Mesopotamian MedicineandMagicamor.cms.hu-berlin.de/~ossendrm/9789004368064... · viii contents 10...

MesopotamianMedicine andMagic

Studies in Honor of Markham J. Geller

Edited by

Strahil V. PanayotovLuděk Vacín

with the assistance of

Gene Trabich

LEIDEN | BOSTON

For use by the Author only | © 2018 Koninklijke Brill NV

Contents

Preface xiMarkham J. Geller: An Appreciation xvi

Irving L. FinkelBibliography of Markham J. Geller xvii

Strahil V. Panayotov and Luděk Vacín

1 Vetitive and Prohibitive: An Observation 1Tzvi Abusch

2 Sons of Seth and the SouthWind 9Amar Annus

3 An Old Babylonian Oil Omen Tablet from the British Museum 25Netanel Anor

4 Disease and Healing in the Book of Tobit and inMesopotamianMedicine 36

Annie Attia

5 A Transtextual View on the “Underworld Vision of an AssyrianPrince” 69

Johannes Bach

6 The 34th Extract of the UGU Series from Babylon: An Editionof the Tablet BM 35512 93

András Bácskay

7 Budge’s Syriac Book of Medicines after One Hundred Years:Problems and Prospects 116

Siam Bhayro and Stefanie M. Rudolf

8 An Old Babylonian List of Sheep Body Parts (BM 29663) 131Yoram Cohen

9 Putting Theory into Practice: Kiṣir-Aššur’s Expertise between TextualKnowledge and Practical Experimentation 149

M. Erica Couto-Ferreira


viii contents

10 A Brief Look Eastward 167Sona Choukassizian Eypper

11 Two Old Babylonian Incantation Tablets, Purportedly from Adab(A 633 and A 704) 189

Walter Farber

12 Of tirku, Moles and Other Spots on the Skin accordingto the Physiognomic Omens 203

Jeanette C. Fincke

13 Amulets against Fever 232Irving L. Finkel

14 A Tale of Two Lands and Two Thousand Years: The Originsof Pazuzu 272

Eckart Frahm

15 Hermeneutics andMagic in the Commentary to Marduk’s Addressto the Demons 292

Uri Gabbay

16 A NewMedical Therapeutic Text on Rectal Disease 310Nils P. Heeßel

17 MesopotamianMagic in Text and Performance 343SamMirelman

18 Divine Privilege of the Rich and Powerful? Seeking Healing of Illnessby Presenting a Luxurious Gift 379

Takayoshi M. Oshima and Greta Van Buylaere

19 BM 32339+32407+32645: New Evidence for Late BabylonianAstrology 401

Mathieu Ossendrijver

20 Thunders, Haloes, and Earthquakes:What Daniel Broughtfrom Babylon into Arabic Divination 421

Lucia Raggetti


contents ix

21 At the Dawn of Plant Taxonomy: Shared Structural Design of HerbalDescriptions in Šammu šikinšu and Theophrastus’Historia plantarumIX 446

Maddalena Rumor

22 Simplicia and Unpublished Fragments of Alamdimmûfrom the British Museum 462

Eric Schmidtchen

23 Spiegel des Himmels: Synchronisation von Himmel und Erdein der babylonischen Leberschau, Iatromathematik und dem20-Felder-Spiel 501

Marvin Schreiber

24 Elpetu-Rush, Inanna and the Flood: A Tale of HumanIngratitude 528

JoAnn Scurlock

25 BAM 7 44: Suppositories for Rectal and Gastro-IntestinalDiseases 537

Krisztián Simkó

26 A Time to Extract and a Time to Compile: The TherapeuticCompendiumTablet BM 78963 556

Henry Stadhouders and J. Cale Johnson

27 From Awe to Audacity. Stratagems for Approaching AuthoritiesSuccessfully: The Istanbul Egalkura Tablet A 373 623

Henry Stadhouders and Strahil V. Panayotov

28 BM 92518 and Old Babylonian Incantations for the “Belly” 698Ulrike Steinert and Luděk Vacín

29 Teeth and Toothache 745Marten Stol

30 Die Fliege und der Tod: Beschwörungen gegen Tiere 771Marie-Louise Thomsen


x contents

31 Ninmaḫ and Her Imperfect Creatures: The BedWetting Manand Remedies to Cure Enuresis (STT 238) 779

Lorenzo Verderame

32 “If His Chin Is Constantly Slack…”: A New Text on the Vergebetween Physiognomic and Diagnostic Omens 801

KlausWagensonner

33 Five Birds, Twelve Rooms, and the Seleucid Game of TwentySquares 833

John Z.Wee

34 BM 33055: A Late Babylonian Clay Tablet with Figuresand Captions 877

Frans A.M.Wiggermann

Index of Divine Names 901Index of Personal Names 904Index of Geographical Names 907Index of Texts 911


