. AMER. PHIL SOC.

VOL. 1 1 . PT. 1, 1981 J

SHULGI. NINSUN AND AN

FIG. 2. CBS 13991 obverse (SP, text C)

FIG. 3. Ni 4420 obverse

& reverse (SP, text A)

31

KLEIN: THE ROYAL HYMNS OF SHULGI

32

-me-en( LI);'6S the writing of the 2 p. sing. locative­ terminative infix jrij with -ri- (b 39 B);' 66 and the writing of juguj ( =iilidu ) with ugu.( KU).'67 A few other orthographical peculiarities, which do not seem to represent archaic practices, but some of them are characteristic to the Sulgi hymns, can be observed in the texts of our hymn. These are: arina( MUSxMUS) (a 1 7 A) and '''arina­ (MUSxMUS+NA) (b I B) for jarinaj 'roots';'68 1:1 1- for the precative preformative be- (b 37 = B);' 69 lugal-Ia (b 6, 21 and 41 B) for the regular lugal-Ia (b 43 B, C);1 70 and se-er-ga-an (b 41 B) for the more frequently documented se-er-ka-an, in the verb se-er-ka-an d U I I . 1 7 1 =

=

=

=

=

(TRANS. AMER.

PHIL SOC.

two laller forms may be considered in text B of our hymns as archaic survivals from the Ur III period.'" Other historically less significant points of interest, concerning the grammar of our manuscripts, are: -muj-zu ( I j2 p. sing. possessive pronoun) + am (3 p. sing. enclitic copula) contract to -mu-umj-zu-um, i. e. jmumj and jzumj (a 15, 17 A; b 1 9 = B); on the other hand, contraction does not take place, when -am follows the precative preformative be- (cf. be-am in a 1 4 = A). 1 71 The sequence j-mu-aj ( I p. sing. possessive pronoun + locative post-position) appears in text B as mu-a (b 24, 25 and 32) and -ga (b 26).'78 The verbal prefix chain *be-mu-'a- (containing the I p. sing. dative infix) appears twice as be-ma- (b 9 and B). ' 79 The comitative postposition -da and the 47 verbal infix -da- appear as -ta and -ta- respectively, in the phrase inim-ku-mu-ta nir be-em-ta-a-gal (b 34 B)."o Finally, the verb nam-tar is construed with the dative, rather than the locative-terminative, infix in Sec\. b 25 ( B).' 8I =

=

GRAMMATICAL PECULIARITIES

The most interesting and historically significant, grammatical peculiarity exhibited by text B, concerns its system of independent pronouns. If our reconstruc­ tion of this system is justified, then we obtain the fol­ lowing forms: I p. sing.: ga-e (Sec\. b 28)1 72 2 p. sing.: ze (Sec\. b 2 and 9) 3 p. sing.: a-ne (Sec\. b 32).1 73 Whereas ga-e is normal for the OB period,'" ze and a-ne seem to be the standard forms used in the Old Sumerian and Ur III periods .'" Hence, at least these II>! So text A. in Sect. a 1 1 ; text B. in Sect. b, 20. 22. 23. 26. 28. 30. 33 (but note -me-en in I . 17!): text C, in Sect. b 33; and text D. in Sect. b 49. This is correlated with the writing of the verbal suffix I-en/ with -en (Sect. b 2. 9 and 24 = 8). The vacillation of Ihe Sulgi texts between -me-en and -me-en will be fully documented in our fonhcoming edition of SE. There. we hope to show that both writings arc as old as the Ur I I I period. and that the continued use of -me-en (beside -me-en), in the Sulgi hymns. indicates once again a conservative adherence to Ur I I I scribal practices. 166 The standard OB orthography is -rio. For the archaic writing -ri- see our forthcoming edition of SE. 161 The standard OB orthography is ugu(U.KA) or u-gu. For the archaic ugu•. which is characteristic for the Ur I I I period. and sur­ vived mainly in the hymnal epics of Sulgi. see Klein. JCS 31 ( 1 979): pp. 1 50-153. 1M See comment to Sect. a 1 7 below. 169 I n the verbal form be-ni-zi ( o r bi-ni-zi, if a vowel harmony i s assumed). This orthography will be documented i n our comment to SE 50. 170 Note the inconsistency of text B! 111 See comment to Sect. b 4 1 below. For the variant writings of this verb. see now SjOberg. rcs 3, p. 92. Note that the present form of this word. exhibiting the Igl consonant. is found elsewhere only in the Ur I I l lbbi-suen inscription UET 1 289. 2 1 . and in SLTN 72. 17. m CI also ga-4;-me-en (b 30) and iB-{e )-me-en (b 17). III A ppearing as a pronominal element i n the compound verb a­ ne . . . dun-ga (cf Falkenstein. ZA 56, ( 1 964): p. 83). 11. The corresponding form in the Gudea inscriptions s i ga (ef GSGL I. pp. 49 f.). Note, however, that the Ur III economic texts seem to exhibit normally the long form ga-e (e/, for example, rcs I, p. 127. sub No. 275). In The corresponding OB forms are za-e and e-ne, respectively. ze is attested in the Gudea Cylinders. as well as in syllabically

=

=

written texts from the Isin period. only i n combination with the enclitic copula: ze-me-en te/ GSGL I. p_ 49. with n. I : p. 50 with n. 4). The same pronoun appears in ES (cf Krecher_ HSAO, pp. 100 L). As for a-ne, this form is standard for the Old Sumerian and Ur I I I per;ods (see SAKI, p. 1 54 ;; 34-37; GSGL I, p. 49; TeS I . p. 1 00. No_ 57; ViroUeaud. TEL. p. 1 4 1 . No. 5 0 et passim). 1 76 The form ze seems not to be attested elsewhere in the Sulgi hymns. Note, however, that the still partly obscure refrain of SO (ef. AOAT 25, p. 278, I. 83 et passim ) may also contain this pronoun (Zl! ga.-ra 'you to me'?). The form a-ne. on the other hand, occurs in the Sulgi hymns quite frequently (some references were collected already by SjOberg. in MNS. p. 1 1 2). See So 1 0 (a-ne-di): .sX 29 (a-ne in-da-an-dul l-ga-gin7); 69 (a-ne-di): 1 5 8 (a-ne-bUl-la dull ' dUll). See also a-ne-ne in So 373. As stated above (n. 175). the standard form of this pronoun in the OB literary texiS is c-ne. with some exceptions. A few duplicates of classical epics and myths pre­ served the older form a-ne (el EWO 364; Wi1cke. Lugalbanda. p. 102. I. 1 1 7; p. 126, I. 395: AOAT 25, p_ 146. I. 39)_ The writing ki­ a-ne-di in SRT I 1 1 1 3 1 (= Inanna-Iddindagan 102; cf. SKI. p. 173) may indicate that in the Isin period. this pronoun still had the form a-ne. 117 Since both -mu-um and be-am occur in texts from all periods beginning from the Ur I I I period. the historical evaluation of these forms is inconclusive. Note, however. that whereas ·mu-um is not attested in the Gudea texts (cf GSGL I. p. 1 47), be-am and similar forms occur in these texts (el ibid.. p. 45). For further discussion of this problem see our forthcoming edition of SE. 11S This inconsistency is also characteristic to the Gudea texts (see GSGL I. p_ 54; p. 109). Cf also ThSH, n. 1 9 1 . where the variation between -ba and obi-a, in the SO manuscripts. is documented. 119 The above sequence normally appears in the form ba-ma-. See comment to Sect. b 46-48 below. 110 The Ur I I I personal names den-lil-da-nir-gal and the like. seem 10 indicate that the use of the comitative, in connection with the verb nir-gal. is primary (el Gragg. SDI, p. 45 f.: p. 63), whereas the use of the ablative. in this context. is late and secondary, probably only a phonetic variant of the comitative. For further examples to this phonetic change. see. for example, e.g. TRS 1 8 ii 27'; EWO 214: JAOS 88 ( 1 968): p. 83. I. 32. '1' For the normal behavior of this verb. in finite form. see Edzard, AS 20, pp. 70 fr. The present irregularity is probably induced by the employment of the locative-terminative infix -ni-, for the re­ sumption of the locative postposition a, in the preceding noun.

