Gudea Statue B (RIME 3/1.01.07, St B composite)

(i 1) From the temple of his master, 1 sila of beer, 1 sila of bread, half a sila of flour, and half a sila of husked emmer groats are the regular offerings placed before the statue of Gudea, ruler of Lagaš, builder of the E-ninnu. If a ruler revokes this and (thereby) strips (the statue) of the divine powers of Ninĝirsu, then may his regular offerings from the temple of Ninĝirsu be revoked, and may his (statue's) mouth remain closed.

(ii 1) When Ninĝirsu had looked favourably upon his city, and chosen Gudea as the true shepherd of the Land, taking him by the hand from among the multitude of people, (then) for Ninĝirsu, Enlil's powerful warrior, Gudea, (whose) name is everlasting, ruler of Lagaš, the shepherd chosen by Ninĝirsu in the heart, the one looked upon favourably by Nanše, given strength by Nindara, who submits to the orders of Bau, the child born by Ĝatumdug, entrusted with authority and a lofty sceptre by Ig-alima, provided richly with vigour by Šul-šagana, and made to emerge as the true head of the assembly by his personal god, Ninĝišzida, purified the city by carrying around fire, set up the brick-mould and requested an omen by a kid about the (first) brick.

(iii 15) He expelled the ritually unclean, the abhorrent ones, the ..., the impotent ones, and the confined women from the city. No earth-basket was carried by women, (only) (ritual) transvestites worked for him on the building. He built the temple of Ninĝirsu in a place as pure as Eridug. No one was whipped, no one was lashed. No mother hit her child. Indeed the general, the captain, and the foreman supervised the conscripted people assigned to the work with combed wool in their hands. In the city's cemetery no hoe was wielded, no corpse was buried. The lamentation singer did not set up his balaĝ drum and did not perform laments with it. The wailing woman did not utter laments. Within the borders of Lagaš, no one took a person involved in a lawsuit to the place of oath-taking. No one's house was entered by the debt collector. For Ninĝirsu, his master, he made an eternal thing appear: he built his E-ninnu-anzud-babbar, restored it, (and) built his beloved divine audience chamber from fragrant cedarwood inside it.

(v 21) When he built Ninĝirsu's temple, Ninĝirsu, his beloved master, opened the roads for him from the Upper Sea to the Lower Sea. From Amanum, the mountain range of cedars, he rafted down 60 kuš long cedar timbers, 50 kuš long cedar timbers, and 25 kuš long boxwod timbers. He set up his Šarur weapon, the flood storm of battles, set up his Šargaz weapon, the weapon with seven spikes for (Ninĝirsu). He set up his copper weapon, the devastating axe. He set up his copper weapon, the durallu axe. He fashioned big doors from the cedar timbers, decorated them with holy flowers and installed them in the E-ninnu for him. He installed (the cedar timbers) as roof-beams on his lofty temple, where cold water is poured. From the city Ursu in the mountain range of Ebla he rafted juniper, huge pine-tree, plane tree, and ĝiškur-tree timbers and installed them as roof-beams on the E-ninnu for him. He transported great stone slabs from Umanum in the mountain range of Menua, and from Pusala in the mountain range of the Amorites, fashioned stelae from them and erected them in the courtyard of the E-ninnu. He brought blocks of alabaster from Tidanum in the mountain range of the Amorites, he fashioned ... from them and installed them as ... in the temple. He mined copper in Abullāt in the mountain range of Kimaš and fashioned from it a mace for him that no region can withstand. He transported ebony from the mountains of Meluḫa and used it in the construction for him. He (also) transported blocks of nir-stone from there and fashioned from it a mace with three lion-heads. He transported gold ore from the mountain range of Ḫaḫum and plated the mace with three lion-heads with it. He transported gold ore from the mountains of Meluḫa and fashioned from it a quiver for him. He (also) transported ... from there. He transported halub-wood from Gubin in the mountain of halub-trees and fashioned from it the Šarur-bird. He transported ... gun of bitumen from Madga in the mountain range of the ordeal river, and built it into the substructure of the E-ninnu. He (also) transported ha'um earth from there. He loaded huge ships with gravel from the mountain range of Barme and used it strengthen the base of of the E-ninnu for him. He conquered the city of Anšan in Elam and brought its booty into the E-ninnu for Ninĝirsu. After building the E-ninnu for Ninĝirsu, Gudea, ruler of Lagaš, donated (the booty) to it for ever. No ruler but he has ever built a temple fashioned like this for him, so he made a name for himself. He made an eternal thing appear, faithfully carried out Ninĝirsu's command.

(vii 10) He imported diorite from the mountains of Magan, fashioned from it his statue, named it for his sake "I have built his temple for my master, (thus) well-being is my reward", and brought it before him into the E-ninnu.

(vii 21) Gudea entrusted the statue with a message: "Statue, tell my lord: When I built the E-ninnu, his beloved temple for him, I remitted all debts, I pardoned everyone. For seven days, no grain was ground, the slave girl was equal with her mistress, and slave and his master were peers. The ritually unclean was allowed to sleep only outside my city. I banished (all) wickedness. I observed the laws of Nanše and Ninĝirsu. I provided protection for the orphan against the rich, and provided protection for the widow against the powerful. I had the daughter become the heir in the families without a son." He made the statue convey this as a message.

(vii 49) As this statue is neither of silver nor lapis lazuli, and neither of copper, nor tin, nor bronze, no one may reuse it. It is of diorite. It is set up for the mortuary chapel. No one may destroy it by force. O, statue, you turn your face towards Ninĝirsu!

(vii 60) The man, who removes the statue of Gudea, ruler of Lagaš, the builder of Ninĝirsu's E-ninnu, from the E-ninnu, erases its inscription, or destroys it, who, after Ninĝirsu, my lord, has addressed his personal god in the crowd at the beginning of a propitious year, just like my personal god, overturns my judgements and revokes my gifts, who replaces my name with his name in the songs compiled by me, or prevents (the performance of these songs) at the regular festivals in the courtyard of Ninĝirsu, my lord, who ignores that since the dawn of time, since primeval days, no one may challenge the commands or overturn the judgements of a ruler of Lagaš who made an eternal thing appear by having built the E-ninnu for Ninĝirsu, my lord, and (consequently) challenges the commands or overturns the judgements of Gudea, ruler of Lagaš, may An, Enlil, Ninḫursaĝa, Enki, he of just speech, Suen, (the oath by) whose name cannot be annulled, Ninĝirsu, the king of weapons, Nanše, the lady of boundaries, Nindara, the king and warrior, the mother of Lagaš, holy Ĝatumdug, Bau, first-born child of An, Inana, the lady of battle, Utu, the king of blue (sky), Ḫendursaĝa, the herald of the Land, Ig-alima, Šul-šagana, Ninmarki, the first-born child of Nanše, Dumuzid-abzu, lady of Kinunir, and my personal god, Ninĝišzida change the fate decided for him! May he be slain like an ox on the very same day! May he be seized by his terrible hands like a wild bull (by its terrible horns)! May he sit in the dust instead of the throne erected for him. If he only intends to erase this inscription, may his name be removed from the temple of his personal god and from the accounts! May his personal god ignore him at ... among the people! Under him, may the rains remain in the sky, may the waters remain in the ground. May he face years of hardship! May there be famine during his reign! Like someone committing a crime against a righteous man, may he ...! May he never be set free!

(ix 27) May the Land proclaim the exaltedness of the strongest one among the gods, lord Ninĝirsu!