© koninklijke brill nv, leiden, 2018 | doi:10.1163/9789004368088_020

chapter 19

BM 32339+32407+32645: New Evidence for LateBabylonian Astrology

Mathieu Ossendrijver*Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin

The astrological tablet which is edited here contains tables and sections of run-ning text about zodiacal signs and planets. It is hoped that this edition willlead to further investigations that may result in a more complete and satis-fying understanding of this difficult text, of which no direct parallels appearto be known. The previously unpublished fragments BM 32339 (1876-11-17,2071)+32407 (2140)+32645 (2411) preserve considerable portions of the righthalf of the tablet, including segments of the upper (lower) and right edges ofthe obverse (reverse). Altogether they measure 12.5×15.9×2.5–3.5cm. The sidethat is assumed to be the obverse is inscribedwith a single table.On the reverse,several tables alternatewith running text, including remains of whatmight be acolophon (rev. 32′) and two statements otherwise only found in colophons (rev.5′, 20′). A fourth related fragment, BM 37361 (1880-6-17, 1118), 4.0×2.0×2.5cm insize, was previously edited by Britton (2002).1 It may well belong to the sametablet, but it does not physically join the other three pieces. Its legible sideextends to the upper edge of the reverse; the other side is destroyed. J. Britton’sedition is included here with a few minor changes; for a copy of this fragmentsee Britton (2002). The four fragments and the reconstructed missing portionsof the tables suggest that the original tabletmeasured about 17×20×2.5–3.5cm.All fragments belong to the Babylon collection of the BritishMuseumwhich

comprises thousands of fragments that were excavated unscientifically in Iraqduring the last decades of the 19th century. As is generally assumed for theastronomical and astrological tablets from that collection, the present tabletmost likely originates from Babylon. The lot 1876-11-17 consists of about 2600tablets that were acquired in 1876 from the dealer Marini (Leichty 1986, xiv–

* The Trustees of the British Museum are acknowledged for permission to study and publishthe tablets. I thank the staff of the Middle East Department of the British Museum for theirsupport. This research was supported by the Excellence Cluster TOPOI, DFG grant EXC 264.

1 I thank Marvin Schreiber for pointing out this publication.


402 ossendrijver

figure 19.1 BM 32339+32407+32645, obversephoto Mathieu Ossendrijver / courtesy Trusteesof the British Museum

xv). At least 260 of them deal with astral science.2 The lot 1880-6-17 consistsof about 1800 tablets excavated by Hormuzd Rassam in Babylon and Borsippa(Leichty 1986, xxx); about 450of themdealwith astral science.The tablet there-fore probably originates from the same archaeological and archival context asmost other astronomical and astrological tablets from the Babylon collection.It was presumably written by scholars connected to Esagila, the sanctuary of

2 The estimates of the number of tablets concerned with astral science in each collection arebased on an unpublished catalogue of astronomical fragments in the British Museum kindlymade available by C.B.F. Walker.


bm 32339+32407+32645 403

figure 19.2 BM 32339+32407+32645, reversephoto Mathieu Ossendrijver / courtesy Trustees of the BritishMuseum

Marduk/Bēl where numerous astronomers are known to have been employedsince theAchaemenid era. A terminus post quem for the date of composition isimplied by the usage of the zodiac, which was probably invented near 400BCE(Britton 2010, 638–640). Furthermore, the names of the zodiacal signs are writ-ten with longer or different logograms than those most commonly used in thelate Seleucid era, which suggests that the text was written in the Achaemenidor early Seleucid era (400–300BCE).


404 ossendrijver

Transliteration

Obverse: BM 32339+32407+32645

i′ ii′ iii′ iv′

1 [d]dil-bat dSAG.UŠ dGU4.UD ˹d˺[xxxx] i2 ˹x˺ LA2 25.AM3 NE [xxx 1 MU]3 ˹x˺.30.˹AM3˺ 12.30 4 ˹ITI?˺ [20 UD?]4 ˹xx˺ 5 6.15 8 ˹ITI?˺ [10 UD?]5 [x].˹30˺ LA2 27.30 3˹6˺.[40] ii6 [x.1]˹5˺ 13.45 18.˹20˺7 [x.7].30 6.52.30 9.˹10˺8 [xx] LA2 30 40 iii9 [xx 15] 2010 [xx 7.30] 1011 [xx xx 2]˹7˺.30 ˹3˺6.40 iv12 [xx xx 1]˹3˺.45 18.2013 [xx xx 6].˹5˺2.30 9.1014 [xx xx 2]˹5˺ 33.˹20˺ v15 [xx xx 12].30 1˹6.40˺16 [xx xx 6.1]˹5˺ [8.20]17 [xx xx 22.30] 30 vi18 [xx xx 11.15] 1519 [xx xx] 5.37.˹30˺ 7.3020 [xx xx] 20 2˹6˺.[40] vii21 [xx xx] 10 1˹3˺.[20]22 [xx xx] 5 ˹6˺.[40]23 [xx xx] 17.30 [23.20] viii24 [xx xx] 8.45 [11.40]25 [xx xx] 4.2˹2.30˺ [5.50]26 [xx xx] 15 [20] ix27 [xx xx] ˹7˺.[30 10]28 [xx xx 3.45 5]29 [xx xx 17.30 23.20] x30 [xx xx 8.45 11.40]31 [xx xx 4.22.30 5.50]32 [xx xx 20 26.40] xi33 [xx xx 10 13.20]


bm 32339+32407+32645 405


34 [xx xx 5 6.40]35 [xx xx 22.30 30] xii36 [xx xx 11.15 15]37 [xx xx 5.37.30 7.30]

Reverse: BM 37361

i′ ii′ iii′

1 [… ] ˹x˺ KI MUL.MUL ˹x˺ […]2 […] 20 A.RA2 3 1 ˹muldil-bat 1˹5 x˺ […]3 […] ˹x˺ KI SAG-šu2 1 MU.MEŠ KI SAG-šu2 15 I[TI? …]4 […].MEŠ KI MURUB4-šu2 30 KI MURUB4-šu2 7.30 I[TI]5 […] KI GIR3-šu2 15 KI GIR3.2-šu2 3 8 […]6 […] GI6 UŠ


406 ossendrijver

Reve

rse:

BM32

339+

3240

7+32

645

i′ii′

iii′

iv′

v′vi′

vii′

viii′

ix′

1′[xx

KImulPA.BIL.SAG

KImulSUḪUR.MAŠ2]

˹KImulG

U˺.[LA

KImulxxxxx]

2′[xx

KISAG-šu2xx

KISAG-šu220]˹MU˺

KISAG-šu230[MU

KISAG-šu2xx]

3′[xx

KIM

URU

B4-šu2xx

KI]MURU

B4-šu210

KIM

URU

B4-šu21˹5˺[MU?