VOL 11. PT. 1.

198 1 )

SHULGI, NINSUN AND AN

33

KLEIN: THE ROYAL HYMNS OF SHULGI

34

[TRANS. AMER. PHIL. SOC.

2. Edition of Sulgi P

The text has been reconstructed from the following manuscripts:

Ni 4420

A:

Correspondence

Publication [SET I pI. 25; Fig. 3 182

Sect. a 1 - 2 1 ; obv. + rev. left edge Sect. a 1 '-2' =

=

3

B:

Ni 2437

SLTN 80; Fig. 4 18

obv.

C:

CBS 1 39 9 1

Figs. 1 _2 184

Sect. b 32(?)-33(?) obv. i obv. ii Sect. b 42-48 obv. iii Sect. b 55-63(7)

+

rev.

=

Sect. b 1-48

=

=

=

D:

HS 1 592

TMHNF IV 10 185 Section

I. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10.

I I.

1 2. 1 3. 14. 1 5. 1 6. 1 7. 1 8. 19.

A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A A

obv.

+

rev.

=

Sect. b 42-66

a

[ ] X X 1 86 [ ] [ x X x ] X [xl-rIa 1(?) leil87 bi-mu[ l ] [ x x-n]a(?) mi mu l 88-na-ni-dul l X [ ] [ nam( ? )-ta ]r(? )-ra-ne su-zi b[ 189-ga-a[ r ]-r x-x] 190 fgislerin.durus gisha-su-ur-ra dtl-a-a[ m ] 191 a-a-zu an-kii-ge pa mu-ni-mul-mu[ l ] U4-ba nin-mu inim-an-na-ke4 ba_gub 192 dnin-sun-na-ke,(!) dam(? )-a-nj193 kii-dlugal-ban-da nam ba-da-an-tar(!)-re(!) I 94 sizkur-ra-na mu-da-an-kUs-ii ' an-ku-ra ub-su-kin-na-ka si mu-na-ni-in-sa 1 95 a-a-mu an lugal-dingir-re-ne-me-en 196 kalam ni-dagal-ba igi mu-ni-il sag-gi6 u,-gin, lu-a-ba sul-gi gu sag(?)-ba ma-ni-in(?)-x sjpa l 97-zi-bi \}e-am mes pa-mul-mu-um ki ma-an-dar(?) LXJI98_m�-dam ffi\l_mu 199 ma-a-tum [Xl-LX] arina2OO-mu-um ur ma_Ia]_g\lr20 1 [ x x-m]u(?)-y, sig,-ki-en-gi-ra-ka202 pa_e( ? )203 b",-ni(!)-ak [x x x] IX] [tJi(?)-la( ? ) mu-na-a_d�204

182 See o. 95 above. This text was collated also by myself, from photograph made in 1 970. 1 83 Collated from original ( 1 970), as well as from photographs, made in 1970 and 1977. 1 84 Identified by myself ( 1 978). Only obverse is inscribed; reverse seems to have been inscribed and subsequently erased. The columns of this text are extremely narrow (half the width of columns of other texts). 1 85 Collated by C. Wilcke (cf. Kol/ationen, p. 50); text also col­ lated by myself, from photograph, supplied by S. N. Kramer. Note that all collations, in this edition (marked by an asterisk), are in­ dicated in notes 186 ff. below. 1 86 Illegible traces of two or three signs on the original (uncopied). 1 87 So copy; photograph indicates a damaged sign, which may be KI or DL 1 88 The MU sign is written over erasure. 1 89 bi- is followed by an erasure of NI or [I]N. 19Q Photograph indicates traces of two signs, following bi-ga.-a[r] (uncopied).

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VOL. 71, PT. 7.

20. A 21. A I '. A 2'. A

a) Transliteration

Catalog Number

I I

1 91 Traces in photograph indicate -a-A.A[N]. 1 92 ba-gub is written over erasure. 1 9) So original dam(?)-a-*ni. 194 Original has -tar(!)-re(!) or bur(!) (so Wilcke, upon Edzard's collation); the verbal root is not discernible on the photograph. 195 So verbal form in the text, with the IN written below the line, between -ni- and -sa-. 1 96 So original clearly -me-"'en. 1 97 So original *sipa-. 1 98 Traces in the beginning of the line do not point to rURUl. 1 99 Photograph indicates "'mu + erasure (or a damaged sign) + mll. 200 So ori&inal arina(*MUSxMU8); traces preceding arina do not point to GIS. 201 So probably original -"'g\lr. 202 So original -"'ka. 20 ) Photograph indicates *pa *l)D."'rDU1(?). 204 Photograph indicates -"'de (rather than -SRt;).

1981 ) [x X ] ] 1

SHULGI, NINSUN AND AN

35

X X x] LX xJ-ka u, ba-ba-g\lb'05 L X X] [ ] (a gap of unknown length; text continued by left edge) X uriki_ma20' DU(?) x n(lm-Iugal ba-mu (a gap of unknown Length; text continued by B obverse) Section b

1.

2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 1 0.

I I.

1 2. 1 3. 14. 1 5. 1 6. 17. 18. 1 9. 20. 21. 22. 23. 24. 25. 26. 27. 28. 29. 30. 31. 32. 33.

