SAA 13 134. Letter of Complaint about Pulu (ABL 0951)[via saao/saa13]
Obverse | ||
oo | about 5 lines broken away | |
o 1'1' | LUGAL [x x x x x x x] pa is [x x x x]-tú? | |
o 2'2' | ||
o 3'3' | is-si-⸢ḫir⸣ [x x x x x x] ma ad [x x x x x] | |
o 4'4' | (4) The matter which [he ...] will not pl[ease] the king. | |
o 5'5' | (5) Now Pulu, the lamentation priest, has been acting arbitrarily in the temple of Nabû. Without the permission of the king, he tore out doorposts, fastened others, and cut down the ... in the Akitu house of N[abû] and the Akitu house of Tašmetu. As for the golden table of [Mar]duk, which Sargon had made, he assigned a goldsmith to it. He removed the old work and replaced it with new. | |
o 6'6' | ||
o 7'7' | ||
o 8'8' | ||
o 9'9' | ||
o 10'10' | ||
o 11'11' | ||
o 12'12' | (12) Furthermore, the dragons upon which Nabû stands, and the socle between them — he has made a sketch out of them. One of the clergymen saw him, but he turned him back and let him go. No one has authority, and no one says (anything) to him. | |
o 13'13' | ša dPA ina UGU-ḫi iz-za-zu-u-ni šu-ub-tum ina bir*-tu*-uš-šú-nu | |
o 14'14' | ||
o 15'15' | ||
o 16'16' | (16) He has appointed officials of his own choosing in the temple. Moreover, the king's father set up golden bottles of ...-liter capacity (with) royal images on them. They would fill with wine the one in front of Bel and the one in front of Nabû. They would be decanted. The wine was the palace allotment. Now this has been stopped. He himself measures out the wine and carries it in. | |
o 17'17' | ||
o 18'18' | ||
o 19'19' | ||
o 20'20' | ||
o 21'21' | ||
o 22'22' | ||
o 23'23' | (23) And formerly, when my father supervised the house of eunuchs ordinary beer from groats was decanted, and he used to inspect [new] and old (beer) at the same time. | |
o 24'24' | ||
o 25'25' | ||
o 26'26' | ||
Bottom | ||
b.e. 27'b.e. 27' | [x x x x x x x] gi-né-e | |
b.e. 28'28' | [x x x x x x x x]+⸢x⸣ ḫi-i-ṭu | |
b.e. 29'29' | [x x x x x x i]-⸢ba*⸣-šú-ni | |
b.e. 30'30' | ⸢x x⸣ [x x É]—⸢nak*⸣-ka-ma-a-te gab-bu | (30) [...(and)] all the [tr]easuries are under his supervision: he is the one to open and seal them. He enters the ritual bath house of Bel and Nabû. (There) twice a year the loins of Marduk are ungirded. All the precious stones and jewelry are under his custody; he does not show them to anybody with him. |
b.e. 31'31' | ||
Reverse | ||
r 1r 1 | ||
r 22 | ||
r 33 | ||
r 44 | (r 4) He also does the work of the woman who carries out the lighting ceremony for Tašmetu. Nobody with him sees (her), neither the deputy priest, nor the temple steward, nor the king's official know. | |
r 55 | ||
r 66 | ||
r 77 | ||
r 88 | ⸢ú*-di?⸣-[u?] ⸢ina* pa*-ni*⸣-šú ra-[am-mu]-⸢ma*⸣ ina ŠÀ LÚ.ag-ru-ú-ti | (r 8) The ... has been left at his disposal and is being placed in [front of Bel] and in front of Nabû with the help of hired laborers. Moreover [they ...] as they please, and [they ...] the regular sheep offering in the afternoon as they please. |
r 99 | ||
r 1010 | [x x x x x x ù ki]-ma ŠÀ-ba-šú-nu ina mu-ṣal-li UDU.da-ri-ú | |
r 1111 | ⸢x⸣+[x x] kit ⸢x⸣+[x x] UDU.da-ri-ú ša ina É—dAMAR.UTU | (r 11) The regular sheep offering which is car[ried] out in the temple of Marduk should be stopped — for at least one month if not two. The regular sheep offering of the pilgrims (lit. 'the blesser'), which is performed before Nabû, is [incom]plete. They carry out the regular sheep offering in full before Marduk — but having performed its ritual in the temple of [...]mar. |
r 1212 | in-né-[ep-pa]-šú-u-ni šúm*-ma* ITI* šúm*-ma 02 ITI-MEŠ-ni lu ba-ṭi-il | |
r 1313 | ||
r 1414 | ||
r 1515 | ⸢ú-gam-mu⸣-ru ina É—d[x]+⸢x⸣.MAR dul-lu-šú e-tap-šú | |
r 1616 | (r 16) No one can do (anything); there is an order to remain silent. But they have changed the old rites! The 'opener of the eyes' [...] the food allotment [...]. Just let [the king], my [lord], ask! | |
r 1717 | ||
r 1818 | ⸢LÚ*⸣.BAD—e-ni a-kul*-⸢lu*⸣-[ú x x x x LUGAL be]-lí* liš-al | |
r 1919 | ⸢x⸣+[x] LÚ.MAŠ.MAŠ LÚ.⸢x⸣+[x x x x x x x x]-u-ni | |
r 2020 | [x x x x x x x x x]+⸢x x⸣+[x x x x x] ka? ši | |
r 2121 | [x x x x x x x x]+⸢x⸣ LÚ.BAD—e-ni ù? | |
r 2222 | ||
r 2323 | ||
r 2424 | ||
r 2525 | [x x x x x x]+⸢x⸣ at-ti-ti-iz a-ta*-a | (r 25) I have stood [...]. Why does [NN] serve [in] my father's [o]ffice while I am dying of hunger? [Con]cerning what [...] |
r 2626 | [x x x ina] ⸢pi*⸣-qit*-ti ša AD-⸢ia⸣ iz-za-az | |
r 2727 | ||
r 2828 | [ina] UGU mi-mi-e-ni ša ⸢x⸣+[x x x x x] | |
Right | ||
r.e. 29r.e. 29 | [x x x] ⸢x x x x⸣+[x x x x x x x x x] | |
Edge | ||
e. 1e. 1 | [x x x x x x x x x x]+⸢x⸣ a-na [x x x x x x x] | |
e. 22 | [x x x x x]+⸢x⸣+[x x]+⸢x⸣ dAMAR.UTU [a-na LUGAL] lik-ru-bu ina ⸢UGU⸣ [x x x] iš* [x x x] | (e. 2) [......] May [Nabû] and Marduk bless [the king]. [... w]rote concern[ing ......]. Let the king try him, and let him write me in detail about the work of the house of eunuch[s]. |
e. 33 | [x x x]-⸢sa?-ṭar? LUGAL? lu⸣-u*-ki-in-šú ù ina UGU dul-li ša É LÚ.⸢SAG?-MEŠ*⸣ [x x x] | |
e. 44 |
Adapted from Steven W Cole, Peter Machinist, Letters from Assyrian and Babylonian Priests to Kings Esarhaddon and Assurbanipal (State Archives of Assyria, 13), 1998. Lemmatised by Mikko Luukko and Silvie Zamazalová, 2011-13, as part of the AHRC-funded research project “Mechanisms of Communication in an Ancient Empire: The Correspondence between the King of Assyria and his Magnates in the 8th Century BC” (AH/F016581/1; University College London) directed by Karen Radner. The annotated edition is released under the Creative Commons Attribution Share-Alike license 3.0. Please cite this page as http://oracc.org/saao/P334641/.