The Babylonian Entitlement Narûs: A Study in Form and Function (ASOR Books 9)

THE BABYLONIAN ENTITLEMENT NARÛS (KUDURRUS): A STUDY IN  THEIR FORM AND FUNCTION......Page 4
Contents......Page 8
Acknowledgments......Page 10
List of Figures......Page 14
Abbreviations......Page 16
Rough Chronology for Mesopotamian Historical Periods......Page 18
The Cuneiform Languages of Mesopotamia......Page 19
Area Measures in Field Descriptions......Page 21
DISCOVERY, DECIPHERMENT, AND DESIGNATION......Page 24
OVERVIEW OF THE CORPUS......Page 30
KUDURRUS AND KASSITE BABYLONIA......Page 32
PREVIOUS SCHOLARSHIP......Page 33
PROBLEMS AND AIMS......Page 35
2. Designation and Setting......Page 42
WHAT'S IN A NAME? THE PROBLEM OF TERMINOLOGY......Page 43
Passages containing the word narû......Page 44
Passages containing the word kudurru......Page 50
Passages containing both kudurru and narû......Page 55
Passage containing narû ša ḫaṣbi......Page 64
Passages containing NÍG.NA......Page 65
Modern dictionaries and native terminology......Page 76
Textual evidence......Page 78
Archaeological evidence......Page 80
CONCLUSIONS......Page 82
3. The Inscriptions: Subject and Structure......Page 88
Overview of the inscriptions......Page 89
SUBJECT TYPOLOGY OF THE INSCRIPTIONS......Page 91
Nazi-Maruttaš RA 66......Page 93
Commentary......Page 96
Meli-Šipak BBSt 4......Page 98
Commentary......Page 101
Structure of the royal land grant inscriptions......Page 102
Royal grants of temple prebend (isqu)......Page 105
Royal exemptions (zakûtu)......Page 107
Royal adjudications......Page 109
Royal affirmations or restorations of previously held land......Page 112
Non-royal land purchases......Page 115
Non-royal land grants......Page 121
Non-royal grant of a temple prebend......Page 122
CONCLUSIONS......Page 123
4. Form and Function......Page 128
Grants of land (eqlu and kirû)......Page 134
Grants of exemptions (zakûtu)......Page 136
THE CONCEPT OF ENTITLEMENT......Page 137
Hereditary entitlements......Page 138
Sealing (stone) narûs?......Page 139
Sealing and inheritance......Page 141
'royal seal of allocations'......Page 144
Documents sealed by agents other than the king......Page 145
Relief imagery of the Entitlement narûs......Page 147
Inter-relationship of image and text......Page 148
Captions......Page 150
References in the main text......Page 151
Captions associated with relief scenes......Page 156
Implicit textual references to relief scenes......Page 165
CONCLUSIONS......Page 166
5. A Formal Definition for the Babylonian Entitlement narûs......Page 172
NATIVE DESIGNATION......Page 173
FUNCTION......Page 174
Material......Page 175
Shape......Page 176
Size......Page 179
Other physical feature: field plans.......Page 181
Time .........Page 182
RELIEF IMAGERY......Page 183
Divine Symbols......Page 184
INSCRIPTIONS......Page 189
Heading......Page 191
Operative division......Page 192
Imprecative division......Page 199
Orthography......Page 202
CONCLUSIONS......Page 203
ARTIFACTS A: KADAŠMAN-ENLIL BBST 1 AND BM 135743......Page 206
Commentary......Page 210
Discussion......Page 211
ARTIFACT B: MELI-ŠIPAK MDP IV 163......Page 213
Discussion......Page 214
ARTIFACT C: NABÛ-APLA-IDDINA BBST 36, THE SIPPAR ŠAMAŠ TABLET......Page 219
Commentary......Page 231
Discussion: the inscription......Page 233
Discussion: the relief (fig. 11)......Page 240
ARTIFACT D: ŠAMAŠ-ŠUMA-UKĪN AfO 16......Page 244
Commentary......Page 247
Discussion......Page 249
CONCLUSIONS......Page 252
7. The Place of the Babylonian Entitlement narûs in Mesopotamian Culture......Page 256
THE INNOVATION OF THE BABYLONIAN ENTITLEMENT NARÛS......Page 257
(NA4) NARÛ '(STONE) MONUMENT'......Page 258
The medium of stone......Page 260
Stelae from the Early Dynastic to the Old Babylonian period......Page 263
Entitlement narûs and 'monumentality'......Page 265
THE "ANCIENT KUDURRUS"......Page 268
BABYLONIAN ENTITLEMENT NARÛS WITHIN MESOPOTAMIAN MONUMENTAL TRADITION......Page 273
The Stele of Eannatum (Stele of the Vultures)......Page 275
The Stele of Ur-Nammu......Page 278
The Law Stele of Ḫammurapi......Page 282
BABYLONIAN ENTITLEMENT NARÛS AND ROYAL MONUMENTS......Page 289
Appropriation of a royal prerogative?......Page 292
HISTORICAL SETTING......Page 293
Babylonia and the Kassites......Page 294
Other contemporary expressions of limitations on royal power......Page 300
The Babylonian Entitlement narûs as witness to 2nd millennium social change......Page 304
The innovation of the Babylonian Entitlement narûs in the mid-2nd millennium......Page 307
Conclusion......Page 310
APPENDICES......Page 314
1. BIBLIOGRAPHIC CROSS-REFERENCES FOR ARTIFACTS WITH DATABLE INSCRIPTIONS......Page 316
2. ARTIFACTS RECOVERED THROUGH CONTROLLED EXCAVATION......Page 328
Royal grants of agricultural land (fields, orchards); also land and prebends; also land and exemptions.......Page 332
Royal grants of prebends without land......Page 335
Royal granting of exemptions only......Page 336
Non-royal gifts of land......Page 337
Non-royal purchase of land......Page 338
Non-royal prebend grant......Page 339
4. GLOSSARY OF AKKADIAN TERMS......Page 342
References......Page 350
INDICES......Page 370
Personal Names......Page 372
Place Names......Page 380
Texts Cited......Page 383