B B B B B B B B B B B B B B B B B B B B B B B B B B B B B B B BC BC

gisarina207_bi ki im_ma_pad208 Zl;209 in im-ku-ba mu-da-an-gub-en za-e-gal-mab-uriki2 1 0-ma-ka inim-dui O ka-e ba-ab-du,-a-e sul-gi lugal-bala-sa6-ga-ke, dingir-me-en pi-lus-da nam-Iugal-Ia mu-ga-ra-a SU bu-mu-ra-ab-du,-du7 gis-bur-dingir-re-ne-ke4 si bu-mu-ra-ab-sa-e ni-U4-Sakar-ra ni-za-mu-ka-ke4 gis bu-mu-ra-ab-tag-ge zl; a-ra-zu-ni U4 be-ma-tum-en be-gal u-sim-gin, ki-dar-ra giS-mu n[a( ? )-n]am( ? ) u4-ba nin-mu inim-an-na-da bul-la-[ni( ?)]-a dnin-sun-na-ke4 sul-gi lugal-u[ r ]iki2 1 1_ma_ka kisib-Ia212-zi-da-ni im-ma-an-[ dabs] e-gal-mab-ni-se ul-la mi-[ni-in-tii]m2 1 3 bara-mab an-kii-ge mu-ga-ra-", [mi-ni-in-tus] ubur2 1 4-kii-ga-na mi mu-na-ni-[in-du l d sipa sul-gi '''G j R-gal-zu ga-[e]_m,_en2 I S sa-kil NE-", zi(?)-Lmu(?) mU(?)J-rsi(?)-ib(? )l-blll-[b]ul( ? ) a-a-mu a[n (x x ) lu]gal-zu-um nam-[lugal-Ia(?) sag-b Ji-se e-me-en x [x x]-rmul nam(!)2 1 6-lugal-Ia-za za-mi ma-ra-ni-in-du I I sul-gi amar'I'-kii-tu-da-mu-m�-[ e ]n2 1' a-[ d ]Ui O( ?)2 19-dlugal-ban-da-me-en ur-kii-mu-a mu-ni-ib-biilug-en ubur220-ku-mu-a nam ma-ra-ni-tar ni-sa,-g[ a] ba-Ia-ga gal-Ia-me-en an(?)22 I -kii-ta( ?) x AN-ma al be-mi-[du I I ( ? ) ] ga-e njn-r me l-en222 kii-dnin-sun-n", arpa-n",m-rlugall(?)-[la(?)] munus-zi s�g-bar-sa6 nam-nin-a tum_ma223 sul-gi ur-us-zu ga-y-me-en tugma6-PA-a-mu bar_ra224 be-mi-d\l.l225 duwkii-mu-a a-ne [(x) A]N(!) dul l _g",226.227 sipa ni-si-sa-a tl}_da_me_en228,229

W5 Photograph indicates ha-ba-"'Dl) (traces of the beginning of an additional sign, indicated by copy, cannot be verified from the photograph). 206 Copy seems to indicate SES.UNl)Gki (but SES.�Bki cannot be excluded; cf. n. 2 1 0 below). 207 So original gi§arina(MUSxMUS+NA). 20S So original clearly -"'pad. 209 So probably original "'ze. 2 10 So clearly original uri(SES.UNUG)ki. 2 1 1 So original -S[ES.AJBki-. 2 1 2 So original *kisib-Ia. 2 1 3 Photograph indicates -tu]m (rather than -tu]m). 21 4 So probably original *ubur(DAG.KISIM5xLU); cf. n. 220 below. 21 5 So probably original (but traces preceding -me- do not seem to be part of the restored E). 216 So original (photograph indicates NAM written over erasure). 2 1 1 So original "'amar-.

2 1 8 So original -*m�- [e]n. 2 19 Collation of original and photograph from 1970 indicate traces

of a-[d]ulO (the DU 10 sign is completely broken on photograph from 1976).

no So probably original ubur(DAG.KISIMsxfLUI); cf n. 2 1 4 above. 221 Copy has mas; photograph indicates AN(?) or ME(?). 222 So probably original *nin-*rmel-en. 223 So original, with -rna partly overlapping with an erasure of a MU sign. 224 So original, where bar-ra is followed by a break, with room for a narrow sign (zu/za?). 225 Copy has d\ll, but photograph indicates -[d]ul or -mu4. 226 So B, where -duwg� is followed closely by a break; C perhaps -gl a. 221 B 3 2b C obv. i } ' ? 228 So B *tl.l-da-me-en; C probably also -e]n. 229 B 33 = C obv. i 2'-3'? =

�;:., (' . •. .

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KLEIN: THE ROYAL HYMNS OF SHULGI

36 34. 35. 36. 37. 38. 39. 40. 41. 42. 43. 44. 45. 46. 47. 48. 49. 50. 51. 52. 53. 54. 55. 56. 57. 58. 59. 60. 61. 62. 63. 64. 65. 66.

B B B B B B B B BC BCD BCD BCD BCD BCD BCD D D D D D D CD CD CD CD CD CD CD CD CD CD D D

[TRANS. AMER. PHIL

SOc.

inim-ku-mu-ta nir230 be-em-ta-a-g�l mu-ku-zu dUI r-ge im-m�-ab(!)-d\l/3 1 su-dingir-gal-gal-ne-ke, i-Ii'" ue-a� ke� .. . . . ; gidri di-ku, an-ne ma-ra-an-su[m] J gu an-se bl-m-zl a-a-ugu4-ZU kil-dlugal-biin-d?-a sul-an-ne-zu-dingir-re-ne mu-se [ m]u234-ri-in-sa4 sag-ga gal TOG UN-e bi-in-TUK-TUK(!)235 aga2l6-nam-Iugal-Ia-ka se-er-ga-an ma-ra-m-l[n-d] u l l . gidri-u4-ul-ll-a-ka zi-nam-ti-la-zu bu-mu-m-!'b -SI'k'l 1 - le2J7 8 dgestin-an-na ninl3 -lugal-Ia-ke4 ka_1:11239-dingir-fe-ne-ke4240 241 ' e-ga ' I k'l-Ufs-sa6 du-a-za 4 bul-Ia-zu2 2-il ga-Ia nam-ta-dag-ge 1 ma-gUb _ i4 U 2 5 _ t nin-me-en e-ki-tus-kil-[ ] ama-mu \lr,-ra-as(!)246 g[ a(? )-sa-an-dingir-re-ne-ke,( ?)] a-a-mu an lugal-dingir-[re-ne-ke,( ? ) ] munus(!)247 ab-zi( ? ) x x e[n- ] [a]mas(?)248-mab(? )-be( ? ) ba-a[n( ?)[ n ] am-Iugal ni-u4-sud-[ra ] . ' ( ?. )249 ] -[ e \In gu-sl-a, b'1 S\J.-ffiU-S a-nun-na250 dingir-gal-gal-[ e-ne] ki-nam-tar_ba25 1 mu-da-s\l,-[su8 -ge-es] . . nam-sipa252-sul-gi-ra ni-ul-li-[ a-ke,(?)] pa_�253 ma-[ m-m-ak-ke,-es( ? ) ] sul-gi si-sa-dingir-ra25'-[ na( ? )-ke,( ?)] kalam-ma dutu-gin,''' ma(? )-ni-in-�256-[(x)] 8"gu-za-bala-gi-na mu-na( ? )_?n_gub257-[bu-us( ? ) ] sipa-de(!) di-si-s[ a258 mu(? )-ni-kuj-de6 1''' [g]a-ras260-si-sa [mu( ?)-ni-ba-re ]26 1

_

SHULGI, NINSUN AND AN

b) Translation

.

2 . . . . . . . . was shining . . . . . . . . . . . . , 3 . . . . . . . . he spoke to her tenderly, . . . . . . : 4. "He will proceed to take firm action concerning his blessing; 5. Like a sappy cedar, planted in (the midst of) l:Iasur-cypress trees, 6. Your father An will make (his) branches 'shining'."

7.

On that day, my lady 'stepped up' to the word of An,

8. Ninsun made a fateful decision with her spouse, Lugalbanda, 9. She heeded his prayer. 10. She went straight to holy An, in the UbSu'ukkinna:

I I . "My father, An, you are the king of the gods! 1 2. I looked through the Land in its extent; 1 3. Among its 'black-headed (people)', who are numerous like ewes, 14. I elevated Sulgi to me high above their head. May he be their 'righteous shepherd'!" 1 5 . He is my m e s -tree, with 'shining' branches, he sprang up from the soil for me . 1 6 . . . . . (and) abundant yield he brought for me year by year. 1 7 . H e i s my spikenard-herb; he grows for me stout of roots. 1 8. My . . . . . he made radiant in the Brickwork of Kengir.

