The Sages and the Sons of Nippur: An Edition of LKA 76 (VAT 13839) From Assur

Abstract

The Late Assyrian tablet LKA 76 (VAT 13839) from Assur is inscribed with two bilingual Sumerian-Akkadian texts, possibly incantations for rituals, that are concerned with prominent cities in southern Mesopotamia. The obverse is inscribed with a unique composition in which entities calling themselves the “Sons of Nippur” declare their affiliation with the city of Nippur and its deities. The composition inscribed on the reverse, known to have been incorporated into the apotropaic series bīt mēseri, consists of anecdotes in the lives of four apkallu-sages of human descent. The two compositions bridge the purported origins of Mesopotamian scholarly wisdom in the divine realm with its contemporary utilization among ritual experts.