KIM

URU

B4-šu2xx]

4′[xx

KIGIR3.2

-šu2xx

K]IGIR3.2

-šu25

KIGIR3.2

-šu27MU6[ITI

KIGIR3.2

-šu2xx]

5′[…

mu-da

-amu-da

-ali-ka

l-lim]lamu-da

-alaIGI-m

aNIG2.G

IGdsindšam

aš2d[x]

6′[mulxx

mulxx]

mulAB.SIN2

mulZI.BA.AN

mulGIR2.TAB

mulPA.BIL.SAG

mulSUḪUR.[MAŠ2

mulGU.LA

mulxx]

7′[3.40

3.20]

32.40

2.20

22.20

[2.40

3]8′

[xx]

2020

918

40[30

x]9′

[SIG

GUR4

SI]G

GUR4

SIG

GUR4

SIG

[GUR4

SIG]

10′

[…]˹x˺.MEŠ

ša2lu-ma-šiZA

Lša2dSAG.ME.GAREŠ.BARan

aKURDINGIR.MEŠ

˹x˺[xxx]

11′

[GUR41.50

SIG1.40

GUR41.30]

˹SIG˺1.20

GUR41.10

SIG1

GUR41.10

SIG[1.20

GUR41.30]

12′

[xx

1010]

4.30

920

15[x]

13′

[GUR455

SIG50

GUR445

SIG]˹40˺

GUR435

SIG30

GUR435

SIG40

G[UR445]

14′

[xx

55]

˹2˺.1˹5˺

4.30

107.30

10+[x]

15′

[mulxx

mulxx

mulAB.SIN2

mulZI.BA.AN]

mulGIR2.TAB

mulPA.BIL.SAG

mulSUḪUR.MAŠ2

mulGU.LA

mul[xx]

16′

[SIG

GUR4

SIG

GUR4]

˹SIG˺

GUR4

SIG

GUR4

SIG

17′

[…]˹xx˺[xxxxxK]I.˹LAM

?9dd

il-ba

t˺ŠUB˹xŠU

?ABUKU? ˺iBI?˹xx˺

18′

[…]˹ZI˺-u

tNIM.MAk[ixxxx]˹x˺ZI-utBURU

5.ḪI.A

BURU

5.ḪI.A

19′

[…]˹x˺UTAḪZISIG5˹x˺[xx]˹giš ˺GIDRU

AŠ.TE

AGADIŠ

inaKUR.ḪI.˹A˺


bm 32339+32407+32645 407

i′ii′

iii′

iv′

v′vi′

vii′

viii′

ix′

20′

[…]˹x˺

ša2M

UL2.BABBARudd

il-ba

t[xx].M

EŠga

b-bi

ulaš2-˹ṭu

r˺21′

[ŠU

NE]

KIN

DU6N

IM-m

aAPIN˹x

GAN˺

AB

ZIZ2

ŠE22′

[xxx

xx]G

UR4

IGI-m

aSIG

SIGGIR3x?

UŠ-maGUR4

UŠ-maSIG

UŠ-maGUR4

UŠ-maSIG

UŠ-˹m

aGUR4?˺

23′

[…BE-m

a…]˹GUR4˺ZIŠUB-

eKALBE

-maSIGZIŠUB-

ei-ṣiKI.˹LAM

?xKIMIN

? ˺BE-m

aKIZIKUR2KUR2ZI[x]

24′

[…]U

Dšu

2-a-šu2M

UUŠMU

iNUN

it-be

-maKI.LAMKI[x]RU

UDBE-m

aKIA

2-meu4-me

25′

[…]BE-

nuda

n-nuBE-m

aKI.LAM

inaGURU

NNUGAL2BE-m

aU2U

Ḫ?EN

U2˹xḪA?˺A

inaSAG.MEŠU2inaGIR3.M

EIGIinaGIR3.M

E[ŠU2]

inaSAG.MEIGI

26′

[…]ina˹x˺ITI.MEša2ŠU2IGI

27′

[ŠU]SIG

NEGUR4

KINSIG

DU6G

UR4

APINSIG

GANGUR4

ABSIG

ZIZ2GUR4

ŠESIG

28′

[ŠU]

NE

KIN

DU6

APIN

GAN

AB

[ZIZ2

ŠE]

29′

[…]ina3me1-šuMU.MEŠ

dṣal-bat-a-nuudSAG.UŠinaKI.M

Ega

b-bi˹x˺[xx]

30′

[ŠU]

NE

KIN

DU6

APIN

GAN

A[B

ZIZ2

ŠE]

31′

[…]˹4+x˺A.RA22

GAR48GAR48

ina2-me1

˹20+x˺[…]

32′

[…]˹xxxxxxxMEŠ˺a

n-na-[a…]


408 ossendrijver

Translation

Apart from lines 1–4, no translation of the obverse is presented, since the restconsists entirely of numbers and two instances of the sign LA2. For their abso-lute values see the commentary.

Obverse: BM 32339+32407+32645


1 Venus Saturn Mercury M[ars …]2 … It is 25 … [… 1 year?]3 It is … 30 12;30 4 ˹months˺ [20 days?]4 … 5 6;15 8 ˹months˺ [10 days?]