1 9. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20. In . . . . . . may he stand daily! (a gap of unknown length) I ' . . . . . . . . . . o/ Ur . . . . . . . . . . . . , 2' . . . . . . . . . grant (him) kingship!" (a gap of unknown length) Section b

[sul]-gi-ra262 aga-na[m-Iugal-Ia ] [x x (x)]-gal-gal [ ] [ ] x x [ ] (end of the hymn is missing)

So B *nir. SO B im-*m Section b

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40

KLEIN: THE ROYAL HYMNS OF SHULGI

the possibility that NiG in this context should be read ninda 'bread-offering', which appears as t!:e object of the verb gis-tag in Gudea, Cyl. A ii 8 and SA 55. The same verb takes also nindaba 'food offerings' as its object (el SKI, pp. 47, 1 52; 266, 1 1 et passim; JCS 2 1 , ( 1 967): p. 1 1 4, I. 85). 9: Photograph indicates that the sign following a-ra-zu-ni is most probably UD, although its propor­ tions equally suit an E sign. Hence, we seem to have here an idiomatic expression u.( -da} tum 'to bring daily (prayers)' or u.(-da} gub 'to stan,d daily (in prayer)' (for the latter see now Seux, Epithetes, p. 407; Falkenstein, UVB 15: p. 38). Should the sign in question turn out to be an E sign, the reading of our line would be as follows: ze a-ra-zu-ne-e bO-ma-gub­ en "May you, yourself, stand before me praying for him!" (el I. 47 below). For an instructive thematic parallel to our line see Entemena, Cones A-B vi 1 -8 dingir-ra-ni dsul-utul,(REC 230} nam-ti-en-te-me-na­ ka-se u,-ul-Ia-se dnin-gir-su-ra dnanse he-na-si-gub "may his god, Sulutul, stand before Ningirsu and Nanse, forever, (in prayer) for the life of Entemena!"; el also SGL II, p. 58, lines 29 ff. 10: Photograph indicates at the end of the line n[ a­ njam, rather than n[a-Ijum or n[a-djab (el Jacobsen, The Treasures oj Darkness, 1 976, p. 98). 1 3 : For the reading kisib-Ia in the beginning of the line, see already Sjoberg apud Romer, SKI, p. 103 (with p. 1 26, n. 19). For the present literary topos, see now Cooper, AnOr 52 ( 1 978): pp. 129 f. 14: For the problem of the location of the Egalmab, mentioned in our line, see n. 105 above. The use of the maru verbal root tum, in this context, is a stylistic pe­ culiarity (el Steinkeller, OrNs 48, ( l 979): pp. 54 ff.). 1 6: In view of the parallelism ur-kii-mu-a (I. 24) //ubur-kii-mu-a (I. 25), A. Sjoberg's suggestion (by private communication) to read DAG.KISIM,.LU as ubur (rather than amas; ef Rosengarten, Repertoire *358; Falkenstein, ZA 50, ( l 952): p. 74), ':as been accepted here. A close parallel to our line is SF 1 751 7 6 (=SL TN 78, rev. i 1 7 - 1 8 ) munus-zi ubur(? }-kii­ ga-na(? } [mi ma-ni-in-du\\(?}j e-nun-kii-ta nam-[zi( ?} ma-ni-in-tar j. 17: A close parallel to our line is attested in Gud_ea, Cyl. A iii I I , where Gudea says to Gatumdug g"GIR­ gunu-gal-mu-me "you are my great G.-!ree." Falken­ stein, both here and in Gudea, read g" GIR( -gunu}-gal as '''gir-gal 'great sickle/sword' (el ZA 50: ( l 952): p. 74 with n. 3; GSGL I, p. 59, n. 7; for gir-gal nam�aru see now Cooper, AnOr 52: p. 80, I. 140; Hruska, ArOr 37, ( 1 969): p. 488, I. 1 3 }. However, as A. Sjoberg points out to me, the writing with GiR­ gunu in Gudea indicates that the noun in question is to be read g"ul" or the like, and it p�?bably refers to a type of tree, perhaps 'myrtle' (ef g" SlM.GIR asu). For a different reading and identification of g" GIR see now Civil, RA 54 ( l 960): p. 67, with n. I. =

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VOL. 7 1 , PT.

[TRANS. AMER. PHIL. SOC.

1 8 : Could NE, in the reading izi, be a unique writ­ ing for i-zi agu '(flood) wave' (el TCS III, p. 106)? 19: For the restoration of this line see Falkenstein, ZA 50 ( l 952): p. 74, n. 5. 2 1 : Note the unexpected -Ia- between nam-Iugal and the pronominal suffix. Both here and in I. 41 be­ low, the scribe of text B seems to substitute LA for -la, in order to save space (el lugal-LA in I. 43, text B below). Should we perhaps read here with Falken­ stein (el ZA 50: p. 74) mu-nam(!}-Iugal-Ia-za 'con­ cerning your royal name' (assuming an internal gene­ tive)? Cf lines 38 f. below. 22: The metaphor in this line is discussed in n. 1 3 5 above. 23: For the tentatively restored a-[ d juJO see refer­ ences to a-du l O'ga 'good seed', collected by Sjoberg, in JCS 24 ( I 972}: p. 109. There is not enough space to restore a-[zji or a-[kjii. 25: See comment to I. 1 6 above. 27: For the tentative restoration of our line see SG 1 6 ff., where Nanna is said to have requested SUlgi's birth from Enlil, in the Ekur (e-duJ O-ga dnanna dumu­ nun-ne ni al ba-ni-du \ \ ). Similarly, Susin is chosen by Enlil for kingship upon Ninlil's request (el JCS 24, ( 1 972): p. 7 1 , col. ii 14' ff. ). See also Seux, Epithetes, p. 109, sub iris!i. 28-29: For these lines see n. 109 above. 30: The obscure ur-tlS, which we tentatively render with 'faithful guardian', seems to denote literally 'an u r who follows/stands by (a person, to protect him)'. 3 1 : The obscure PA, which seems to be an adjec­ tive, qualifying tugma6, is also attested in SC 7: tugma6_ PA-PA mu,. For an inconclusive discussion of the reading of this sign, in similar contexts, see van Dijk, SGL II, pp. 101 f. (the assumption that PA, in the reading bad/bud, is phonetic for bad/bud, Akk. ellu, itanbutu etc., is excluded, because the above value of PA is post OB). 32: Traces on the photograph, preceding dUwga, seem to exclude [ DjI, indicating [AjN. For a-ne, in the compound verb a-ne du\\( -g}, see n. 1 7 3 above. 34: For the postposition -ta and the verbal infix -ta-, in this context, see n. 1 80 above. 35: Cf Lipitistar B I S (JCS 30, ( l 978): p. 36) mu dUwge dU7 . Note the possibility that the underlying idiom, here and in the quoted Lipitistar hymn, is mu ka-ge dU 7 "a name seemly for the mouth". For ka(-g}/ka(-k} 'mouth' see now S. Lieberman, SLOB, p. 336, sub *372, kag,; Krecher, ZA 69, ( l 970): p. 3. ulum, ruqqu, hal�u. For the present lit­ 36: i-Ii erary cliche see MG 1 24 [sjiid(?}-kii-ug su-dingir-ra­ na-ka i-Ii i-aka (var. i-li-es-e si-im-a[k]). The under­ lying metaphor in our line seems to have its parallel in Song of Songs I : 3 and Ecclesiastes 7: I . 37: If the present translation is correct, the ham!u root in the verbal form bi-ni-zi is inexplicable (see already Falkenstein, ArOr 17/ 1 ( 1 949): p. 222, sub 2 1 ; SKI, p. 14, *25 i 35). See also n. 1 69 above. =

