Literary tablet excavated in Ur (mod. Tell Muqayyar), dated to the Old Babylonian (ca. 1900-1600 BC) period and now kept in British Museum, London, UK
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Transliteration
tablet
obverse
1. ama#-gi4 nu-me-en sza3 inim#-[...]
en: (I) have known (how to impose) the meaning of the words “I am not freed”
2. inim-gu10# sag i3 li#-[...]
en: My words are the finest of pressed/high quality oils
3. sza3 izi-gin7 bar7-ra-am3 [...]
en: A heart that burns like fire--(I) have known its cooling
4. inim-ma lu2 inim-ma# diri-ga# [...]
en: One will weigh (my) words against(?) a man excessive in words
5. nig2 kal-kal-la ga2-e lu2-[...]
en: I am a man of the most precious things
6. sun5-na dugud-bi sag#-[...]
en: The importance of being humbled is appreciated by me
7. nig2-na-me-<gu10>-u8 la-ba-an#-[...]
en: One cannot slander/alter(?) anything of mine(?)
8. inim an-na inim {d}en-lil2-la2#-[...]
en: By the word of An and Enlil
9. zi kalam-ma zi kur-kur-ra-ka giri17 szu x-x-gal2
en: (I) shall cover (my) mouth (in submission) for the life of the homeland and the life of the foreign lands
10. ga2-la nu-dag#-ge musz3 nu-tum2-bi-me-en
en: I am their unceasing one, their unfailing one
11. dingir-re-e-ne gub-ba in-ga-an-zu
en: (I!) too have known how to serve the gods
12. {d}a-nun-na-ke4-e-ne ki#? sed4#!?-bi mu-zu
en: (I) have known the cooling place(!?) of the Anuna
13. {d}szul-gi nam-nun-na gu2 gal pesz11#-a-me-en
en: I am Shulgi, whose great neck grows thick in princeliness
14. nig2 gal-gal-la a-ba-da-ab-gal2-la-an#?
en: When(?) I am able to have great things
15. sza3#?-gu10#? hul2-la ba-da-am3-gal2-la#
en: Rejoicing is able to be (in) my heart
16. [...]-dag#-ge#? bar#?-x x-x-be2#-me#-en
en: I am one who will not cast that which is being brought to an end aside
rest broken
reverse
beginning broken
1'. lugal# u4# [...]-a#-asz#? disz#?-[...]
en: (Or) a single king from(?) ancient times
2'. sza3-gu10 nig2-a2-zi ba-ra-mu-un#-na#-ta#?-x-x
en: Thus I am not plotting(?) violence against him
3'. nam-lu2-lu7 an-ta si-ga-a-ta
en: (That which accrued) after mankind was placed from heaven (on the earth)(?)
4'. gesztu2 dab5-dab5-ba na-ga2#-ga2 nu-me-en
en: I am not a barbarian(!) regarding (this) accumulated(?) knowledge
5'. en3-du u4-bi-a-ta# libir-ra u4 ul-a-asz
en: From cultic songs of the (present?) time to ancient ones of distant days(?)
6'. tigi za-am-za-am szu IGI DU-gu10-ne
en: Therefore when I ... the tigi and zamzam songs/instruments(?)
7'. u4 na-a-me# lul-sze3 ba-ra-bi2-pa3# ka-ge ba-ra-bi2-gi
en: At no time have I chosen them/uttered(?) falsely or blocked them in the mouth
8'. nig2 libir-ra en3 he2-bi2-tar-tar szub-bu-de3 ba-ra-bi2-szum2
en: Therefore I have inquired after these ancient things and not given them over to be abandoned
9'. szir3-gid2-da-ga2 e2 du10-ga-ga2 pa e3#? [...]
en: Therefore I made my širgida songs manifest in my good palace/temple
10'. tigi za-am-za-am x-bi#? [...] gesztux(|GISZ.TUG2|)#-ga [...]
en: Therefore the ... of the tigi and zamzam songs/instruments, everything, I embedded in (my) memory(?)
11'. nig2#? x-x [...] ba#-ra#-szub#?-[...]
en: That which was thus not dropped from the hand