Reverse: BM 37361

i′ ii′ iii′

1 [… region of Aries] … region of Taurus … […]2 […] 20 times 3 is 1,0 Venus 1˹5˺ … […]3 […] … region of its head 1,0 years region of its head 15 m[onths? …]4 […] … region of its middle 30 region of its middle 7;30 m[onths]5 […] region of its foot 15 region of its foot 3 8 […]6 […] … (blank) […]


bm 32339+32407+32645 409

Reve

rse:

BM32

339+

3240

7+32

645

i′ii′

iii′

iv′

v′vi′

vii′

viii′

ix′

1′[…

regionofSagittarius

regionofCapricorn]

regionofAqua[rius

regionofPisces]

2′[…

regionofitshead…

regionofitshead20]years

regionofitshead30[years

regionofitshead…]

3′[…

regionofitsmiddle…

region]ofitsmiddle10

regionofitsmiddle15[years

regionofitsmiddle…]

4′[…

regionofitsfeet…

re]gionofitsfeet5

regionofitsfeet7years6

[months

regionofitsfeet…]

5′[…

maytheexpertshow

ittotheexpert],theignorantshouldnotseeit;itisarestrictionofSin,Šamaš,[…]

6′[Cancer

Leo]

Virgo

Scales

Scorpio

Sagittarius

Capri[corn

Aquarius

Pisces]

7′[3,40

3,20]

3,0

2,40

2,20

2,0

2,20

[2,40

3,0]

8′[x

x]20

209

1840

[30

…]

9′[faint

bright

fain]t

bright

faint

bright

faint

[bright

faint]

10′

[…]softhezodiacalsigns,themotion(?)ofJupiter.Decisionfortheland,gods…

[…]

11′

[bright1,50

faint1,40

bright1,30]

faint1,20

bright1,10

faint1,0

bright1,10

faint[1,20

bright1,30]

12′

[xx

1010]

4.30

920

15[…]

13′

[bright55

faint50

bright45

faint]˹40˺

bright35

faint30

bright35

faint40

br[ight45]

14′

[……

55]

˹2.15˺

4.30

107.30

10+[…]

15′

[Cancer

Leo

Virgo

Scales

Scorpio

Sagittarius

Capri[corn

Aquarius

Pisces]

16′

[faint

bright

faint

bright]

˹faint˺

bright

faint

bright

faint

17′

[…]…

[…mar]ketrate?…Venus…

18′

[…]attackofEla[m…]…

attackoflocusts,locusts.

19′

[…]…

UTAḪ-rain…favorable…[…]scepter,throne,crown.If?inthelands


410 ossendrijver

(cont.) i′

ii′iii′

iv′

v′vi′

vii′

viii′

ix′

20′

[…]…

ofJupiterandVenus,allthe[…]Ididnotwritedown.

21′

[monthIV

monthV]

monthVI

monthVIIit

ishighand

monthVIII

˹…monthIX˺

monthX

monthXI

monthXII

22′

[xxx

xandis]

bright

itappears

andisfaint

faint,foot…

stationandit

isbright

stationanditis

faint

stationandit

isbright

station

anditis

faint

stationand

itisbright?˺

23′

[…If…is]˹bright˺:strongZIŠUB-

e,ifitisfaint:littleZIŠUB-

e.Themarketrate?…Ifthepositionoftheattackof…[…]

24′

[…]that…

attacked/stoodup

andthemarketratewith

[…]…

If…200days

25′

[…]strongpestil[ence].Ifthereisnotradeinthefruit.If…(if)itsetsintheheads,(then)itappearsinthefeet,it[sets]inthefeet(then)itappears

intheheads.

26′

[…]in˹…˺m

onthsofsetting(and)appearing.

27′

[monthIV]

faint

monthV

bright

monthVI

faint

monthVII

bright

monthVIII

faint

monthIXbright

monthXfaint

monthXI

bright

monthXII

faint

28′

[monthIV]

monthV

monthVI

monthVII

monthVIII

monthIX

monthX

[monthXI

monthXII]

29′

[…]in360yearsM

arsand

Saturnpro[ceed…]throughallthepositions.

30′

[monthIV]

monthV

monthVI

monthVII

monthVIII

monthIX

monthX

[monthXI

monthXII]

31′

[…]˹4+x˺tim

es2…48…48in280˹+x˺[…]

32′

[…]…

thus[…]


bm 32339+32407+32645 411

Philological Remarks

BM 32339+32407+32645 obv. 1: Dilbat(ddil-bat) = Venus; Kayyamānu(dSAG.UŠ)= Saturn (“The Steady One”); Šiḫṭu(dGU4.UD) = Mercury. The planet in col. iv′is almost certainly Mars, probably written dṣal-bat-a-nu = Ṣalbatānu.BM 37361 rev. ii′ 5: 3 8: As explained by Britton (2002) one expects 3.45 =

7.30/2. If we accept that 3;45 is measured in months, then this number couldhave been expressed as 3months plus a remainder of 0;45months = 22;30 days,but this is clearly incompatible with the 8.Rev. ii′ 6: GI6 UŠ: This statement has no parallel in the other columns. GI6

might stand for mūšu, “night”, UŠ for a form of nenmudu, “to be/become sta-tionary”, but this does not seem to result in a meaningful interpretation.BM 32339+32407+32645 rev. 1′: Col. i′ and the preceding column must have

contained analogous entries for Scorpio (mulGIR2.TAB), cols. viii′–ix′ for Pisces(probably written mulKUN.ME or mulAŠ.IKU). KI = qaqqaru, “region; position”.Rev. 5′ […]: Since the gap at the beginning of the line extends across five

columns (Aries until Leo) there is room for about 20 signs. NIG2.GIG = ikkibu,“restriction”; for this term see also Stevens 2013.Rev. 6′: Cancer (col. i′) was probably written mulALLA = alluttu, “crab”, Leo