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7, 1981]

SHULGI, NINSUN AND AN

38-39: For the writing of /ugu/ (=alidu) with ugu, (KU), see n. 167 above. The phrase sul-an-ne-zu, at­ tested in our hymn and in SF, is paralleled by sag den_ liI-Ie zu 'the man whom Enlil knows', in SG 42, and it has a literary precedent in Gudea, Cyl. B xxiv 5 gurus an-ne zu-me "you are the man whom An knows" (referring to Gudea). Obviously, it follows the pattern (sag) DN-e zu, which is amply attested in Ur I I I per­ sonal names. See Limet, L' anthroponyme, pp. 1 35; 291 (sag-dutu-zu, sag-dnanna-zu, sag-Iugal-e-zu); Soll­ berger, TCS I, p. 99, sub 52, I, 3 (an-ne-zu, igi-an­ na-ke,-zu). Jacobsen (by private communication) would prefer to render ZU, in the above context, as a causative ('whom An made known' etc.). See further n. 1 37 above. 40: sag-ga is probably an error for sag-ga (ef sag­ GA-ni in UET I 1 38, 27). For a different sag-ga, which is assumed to be a contraction of sag-gi4-a, see Civil, JNES 23 ( 1 964): p. 4. 4 1 : For se-er-ga-an dU l l, construed with the dative infix, see Falkenstein, ArOr 17/ 1 ( 1 949): p. 2 2 1 , sub 22. See also n. 1 7 1 above. 42: For a different, but equally difficult, reading of this line see Falkenstein, ibid., p. 220. Since the last two signs of our line, in text B, are squeezed and some­ what damaged, one may consider an alternative read­ ing bu-mu-ni-ib-l)-tl,l (for -sikil-Ie). For the expression zi/nam-ti ii-tu 'to create breath/life' see SGL II, p. 8 1 , I. 1 7; Sjoberg, ZA 63 ( l 973): pp. 29 f., sub 7'. 43 ff.: References to former, somewhat different, renderings of lines 43-48 are given in the end of n. 95 above. For Gestinanna in this context see n. 1 1 3 above. 45: For ki-ur,-sa6(-g} see now SKI, pp. 1 97 f., where it is suggested that our complex is to be emended to ki-ur,-sa6(-ge). Note that in Exalt. oj Inanna, p. 24, lines 72 f. ka-Ial and ni-ur,-sa6-sa6 ap­ pe': in parallelism as a fixed pair. 46-48: It is not easy to determine whether btll-Ia­ zu refers to Gestinanna's rejoicing over Sulgi (so Fal­ kenstein and Wilcke), or to her causing joy to Sulgi (so van Dijk). To render the function of the possessive pronoun -zu, in 1. 46, consistent with its function in lines 47-48, we opted for the latter interpretation. It is only natural to assume that Gestinanna, the divine patroness of music and entertainment, is charged with causing joy to the king, in his palace, which is de­ scribed as a source of happiness for him. Van Dijk (SGL II, p. 80) correctly recognized that nam-sita, in I. 47 is paralleled by ra-zu in I. 48, which is an archaic form or orthography of /arazuL 'prayer' (el Klein, JCS 31, ( 1 979): p. l S I , n. 10; ThSH, chap. m 2 b, comment to SX 105- 1 06; n. 1 54 above). The above hypothesis is supported especially by Gudea, Cyl. B viii 1 0 f., where again nam-sita, is paralleled by sizkur-ra-zu. Note further Gudea, Cyl. A xiv 1 -3, where the idiom sizkur-ra-zu gub 'to stand in prayer

41

and supplication' is attested (gub appears there in its plural form su,-su,-g). According to Falkenstein ( GSGL I, p. 4 1 ), ni-zu represents a short form of a­ ra-zu, with the elision of the initial /a/ vowel. S. Lie­ berman, however, points out to me that in Proto Ea 503 (MSL II, p. 7 1 ), the DU sign is called a-ra-gu­ ub, which may indicate that DU-zu should be read here ara;o;-zu. We admit that our interpretation renders text B inconsistent, for in I. 9 above it exhibits the late orthography a-ra-zu. The verbal form bO-ma-gub (I. 47), just like be-ma­ tum-en in I. 9 above, seems to contain the I p. sing. dative infix. This was not recognized by van Dijk, in spite of the fact that in the parallel from the Ninazu hymn, the verbal form also contains a clear dative infix (el SGL II, p. 58, I. 34). Note further be-ma­ sum 'he verily gave me', in SKI, p. 42, I. 62. 50: For ur,-ra-as see n. 1 55 above. 52: For the epithet munus ab-zi( -d} see n. 1 3 5 above. 54 ff. : In lines 54-55, Ninsun seems to relate the favors that her divine parents bestowed upon her: en­ during kingship and authority over the people. She may very well refer here to an official enthronization ceremony, which took place at one of the abovemen­ tioned localities (el lines 49 and 53), in the forum of the divine assembly (el I. 56). In this assumed cere­ mony, Sulgi was probably invested with the insignia of kingship (el lines 6 1 and 64). As the king's divine patroness, Ninsun then could boast that the kingship was given to her. The above hypothesis is based on the restored su­ mu-s[ej (I. 55) and the clear verbal prefix ma- (I. 58). Note, however, that at least lines 54 and 58 could be restored on the basis of an alternative hypothesis, that is, :vith the assumption that Ninsun refers here only to Sulgi. 55: The lexical texts do not reflect a consistent tra­ dition as to the reading of SI.A in gu-SI.A, indicating both si-a and diri (see AHw, p. 737, sub napbarum). The verbal root to be restored in this line could be si (ef H. Steible, Rlmsi'n, p. 6, I. 20), dab, (ef Steible, /faja, p. 8, I. 42) or gar (el SGL II, p. 120). 56-57: For these lines see Th8H, chap. II 2, SD 59 with comment. 58: The present restoration of our line is quite cer­ tain in the light of such parallels as, for example, UET I 50, I I ; A. Shaffer, Gilgames, p. 48, lines 4-5; SR 89. For ni-ul see Sjoberg, OrSuee 22 ( 1 973): p. 1 1 6; Cooper, AnOr 52 ( l 978): p. 1 39. 59: The tentative restoration of this line is sup­ ported by STVC 36 rev. 8 (t i g i-hymn to Baba) si­ s:i-dingir-re-ne-me-en "you are the righteous one of the gods." 62-63: For the restoration of these lines see Klein, JCS 23 ( I 970}: pp. 1 1 8 f.; ThSH, chap. III 2 b, com­ ment to SX 142-147.

