Ex642: Sumerian to English

Corrections

Original translation by Chiera, Selected Temple Accounts from Telloh, Yokha and Drehem: Cuneiform in the Library of Princeton University, 1922.

In the century since Chiera's work on Ex642, knowledge of the Sumerian language and this document type has grown. I have made updates and corrections to Chiera's work in [blue brackets].

Commentary

22. zig-ga. Chiera translates this as 'expenses' ('for the 6th day'), but I have changed it to 'delivering' ('on the 6th day') for the sake of clarity and scholarly convention. Zi-ga (common spelling) is the key term for this document type, which Ex642 fits perfectly into: a record of livestock sent out of the bureau, either a daily entry like Ex642 or a totalized report at the end of a period. Maeda's comprehensive 1989 analysis of the Puzrish-Dagan livestock records christens these records 'delivering texts' as opposed to their counterparts the 'receiving texts,' which record livestock brought into the bureau.

2,4,7,etc. mu-túm. This word means 'bringing' or 'brought by,' and signifies the act of offering one's property to a ruling institution. This is a key term appearing in temple offerings throughout the Mesopotamian historical record. In his analysis of the prefix mu-, linguist Mamoru Yoshikawa argues that the term mu-túm “topicalises the action of person(s) of lower social standing towards person(s) of higher social standing”: that the language itself establishes an imbalance of power and status between the offerer and the recipient. But is this recipient the deity named in the text, the institution requiring the offering, or the official to whom the offerer pays?

4. mu. 'Baker' here is likely a prebendary (priestly) position, someone who worked at the temple to prepare food for the gods and the temple staff. Jones and Snyder note that the offerers sending tribute to Puzrish-Dagan are members of state institutions, both bureaucratic and religious.

7. iš. Chiera translates 'sword carrier'; Nies tentatively defines this occupation as a "squire" or "body servant". Probably some sort of servant, although possibly a ceremonial role in the temple?

9,11,13. nu-banda. Chiera translates this word as ‘chief’, but a cross-examination of the cuneiform with the ETSCL Sign List confirms this is nu-banda3, a term which is now understood to denote a 'foreman' or 'overseer.' Interpretations vary of the nu-banda's exact job description. Michalowski suggests this is a general title given to "low-level bureaucrats" representing a "variety of occupations", while Nies offers the translations "taskmaster" and "superintendent" in addition to foreman and overseer.* It is agreed that a nu-banda was someone low in the institutional hierarchy, whose work was administrative, and who likely held authority over the most common manual laborers. I have chosen 'foreman' to emphasize their membership of both the labor force and the bureaucracy.

16. Zabarku. Chiera translates this as 'zabar-ku of the messengers,' presumably interpreting this as a Sumerian bureaucratic term. However, Zabarku is likely the name of an individual who held the post of courier; this would be consistent with the formula of zi-ga texts translated by Maeda, and Nies's catalogue includes a tablet from only a few years later (no. 110) which lists a messenger named Zabarku.