(ii′) mulUR.A or mulUR.GU.LA = nēšu, “lion”, Pisces (ix′) KUN.ME = zibbātu,“tails”, or mulAŠ.IKU = iku, “field”.Rev. 9′: SIG and GUR4(KUR4 = LAGAB): each of these signs can have sev-

eral different astronomicalmeanings, but in thepresent combination SIGmustmean “faint”. In this meaning it must probably be read as a form of unnutu =“to be faint” (Hunger 1976, 254). GUR4 is to be read with a form of ba’ālu, “tobe bright” (Sachs and Hunger 1988, 22). Presumably they represent statives, i.e.unnut, “(it is) faint”, and ba’il, “(it is) bright”.Rev. 10′: At the beginning of the line the upper part of a sign similar to ḪAL

is visible. ZAL: the intended reading is unclear, most likely a form of nasāḫu,“to move; motion” (thus provisionally assumed in the translation), or uḫḫuru,“to be delayed; to be invisible”. In the latter sense this verb is used for planetsduring their period of invisibility. At the end of the line the beginning of DU,KA or a similar sign is visible.Rev. 17′: 9: This sign might be a variant of the Glossenkeil (:). ŠUB ˹x ŠU? AB

U KU?˺ i BI? ˹xx˺: Meaning unclear. The sign following ŠUB is similar to GIŠ. UKUmight also be KI.Rev. 18′: BURU5 = erbu, “locust”.Rev. 19′: UTAḪ, a type of rain; Akkadian reading and precise meaning un-

known (Sachs andHunger 1988, 33). This logogram is otherwise attestedmainlyin the astronomical diaries and in TU 20: rev. 6, a Late Babylonian astrological


412 ossendrijver

procedure for predicting weather (Hunger 1976, 239–240). ˹giš˺GIDRU = ḫaṭṭu,“scepter”; AŠ.TE = kussû, “throne”; AGA = agû, “crown”.Rev. 23′: ZI ŠUB-e: This term does not appear to be attested elsewhere. The

meaning remains unclear. If e is indeed a phonetic complement thiswould sug-gest that ŠUB is a form of nadû, “to throw; reject; place; excrete; be downcast”.ZI might stand for tibûtu, “attack”, but this does not yield a meaningful inter-pretation of ZI ŠUB-e. KAL probably stands for dannu, “strong”, or danin, “isstrong”, a 3 masc. sg. stat. G of danānu, as suggested by the immediately fol-lowing phrase, in which the same term ZI ŠUB-e is followed by i-ṣi = īṣi, “(it is)little”. ZI KUR2 KUR2 ZI: Meaning unclear. By itself ZI KUR2 usually stands fortibût nakri, “attack of an enemy”, but this may not apply here. KUR2 KUR2mayalso be read DIM4(PAP.PAP) and represent a form of sanāqu, “to approach”.Rev. 24′: UD could also be the end of TA.MUUŠMU i: Themeaning of these

signs could not be established. NUN: perhaps to be read rubû, “prince”, i.e. “aprince stood up/attacked”? RU UD: Meaning unclear. KI A: Meaning unclear;it might stand for “position/region of Leo”, but there is insufficient context todetermine the intended reading.Rev. 25′: […] BAD-nu: Perhaps to be reconstructed asNAM].BAD-nu=mutā-

nu, “pestilence”. GURUN = inbu, “fruit”. KI.LAM =maḫīrumay have the mean-ing “trade” rather than “market rate” here. U2 UḪ? ENU2 ˹x ḪA?˺ A: The correctreading of these signs could not be established. The sign UḪmight also be ŠA3.The damaged sign before ḪA?might be A.Rev. 26′: The damaged sign before ITI.ME might be the numeral 5 or 6.Rev. 31′: At the beginning, a numeral is partly preserved, perhaps 4, 5 or 6.

The meaning of the sign GAR is unclear. An interpretation ša2, “of”, does notresult in a meaningful interpretation.Rev. 32′: At the beginning, the top sides of about 7 signs can be seen.

Commentary

The tablet containspreviouslyunknownsequences of numbers and statementsaswell as elements and structural features known fromother Babylonian astro-nomical and astrological texts, in particular MUL.APIN and the so-called Cal-endarTexts. However, themanner inwhich the different elements are arrangedin tables and connected to zodiacal signs, months and planets is not attestedelsewhere.


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1 Table with Zigzag Sequences and Other Data Concerning the Planets(obv. 1–37)

The obverse preserves portions of a large table that probably occupied theentire surface. Only the rightmost four columns (i′–iv′) and the top nine rows(i–ix) are partly preserved. Columns and rows are separated by vertical andhorizontal rulings, resulting in a grid of rectangular cells. In the first row (i)each cell contains four lines of text, starting with the name of a planet. Fromleft to right they are Venus (Dilbat), Mercury (Šiḫṭu), Saturn (Kayyamānu) and,most likely, Mars (Ṣalbatānu), in accordance with the usual order of the plan-ets in Late Babylonian astrology (Rochberg 1988b). Since that sequence usuallybegins with Jupiter, there was very likely a column for that planet to the leftof col. i′. Moreover, the reconstructions on the reverse suggest that there isroom for two further columns, presumably dedicated to theMoon (Sîn) and theSun (Šamaš). It is therefore likely that the obverse originally contained sevencolumns. As will be argued, the original number of rows on the obverse wasalmost certainly twelve, one for each zodiacal sign. Hence three more rowsmust be restored below row ix (obv. 26–28). This is roughly compatible withthe height of the fourth fragment, BM 37361. Its legible reverse, which extendsto the upper edge of the original tablet, roughly fits above the upper edge of thereverse of BM 32339+32407+32645.Each cell contains either three numbers or the sign LA2. In col. i′ (Venus) not