ADDENDA

p. 8. n. 1 3 and pp. 26 f: For the concept of the 'personal god' in Mesopo­ tamian religion and the meaning of the 'divine parent' metaphor, see now Th. Jacobsen, The Treasures of Darkness ( 1 976), pp. 1 57-160; H. Vorl ander, Mein Gatt: die Vorstellungen Yom personlichen Gatt im Alten Orient und Alten Testament ( 1 975), p. 28. p. 23, n. 1 09: See also Kramer, JCS 2 1 ( 1 969): p. 1 1 8, 1. 1 6, where Ninsun is called: ama-lugal-la 'the king's mother', that is the mother of Urnammu. p. 26, n. 136-1 37: J. Krecher kindly informs me (in a letter of July a) UM rev. 3' CT rev. 22 VS v 38 b) UM rev. 4' CT rev. 23 VS v 39 c) UM rev. 5' CT rev. 24 VS v 40 d) UM rev. 6' CT rev. 25 VS vi 1 e) UM rev. 7' VS vi 2 f) UM rev. 8' VS vi 3 g) UM rev. 9' VS vi 5 h) UM rev. 10' VS vi 4

29,

n.

�

in-ga-e-re7-en-de-en in-ga-e-re7-en-de-en in-ga-e-re7-de-en in-g:j.-[ ] [en-ga]-e-re-de-en en-ga-e-re-de-en e-e(!)-se me-en(!)-de sild-de in-ga-e-re,-en-de-en ] me-en-de sild-de in-g[ a]-[e-re-de-en] [ sv.d-u-mu-un-na-se sud-il-[ m ]u-u ]n] [ [s]lid-de nun 'SUL-gi-ra-se ] sud-ll)gal-la-se [ [su]-[du]-de u-mu su-gi-ra-se(?)/ en-ga-e-re-de-e[n] uru ki-be gi4-a-se uru ki-bi gi4-a en-ga-e-re-de-e[n] ka inim-gar sa6-ge-se ka i-ne-em-gar sa-ga en-ga-e-re-de-en su-um-du-um sa-ri-ba-se su-um-du-um sa-ri-ba en-ga-e-re-de-e[n] me-ri ki-a si-ga-se ne-ri ki-a sa-ga en-ga-e-re-de-en

u-mu su-gi-ra-se( ?) in VS 2, No. 4, vi 1 (d), as the parallels indicate, stands for il-t:nu-un 'SUL-gi-ra-se. This shows that the logogram SUL, in the name of Sulgi, was pronounced / su j. That SUL in general is to be read SUl7 or ZU7, has been established already by Falkenstein, on the basis of other evidence (see ZA 53 ( 1 959): p. 207, n. 5; ZA 55 ( 1 962): p. 43.) If indeed SUL-gi was pronounced /su-gi(r)/ or / zu-gi(r)/, we can perhaps explain how the epithet SUL an-ne-zu as a midrashic elaboration ,9" Sulgi's name, based on phonetic identity between SUL ( �SUl7 / ZU7 ) and zu ('to know'), as well as on the well known pat­ tern 'X an-ne zu'. p.

22, 1 98 1 ) that the name SUL-gi should most probably be read sUl7-gi, that is /sugi(r)j. This is clearly in­ dicated by the unorthographically written text VS 2, No. 4, v 38-vi 5 (probably a Sippar text), which he was able to identify as a parallel (but not strictly du­ plicating) text to UM 29-1 5-570, rev. 3'- 10' (probably a Nippur text; edited by Sjoberg, in JCS 29 ( 1 977): p. 9). Professor Krecher was furthermore able to iden­ tify CT 42, No. 22 (pI. 35), rev. 22 ff. as a roughly parallel text to UM 29-1 5-570, rev. 3 ff. Upon his generous suggestion, we offer below a slightly im­ proved transliteration of UM 29-1 5-570, rev. 3'-1 0', indicating the readings of the parallel texts, line by line (UM � UM 29-1 5-570; VS � VS 2, No. 4; CT CT 42, No. 22):

1 64:

Mr. Y. Sefati points out to me that the shift from archaic -ib- to OB -ib-, in verbal infixes, is correlated

with a similar change in the wrjting of ES /zeb/ (for dug). This word is written in SX 36, 38 with ze-eb, whereas in OB literary texts it is normally spelled ze-eb. Note further the writing i-bi (�igi) in SX 19, as' against standa,d OB i-bi. The late orthography is at­ tested also in SZ obv. 5 (Iraq 3 1 ( 1 969): p. 19). p. 38, sub a 10: The unique writing ub-su-KIN-na seems also to be an archaic survival, as indicated by ub-su-KIN-na-ka in Gudea, Cyl. A viii 14. p. 39, sub a 16: mu-mu, in this context, may be ES for gis-mu 'my tree' , 42

SUMERIAN WORD INDEX

The following index provides a complete list .of Sumerian words and phrases, included in SP. It also contains a selectIVe hst of words, Id�, oms, and gra�matICal elements, dIscussed in the introductions, the notes, and the commentary to the text edItIon, quoted III syllabic transliteration. Note the following sigla: a b (c) (A/B/C/D) n.

SP, Section a SP, Section b word treated in the_ commentary to the relevant line text A/B/C/D of SP (foot)note(s) restored item

A /a/ -aa-a a-a-ugu4 a-duw a-ne dU l l a-nun-na a-ra-zu a-zal-le dUl l a-e-a ab-zi aga-narn-lugal-la ak aI-dul l -am arna ama-nam-lugal-la amar-ku am as an(-kil) AN-rna an-se an-ta si-ga (gis)arina

(irregular form) cf n. 24 1 ; 250 morpheme (omitted between consonants) p. 28, n. 144 (Ill plene writings) p. 28, n. 142 a 6, 1 1 ; b 1 9, 5 1 b 38(c); n. 1 10 (good seed) b 23(c) b 32(c); for a-ne cf p. 32, n. 1 75-176 b 56; cf n. 1 1 4; p. 29, n. 158 b 9; cf ra-zu n. 1 22 n. 1 35 b 52(c); n. 1 3 5 b 4 1 , 64 cf pa-e ak, i-li ak; p. 29, n. 1 62 b 27(c) (enclitic copula) p. 32, n. 1 77 b 50 b 28(1); n. 109 b 22(c) b 53(?); cf comment to b 1 6 h ) An a 6, 7, 1 0 , 1 1 ; b 1 5, 19, 27, 37, 39, 5 1 ; cf n . 104; 1 36

ba ba-ra-na bal-bal-e bala-gi-na bala-sa6( -g) bar bara-rnab billug

( �qasu etc.) a 2'; n. 100 n. 76 (type of hymn) n. 77 b 61 b5 b 3 1 ; cf sag-bar-sa6 b 15 b 24

dabs dag dagal dalla-e dam danna de di-kus DINGIR dingir dinfir-gal-gal-ne

[b 1 3 ] cf ga-la dag cf ni-dagal-ba n. 122 a 8(?) (double hour) n. 67 a 19 b 37, 62(c) (as determinative of divinity) p. 29 b 6, 59; cf n. 104; 1 3 7 b 36, 56; p. 28

� �r

(heavenward) b 37 n. 86 a 1 7(c)(MUSxMUS); b 1 (g;'MUSxMUS-na); p. 32

43

44

[TRANS. AMER. PH I L SOC

KLEIN: THE ROYAL HYMNS OF SHULGI

dii dU 7-du, du, dU 1 0 dUw-kii dU l l dul durus

p. 29 with n. 163; cf gis-hur-dingir-re-ne(-k), ka-lal-dingir-re-ne, lugal-dingir-reDe, sul-an-ne-zu-dingir-re-ne a 5 (planted); b 45 (built) (�naqiipu etc.) n. 40 (�wasiim u) cf ka-e du" mu dUwge du" su-du, (adjective) cf a-du l O' inim-du lO b 32 cf. a-ne dU I ] ' mi-du l h mu dU ll -ge dU7 . se-er-ga-an dU7 b 31 cf giSerin-duru s

