The Land grant to Marduk-zākir-šumi kudurru is an ancient Mesopotamian narû, or entitlement stele, recording the gift (irīmšu) of 18 bur 2 eše note 37 (about 120 hectares or 300 acres) of corn-land by Kassite king of Babylon Marduk-apla-iddina I ( 1171–1159 BC) to his bēl pīḫati (inscribed lúEN NAM and meaning "person responsible"), or a provincial official. The monument is significant in part because it shows the continuation of royal patronage in Babylonia during a period when most of the near East was beset by collapse and confusion, and in part due to the lengthy genealogy of the beneficiary, which links him to his illustrious ancestors.
The stele
The monument is a large rectangular block of limestone with a base of 51 by 30.5 cm and a height of 91 cm, or around 3 feet, with a broken top making it the tallest of the extant kudurrus and has intentionally flattened sides. It was recovered from the western bank of the Tigris opposite Baghdad and acquired by George Smith for the British Museum while on his 1873–74 expedition to Nineveh sponsored by the Daily Telegraph. It was originally given the collection reference D.T. 273 and later that of BM 90850. The face has three registers featuring eighteen symbolic representations of gods (listed below identifying the corresponding deity) and the back has three columns of text (line-art pictured right).
First register: Crescent moon, Sîn Solar disc, Šamaš Eight-pointed star, Ištar Lamp, Nusku Walking bird, Bau Eagle/vulture-headed mace, Zababa Lion-headed mace, Nergal Squatting dog, Gula Scorpion, Išḫara Reversed yoke on a shrine, Ninḫursag
Second register: Bird on a perch, the Kassite deities Šuqamuna & Šumalia Reclining ox beneath lightning fork, Adad Spear-head behind horned dragon, Marduk Wedge supported by horned dragon before shrine, Nabû
Third register: Horned serpent spanning register, uncertain Turtle, uncertain Ram-headed crook above goat-fish, Ea Winged dragon stepping on hind part of serpent, uncertain
The land grant was situated west of the river Tigris in the province of Ingur-Ištar, one of perhaps twenty-two pīḫatus or provinces known from the Kassite period, and was bordered by estates belonging to the (house of) Bīt-Nazi-Marduk and Bīt-Tunamissaḫ, perhaps Kassite nobility.
Cast of characters
Marduk-apla-iddina, the king, donor Marduk-zākir-šumi, bēl-pīḫati, beneficiary. His secondary titles included ˹pa˺-˹qí]-id ÉRIN giDUSU: officer of the troops of the charioteers
His ancestors:
Nabû-nadin-aḫḫē, his father Rimeni-Marduk, grandfather Uballissu-Marduk, great-grandfather, an accountant during the reign of Kurigalzu II, whose cylinder seals shed further light on his ancestors, naming his forebears Uššur-ana-Marduk as šandabakku or governor of Nippur and Usi-ana-nuri-? as viceroy of Dilmun (ancient Bahrain) Arad-Ea, patriarchal figure of the clan and his great-great-grandfather
Witnesses:
Ninurta-apla-iddina, son of Adad-naṣir šakin or governor of the province of Engur-Ištar Nabû-naṣir, son of Nazi-Marduk, sukallu a court official, messenger or viziersukallu CAD S p. 356 Nabû-šakin-šumi, son of Arad-Ea, lúDU.GAB, "charioteer"
Principal publications
line-art and transcription into Assyrian characters translation revised line-art transliteration and translation no. 4, line-art , pls. 31-42 transliteration, translation and photographs no. 62
References