a single number is fully preserved and no reconstruction could be suggested.The partly preserved final digits in rows i and ii suggest that the second andthird number in each row were obtained by halving (see below). In col. ii′ (Sat-urn) the first three cells are preserved. They only contain the sign LA2, whichcan have several distinct meanings in astronomical contexts, including šaqû,“to be high”, and naḫāsu, “to recede; move backwards”. The former verb is usedfor planets when they are above the ecliptic, the latter when they move in theretrograde direction. In the case of Saturn this applies in between the first sta-tion and the second station. It is unclear which of the two meanings, if any, isat play here.In cols. iii′ (Mercury) and iv′ (Mars) enough numbers are preserved for a

full reconstruction of all three sequences. Each preserved cell contains threenumbers, where the second number is half of the first and the third half of thesecond. As mentioned, the endings of the numbers in col. i′ (Venus) are alsocompatible with that rule. If we assume that it applies throughout the table wecan reconstruct a complete column if at least two instances of either the first,the second or the third number are preserved. In each column all first numbersform a linear zigzag sequence with a maximum in row iii and a minimum inrow ix, and the same holds for the second and third numbers. The parametersof the zigzag sequence for the first number are compiled in Table 19.1.


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table 19.1 Parameters of the zigzag sequence for the first number in each cell

Minimum Maximum Difference

Mercury (col. ii′) 15 30 2.30Mars (col. iii′) 20 40 3.20

The location of the extrema could provide clues about the significance ofthe numbers. In section b of the composition MUL.APIN (Hunger and Pin-gree 1989) and on Tablet 14 of the celestial omen series Enūma Anu Enlil (Al-Rawi and George 1991–1992), similar zigzag sequences describe the monthlyvariation of the duration of daylight and other astronomical quantities. Infact, the zigzag sequence for the duration of daylight from MUL.APIN sec-tion b and from Enūma Anu Enlil Tablet 14 Table C is tabulated on the reverseof the present tablet (see below). The zigzag sequences in the present table(Table 19.1) have the same ratio 2 of their maximum to their minimum as theduration of daylight. According toMUL.APIN themaximumdaylight occurs inmonth III,when the Sun is inGemini, the third signof the zodiac, theminimumin month IX, when the Sun is in Sagittarius, the ninth sign. Hence, the presenttable almost certainly contained 12 rows, each pertaining to one of the zodiacalsigns from Aries to Pisces. Consequently, the minima of the zigzag sequencesoccur in Gemini, the maxima in Sagittarius.However, their astronomical significance remains to be established. The

numbers are not familiar from any other Babylonian text, as far as known. Onemight hope that the properties of the sequences provide some clues, but thismay not lead us very far. As demonstrated by Steele (2013), the zigzag sequencefor the duration of daylight from MUL.APIN became a point of departure inLate Babylonian astral science for constructing various other zigzag sequences.Even if the mathematical steps by which one sequence is derived from theother are transparent, the underlying astronomical reasoning is not alwaysclear to us. It is therefore not possible to conclude from the similarity betweenthe present zigzag sequences and the one for the duration of daylight that theymeasure time intervals in UŠ, for instance for the visibility of Mercury andMars. Indeed, a closer look suggests that the numbers are actually measured inmonths. The preserved signs in the top cell of col. iv (Mars, Aries) do not fullyagree with the reconstructed zigzag sequence.We would expect the first num-ber tobe 33.20, the secondone 16.40 and the thirdone8.20. Instead line 2beginswith the sign NE, of unknownmeaning. Line 3 begins with 4, followed by whatlooks like the beginning of ITI, month. If we assume that these expressions


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are compatible with the expected numbers, then 4 months […] can be inter-preted as the excess of 16;40 months beyond 1 (ideal) year of 12 (ideal) months.Accordingly, 1 MU = 1 year must be restored at the end of line 2 and 4 ITI wasprobably followed by 20 days (= 0;40 ideal months), where “days” could havebeen written ME, U4, u4-me, or similar. Altogether this would yield a total of16;40 months, which is the expected number. By the same token line 4 mightbe read 8 ITI [10 ME/U4/u4-me] = 8 months [10 days] = 8;20 months. This sug-gests that all numbers on the obverse are measured in months. Unfortunately,their meaning remains unclear.

2 Table with Zodiacal Signs and Numbers (BM 37361 rev. 1–6,BM 32339+32407+32645 rev. 1′–4′)

In BM 32339+32407+32645: rev. 1′–4′ each column is aligned with one pair ofcolumns from the table below it. Since the latter contains twelve columns, onefor each zodiacal sign, rev. 1′–4′ was most likely divided into six columns, ofwhich the last three are partly preserved. The penultimate column partly pre-serves the name of Aquarius (Gula), the 11th sign, which suggests that the sixcolumns are dedicated to the zodiacal signs from Libra to Pisces. BM 37361preserves two very similar columns dedicated toAries (ii′) andTaurus (iii′), pre-sumably belonging to a sequence of six columns for the signs Aries until Virgo.It is unclear what was written in the badly damaged col. i′. The only plausi-ble location for these columns is immediately above BM 32339+32407+32645:rev. 1′–4′. As mentioned earlier, the height of BM 37361 is compatible withthe estimated amount of clay that is missing from the bottom of the obverse.BM 37361 may be part of the same tablet, but this is not fully certain. One fea-ture speaking against it is that BM 37361 has GIR3 = šēpu, “foot” (rev. 5), whileBM 32339+32407+32645 has GIR3.2 = šēpān, “feet”, in analogous positions (rev.4′).At or near the top of each column the name of a zodiacal sign is written