/e/ -e e-dui O-ga e-dub-ba e-gal e-gal-mah e-ki-tus e-mab e-dnin-sun e -en giSerin-durus es-es ezen-ku

morpheme (omitted between consonants) p. 28, n. 1 44 (following nominalized verbal form) b 4( c) n. 87 (scribal school) p. 15, n. 59; n. 7 1 ; p. 2 1 b 45 b 14(c); n. 105 b 49 cf n. 105 n. 1 23 b 60; cf pa-e-ak, sag-bi-se e, za-e (morphophonimic) n. 149; 165 a5 (efiefu) n. 79 n. 103

ga-ras bat -r) ga-(a)r ga-e( -me-en) ga-la dag ga-tigi gal gal gestu-dabs-ba dgestin-an-na gi-na g16 gidri gidri-u4-ul-li-a g" GiR-gal giri-babbar-ra GIS gis giS-hur-dingir-re-ne( -k) gis-tag gisgu_za gu gu-si-a gu-zi gub gur gurun,-il

b 63(c); cf p. 28, n. l S I (�gar) b 6, I S (mu-ga-ra-a); p. 28. n . 1 50; cf su-zi ga-ar b 1 7 (ga-[e]-me-en), 28 (ga-e), 30 (ga-e-me-en); cf p. 32, n. 172; n. 174 (negative verbal form) b 46 ('house of the t i g i-drum ' ) n. 84 b 3, 65 (gal-gal); cf dingir-gal-gal-ne, e-gal-mah, g"GIR-gal b 26, 40 n. 86 b 43(c); n. 1 1 3 cf bala-gi-na cf sag-gi6 b 37 b 42; n. I I I b 1 7(c) (�munattu) n. 30 (as determinative) p. 29, with n. 1 5 7 b 10 b 7; cf n. 103 b 8(c) b 61 a 14 (�napbarum) b 55(c) (to raise the neck) b 37(c) a 20; b 47(c), 6 1 ; cf inim-e gub (phonetic for gur, � kabiit u?) cf lir-gur n. 1 22

ha-la giSba-su-ur be-am be-gal be-ge-en

b 26 a5 a 1 4; cf p. 32, n. 177 (�i]egallu) b 10; n . 39; 122 n. 76

dingir-re-ne

'.

_

VOL 7 1 , PT. 7, 1 981 ] be-ma-

SUMERIAN WORD INDEX

45

1::1 1 -

hul

« "he-mu-a-) b 9(c), 47(c); p. 32, n. 1 79 (for he-) p. 32, n. 1 69 b I I , 1 8, 46(c)

i-Ii ak -ibigi-il il inim inim-dul O inim-e gub inim-gar-ra

b 36(c) p. 29, n. 1 64 a 12(c) cf igi-il; n. 1 22 b I I , 34 b4 a 7(c); b 2(c); n. 97 n. 68

ka-e dU7 ka-lal-dingir-re-nee -k) kalam ki ki-bi-se ga-ar-ga-ar ki-dar KI.EN.DU ki-en-gi( -r) ki-nam-tar ki-pad ki-su( -k) ki-tus ki-ufs-sa6 kisib-la kii kus-ii

b 4(c); cf b 35(c) b 44; cf n. 1 1 3 a 1 2; b 60; p. 25 a2 cf n. 103 a 1 5( ? ); b 10 (water-course) n. 1 22 a 18 b 57(c); cf n. 105; 147 b I (c) (cult-place) n. 78 cf e-ki-tus b 45 (�rittu) b 1 3(c) b 2, 1 8, 28, 34, 35, 38, 49; cf amar-kii, an-kii( -g), dUw-kii, ubur-kii, ur-kii

: �;

-la dlama lu lugal 'lugal-biin-da lugal-dingir-re-ne lugal-uriki-ma( -k) lui

(in nam-lugal-la) b 6, 2 1 (c), 41 (�lamassu) n. 48 cf us-gin, lu-a b 5, 19; cf nam-lugal, nin,-lugal-la a 8; b 23, 38 a l l; b 5 1 b 12 (false) n. 76

ma-al-ga-tum rna-dam tugma6_PA_a mah me -me-en (gis)mes mt-du I I mu mu -mu-a/-ga mu du 11 -ge dU7 mu-mu mu-se sa4 -mu-um mule-mull munus munus-zi mus/miis-tum

(a type of drum) n. 63 (�bi�bu?) a 1 6(c) b 3 1 (c); cf n. 107 b 3, 53(?); cf bara-mah, e-gal-mah (noun) p. 1 2, n. 36 a I I ; b 6, 1 7 (-me-en), 20, 22, 23, 26, 28, 30, 33, 49; cf n. 1 04; p. 25, n. 1 26; p. 32, n. 1 65 (�mesum) a 1 5 ; n. 1 22 a 3; b 1 6; n. 96; p. 24 (name etc.) n. 1 6; p. 25 (year) cf mu-mu, ni-za-mu-ka( -k) cf p. 32, n. 1 78 b 35(c); cf ka-e du, ('yearly' or e rn e s a l for gis-mu?) a 1 6 b 39; p. 26 « -mu-am) a 1 5 , 1 7; p. 32, n. 1 77 a 2; cf pa-mul( -mull b 52(c) b 29 (in negative verbal form) b 48; cf p. 28, n. 1 5 2

I

46

KLEIN: THE ROYAL HYMNS OF SHULGI

{TRANS. AMER. PHIL. SOC.

na-ga-ab na-Dam nam-lu-iilu nam-Iugal ak nam-Iugal nam-oin nam-sipa nam-sita,(REC 3 1 6 ) nam-tar nam-ti( -I) NE ne-ni-da dUrdu7 ni-dagal-ba ni-de-a ni-duwge dab-ba ni-sa6-ga ni-si-sa ni-u4-sakar-ra ni-u4-sud-ni ni-ul-li-a ni-umun-a ni-za-mu-ka( -k) nin dnin-e-gal-Ia dnin-bur-sag-ga nin-mn dnin-sun-na( -k) nin,-Iugal-Ia(-k) nir-gal

(ignoramus) n. 86 b 10(c) (mankind) n. 86 (to exercise kingship) n. 39 a 2'; b 6, 20(?), 2 1 (c), 54; n. 1 22; cf ama-nam-Iugal-Ia, aga-nam-Iugal-Ia b 29; n. \09 b 58; n. 43 b 47(c) a 4(? )(c), 8; b 25; n. 34; 1 1 2; 1 22; p. 32, n. 1 8 1 ; cf ki-nam-tar cf zi-nam-ti-Ia b 1 8(c) n. 40 (�rapiu) a 1 2(c); n. 145 n. 82 (�pirislu ? ) n. 54 b 26 b 33 b 8(c) b 54 b 58(c) n. 82 b 8(c) b 28, 49; cf nam-nin n. \05 p. 26 (my lady) a 7; b I I ; p. 24 a 8; b 1 2, 28; p. 24; n. 1 35; p. 26 b 43 (B, C; D njn-Iugal-Ia); cf n. 1 1 3 b 34(c)

PA-a pa-I: ak pa-mul( -mul) pad pi-Iu,-da pu-ub.-ru-um

cf tugma6-PA-a

a 1 8(c); b 58(c) a 6, 1 5; n. 1 22 cf ki-pad b 6; n. 103; p. 29, n. 1 5 3 (general assembly) n . 64