after the logogram KI, most likely to be read qaqqar(KI) … = “region of …”. Thisexpression presumably means something distinct from the bare mention ofa zodiacal sign (e.g. in BM 32339+32407+32645: rev. 6′, 15′), but it is not clearhow. The same problem of interpretation applies to the other instances of KI(BM 37361: rev. 3–5, BM 32339+32407+32645: rev. 2′–4′), in which a number ispreceded by the expression KI SAG ŠU2, KI MURUB4 ŠU2 or KI GIR3.[2] ŠU2.As pointed out by Britton (2002), the terms “head”, “middle” and “foot/feet” areoccasionally attested in astronomical texts. J. Britton provisionally interpretedŠU2 as a logogram for rabû, “to set”, which can designate the daily setting or thesynodic phenomenon of last appearance. While this cannot be excluded, onewould then also expect references to risings (IGI = nanmurtu), i.e. daily risings


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or first appearances, but they are absent. At face value it seemsmore likely thatŠU2 is the possessive suffix -šu2, “its”, which has been assumed in the presentedition.In each cell the three numbers form the same kind of decreasing sequence

as on the obverse, i.e. the second number is half the first and the third one ishalf the second. This suggests that there is a connection between both tables.Indeed, some of the numbers are followed by a unit, years or months, whichseems to confirm the tentative conclusion that the numbers on the obverseare expressed inmonths. However, the nature of the connection between bothtables and the meaning of the numbers remain unclear.BM 37361 also includes two statements that are only preserved for Aries: a

multiplication 20 ·3 = 1,0 (rev. ii′ 2), presumably to be interpreted as 60 years,and the signs GI6 UŠ (rev. ii′ 6), of unknown significance (see the philologicalremarks).

3 Admonition to Secrecy (rev. 5′)Unexpectedly, an admonition to secrecy, which is usually found in the colo-phon at the end of a tablet, appears in the middle of the table. The preservedwords agree with a rather common admonition found on Babylonian andAssyrian scholarly tablets from the first millennium BCE; see e.g. Hunger 1968,Nos. 89, 98, 110 (from Uruk), 206, 221 (Assur), 303 (Kalḫu), 534, 562 (Assyria).These parallels suggest that the phrase “may the expert show it to the expert”,written mu-da-a mu-da-a li-kal-lim or similarly, is to be restored in the gap atthe beginning, which still leaves plenty of room for further text. InHunger 1968,Nos. 98, 110, 206, 221, 562, immar is likewise followed by ikkib(NIG2.GIG) DN,“restriction of (god) DN”, but there seem to be no other examples where Sînand Šamaš appear in this admonition.

4 Table with Zodiacal Signs, Numbers and Statements aboutBrightness (rev. 6′–16′)

The rightmost seven columns of this table are partly preserved. From thesequence of zodiacal signs (rev. 6′, 15′) it is clear that there were 12 columnsfor all signs from Aries until Pisces. There are four distinct parts, separatedby horizontal rulings, each containing between two and four rows. The firstpart contains two rows of numbers (rev. 7′–8′) followed by a row of alternatingterms, “bright” or “faint” (rev. 9′). Their astronomical or astrological significanceis not explained, but rev. 7′ is immediately recognizable as the zigzag sequencefor the duration of daylight known from MUL.APIN. Hence, these numbersare probably measured in UŠ (time degrees), which has been assumed in thetranslation.


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The second sequence (rev. 8′) defies an easy interpretation. There appearto be no parallels for it elsewhere in cuneiform literature. Since the numbersvary irregularly along the zodiac, no complete reconstruction is currently pos-sible.Onemight expect them tobe connectedwith thenumbers in theprevioustable (rev. 2′). Unfortunately, there are only two zodiacal signs, Capricorn andAquarius, for which both sequences are preserved, and the results of a mutualcomparison are inconclusive. For Aquarius the 30 years in rev. 2′ agree with the30 restored in rev. 8′, but for Capricorn the number in rev. 2′ is restored as 20years, while rev. 8′ has 40. Hence, the sequences are not identical and thereis insufficient information for determining the nature of their connection, ifthere was any.In between the first two parts of this table one line of running text is partly

preserved (rev. 10′). It mentions the zodiacal signs, the motion (or: invisibil-ity; see the philological comments) of Jupiter and a “decision for the land”, butthe precise meaning is unclear. The second part of the table (rev. 11′–12′) con-tains two sequences that are just half of the sequences in the first part (rev.7′–8′). Analogically, the third part (rev. 13′–14′) contains two sequences whichare half of those in the second part. This is the third occasion on the tabletwhere sequences of numbers associatedwith zodiacal signs are followedby thesame sequences divided by two and by four. No new information appears to beprovided in the fourth part (rev. 15′–16′) which repeats the zodiacal signs fromrev. 6′ and the same alternating sequence of terms “bright” and “faint” from rev.9′.

5 Section of Running Text with Omen-Like Statements (rev. 17′–20′)Below rev. 16′ the tabular format is interrupted by a block of running text. Thepreservedpart appears to consistmainly of omen-like statements and, perhaps,commentary. An attack of locusts (rev. 18′) often appears in the apodoses of thecelestial omen series Enūma Anu Enlil.3 In some of these parallels an attack oflocusts is mentioned side by side with an attack of the land Elam, as is donehere. It is difficult to make sense of the other statements. The term UTAḪ,which denotes a kind of rain, is found mainly in the astronomical diaries (seethe philological remarks). The section ends with the statement “I did not writedown all …”, perhaps a gloss indicating that this section was copied incom-pletely from another tablet.