-rara-zu -ri-

(dative verbal infix) n. \04 (�a-ra-zu 'prayer') b 48(c); p. 29, n. 1 54; cf a-ra-zu (verbal infix) p. 32, n. 166

sa sa, sa, sag sag-bar-sa6 sag-bi-sl: e sag-ga sag-gi, si-EZEN si-sa sig,-ki-en-gi-ra( -k) sikil sipa(-zi) sizkur su SUg-SUg( -g) sum

cf si-sa cf mu-se sa, b 47; cf bala-sa,( -g), ki-ur,-sa" ni-sa,-ga, sag-bar-sa, a 14(?); n. 1 37 b 29 b 20 b 40(c) a 1 3; n. 1 37 (musical instrument) n. 63 a \0; b 7, 59(c), 62, 63; cf ni-si-sa a 18 (verb) b 42(c) a 14 (sipa-zi); b 17, 33, 62; cf n. \03; 122 a 9(c) (�zumru) b 36(c) b 57(c) b 37

VOL. 71, PT. 7, 1981)

sa se-er-ga-an dU l l sir-gid-da su !in-du7 su-zi ga.-ar su,-sui -g) sud sul-an-ne-zu-dingir-re-ne sul-gi -ta/-tatag tar tigi tu( -d) TOG TUK-TUK tum/tum tum-rna tus u-dug, u-sim

SUMERIAN WORD INDEX b 18 b 41 (c); p. 32, n. 1 7 1 (type of hymn) n. 77 b 55(c) b6 a 4(c) cf p. 4 1 , sub b 46-48 (prayers) p. 1 8 , n. 74 b 39(c); cf p. 26, n. 137 a 14; b 5, 1 2, 22, 30, 58, 59, 64; cf n. 1 03; 1 22; 1 36; p. 26; p. 29, n. 160- 1 6 1 « -da/-da-) cf p. 32, n. 1 80 cf gis-tag cf nam-tar (a type of drum) n. 63; cf ga-tigi b 22, 33 b 40 b 40 a 1 6 (tum); b 14(c) (tum); cf mus-tum, u,(-da) gub/tum (�iiil ukum) b 29 [b 1 5 ] ; cf e-ki-tus

u-tn u, li4-ba u,(-da) gub/tum u4-sakar u,-sud/r u,-ul-li-a us-gin7 lu-a ub-su-kin-na( -k) ubur-ku ugu, ul-li-a ul-Ia um-mi-a UN un ur-sag nr-us ur-gur ur-ku UTs-fa-as UTS-sa6 urik;(-m) us dutu

( = udug � utukku) n. 48 b lO (in plene writings) p. 28 p. 4 1 , sub b 42 a 20; n. 1 22 a 7; b I I ; p. 24 b 9(c) cf ni-u4-sakar-ra cf ni-u,-sud-ra cf gidri-u,-ul-li-a a 13 ( =ub-su-unken-na) a lO(c); cf n. 105; 1 1 5 b 1 6(c), 25 cf a-a-ugu,; p. 32, n. 167 cf u,-ul-li-a, ni-ul-li-a (joyfully) b 14 (schoolmaster) n. 7 1 b 40; p. 38, sub a 12-14 b 55 n. 40 b 30(c) a 17(c) b 24 (=duras) b 50(c); cf p. 29, n. 1 5 5 cf ki-ur,-sa, a I '; b 3; n. 39; cf lugal-uriki-ma(-k) cf ur-us b 60; n. 1 22

za-e Za-m! za-mi-dul l za-mu(-k) ze zi zi-nam-ti-Ia zu -zu-um

(=zamu?) b 3(c) (praise/hymn) p. 1 8, n. 74 b 21 cf ni-za-mu-ka( -k) (=za-e 'you') b 2(c), 9; p. 32, n. 1 75-176 (good, true) b 13; cf ab-zi. munus-zi, sipa(zi), su-zi ga-ar b 42(c) b 39(c) « zu-am) b 19; cf p. 32, n. 177

-u

47

TOPICAL INDEX An (heaven-god): 8, 1 1 , 20, 2 1 ff., 26

Phonetic writings: 28£., addenda

Cult, cultic setting: 10, 17, 19, 22 n. 23

Plene writings: 28

Curses: 19 n. 80

Prayers, royal: 9fT., 1 8

Determinatives: 29

Refrains: I I , 12, 15, 1 9f.

Divination: 1 6

Sacred marriage: 9, I I , 1 4

Dream, visionary: 1 3

Schools, scribal: 1 2 , 1 5 , 1 8 n. 7 1 , 19, 20, 27 Selection of kings: 38f. Self-laudatory hymns: 14ff. , 18ff. Sulgi: birth of, 9, 1 1 , 1 3 ; coro nation of, 9, 10, 1 1 , 23, 25; deification of, 7f., 2 1 , 26f.; history of, 7f.; name of, 9, 26, 29, addenda "Sulgi the Avenger of Sum er" (SD+SX): 1 2f., 25 "SuIgi and the Ekur" (SG) : 9, 25

Ekur: 9, I I , 19, 20 Enlil, 8, 9, 1 2 , 1 3 , 19, 20, 25 Epics, royal: 8, I Iff., 2 I ff. e s e s ·festivai: 17, 1 9 GeStinanna: 9, 10, 19, 23 n. 1 1 3 Gilgames: 1 0

"Sulgi and GiIgames" (SO): 1 0

Grammar: 27, 32f.

Sulgi hymns; 8, 9 n . 8 ; auth orship of, 1 5 n . 57, 1 8ff.; date ofcomposition, 1 3 n. 44; historicit y, 1 8 "Sulgi the Ideal King" (SB) : 14f., 20 "Sulgi King of Abundance" (SF): I l f., 25 "Sulgi, King of Name and Fame" (SC): I 5f. "Sulgi the King of the Road " (SA): 1 7 , 26 "Sulgi and Ninlil" (SY ): 9 "Sulgi and Ninlil's Boat" (SR): 9f.

Gutium, Gutians: 7, 13, 1 9 Hunting: 1 6 Inanna: 9 , 10, 14, 1 7 , 20 "In anna and Sulgi"

(.5Z): I I

Intercession: 10, 12, 25 n. 1 3 1 IStaran: 1 4 Kingship, divine: 7f., 9 , 26f.

"Sulgi, Ninsun and An" (SP) : 10, 2 I ff. Sumerian literature, creative periods: 8f.,

Lugalbanda: 10, 1 3 , 2 1 , 26

Music: 1 6

"The Testament of Sulgi" (SE) : 1 8ff., 26 Tree metaphors: 1 1 , 2 1 , 24 n. 122

Nanna(·Suen): 9, I I , 12, 14, 25 Ninlil: 9, 14, 1 9

U" 7, 1 2 , 14, 20, 22, 25

Military campaigns: 7, 1 3, 1 6

Ubsu'ukkinna: 38, addenda

Ninsun: 10, 1 1 , 1 3, 2 I ff. Nippur: 8, 1 3, 1 7 , 20

Vr III Dynasty, period: 7, 27 Urnammu: 7 n. 3; IO n. 23

Orthography: 27ff., adde nda

Uruk: 8, 10, 14, 25

Parallelism, literary: 24

Utu, 1 1 , 14, 17, 20

Vrras: 10, 29

Pilgrimage: 13, 1 4

Wisdom: 16, 20

48

27