3 For example, EnūmaAnu Enlil Tablet 5 (Verderame 2002, 127, Text a: obv. 3); Tablet 6 (Verder-ame 2002, 182, Text a1: obv. 10′–11′); Tablet 20 (Rochberg 1988a, 222, Text e: rev. 4; 224, Text g:obv. 10); Tablet 21 (Rochberg 1988a, 243: §VII 5; 244: §VIII 5; 248: §XI 5).


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6 Table withMonth Names and Statements about Stationsand Brightness (rev. 21′–22′)

Below rev. 20′ the tabular format is resumed in identical fashion, but insteadof zodiacal signs this table lists the names of the corresponding months (rev.21′). Zodiacal signs and months were almost interchangeable in Late Babylo-nian astrology, but wemust nevertheless assume that there is a specific reasonfor the change to month names, which unfortunately escapes us. The monthnames are followed by statements abouth being “high”, “bright”, “faint”, “appear-ing” and “becoming stationary”. For months VII–XII, corresponding to Scales–Pisces, the brightness indications agree with the ones in rev. 11′ and 13′, butfor months V–VI they are opposite. One may conclude from it that they arealso opposite for months I–IV, to be restored in the missing columns left ofcol. i′. These statements were typically used in connection with planets but itis unclear which planet is their implicit subject, or what the implications are ifa planet satisfies the description in a given month.

7 Section of Running Text with Omen-Like Statements (rev. 23′–26′)Below rev. 22′ the table is again interrupted by a block of running text. Sincethe left half of each line is missing and several logograms could not be deci-phered, only little can be understood. The text appears to consist of omen-likeconditional statements about faintness, brightness, and market rates. Perhapsthe phrase “If there is no trade in the fruit” (rev. 25′) is the incipit of an omentext? Note that the “fruit” might be a reference to the moon. Some phrasesappear to refer directly to the surrounding tables, in particular rev. 22′ (“faint”and “bright”) and the end of rev. 25′, where it is said that the “setting”, presum-ably of a planet, occurs in the “heads” if its “rising” occurs in the “feet”, and viceversa. However, it is not clear what this statement might mean, neither astro-nomically nor astrologically. Risings and settings are mentioned again at theend (rev. 26′).

8 Table withMonth Names and Statements about Brightness(rev. 27′–28′, 30′)

Here the tabular format resumes in identical fashion, with the same row ofmonth names as in rev. 21′ and the same alternating sequence of terms “faint”and “bright” as in rev. 9′ and 16′. For unclear reasons the identical month namesare repeated in rev. 28′ and 30′.


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9 Statement about theMotion of Mars and Saturn (rev. 29′)This partly preserved single line of text mentions a period of 360 years, appar-ently pertaining to some phenomenon involving Mars and Saturn. However, aperiod of 360 years is otherwise not attested in Babylonian astral science and itdoes not appear possible to construct it by combining, in someway, the knownBabylonian periods of Mars and Saturn. Note, however, that the number 360coincides with the number of UŠ (degrees) contained in the zodiac; perhapsthe period of 360 years is somehow related to that.

10 Section of Running Text (rev. 31′–32′)The final section consists of two lines of running text. Rev. 31′ contains a com-putation of unknown significance. Rev. 32′ might belong to a colophon.

Bibliography

Britton, John P. 2002. Remarks on BM 37361. In Mining the Archives: Festschrift forChristopherWalker on the Occasion of His 60th Birthday 4 October 2002, ed. CorneliaWunsch. Babylonische Archive 1, 35–36. Dresden: ISLET-Verlag.

Britton, John P. 2010. Studies in the Babylonian Lunar Theory, Part 3: The Introductionof the Uniform Zodiac. Archive for History of the Exact Sciences 64: 617–663.

Hunger, Hermann. 1968. Babylonische und assyrische Kolophone. AOAT 2. Kevelaer andNeukirchen-Vluyn: Butzon & Bercker and Neukirchener Verlag.

Hunger, Hermann. 1976. AstrologischeWettervorhersagen. ZA 66: 234–260.Hunger, Hermann, andDavid Pingree. 1989.MUL.APIN: AnAstronomical Compendium

in Cuneiform. AfO Beiheft 24. Horn: Berger.Hunger, Hermann, and David Pingree. 1999. Astral Sciences in Mesopotamia. HdO 1/44.Leiden: Brill.

Leichty, Erle V. 1986. Catalogue of the Babylonian Tablets in the British Museum. Vol-ume VI: Tablets from Sippar 1. London: British Museum.

al-Rawi, Farouk N.H., and Andrew R. George. 1991–1992. Enūma Anu Enlil XIV andOther Early Astronomical Tables. AfO 38–39: 52–53.

Rochberg, Francesca. 1988a. Aspects of Babylonian Celestial Divination: The LunarEclipse Tablets of Enūma Anu Enlil. AfO Beiheft 22. Horn: Berger.

Rochberg, Francesca. 1988b. Benefic and Malefic Planets in Babylonian Astrology. In AScientific Humanist: Studies in Memory of Abraham Sachs, ed. Erle V. Leichty, MariadeJ. Ellis and Pamela Gerardi. OPSNKF 9, 323–328. Philadelphia: The UniversityMuseum.

Sachs, Abraham J., and Hermann Hunger. 1988. Astronomical Diaries and Related Textsfrom Babylonia. Vol. 1. Vienna: Verlag der Österreichischen Akademie der Wissen-schaften.


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Steele, John. 2013. Shadow-Length Schemes in Babylonian Astronomy. SCIAMVS 14: 3–39.

Stevens, Kathryn. 2013. Secrets in the Library: Protected Knowledge and ProfessionalIdentity in Late Babylonian Uruk. Iraq 75: 211–253.


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