(The fourth monument of the reign of Marduk-idin-akhe is a black basalt
stone of nearly the same size and arrangement as the preceding. At the top
we also see analogous symbols disposed in a similar way. The inscription
has but two colums, and occupies but one side of the monument; on the
other, the image of the King is engraved, and near the garment of the
King, represented by the basso-relievo, the three lines of the beginning
are repeated at the end of the document.)
By this table, the author of the everlasting limits has forever
perpetuated his name.[1]
25 hins[2] of corn are sufficient to seed an arura,[3] in a field lying on
the bank of the river Besim, belonging to Hankas.
In length[4] above toward the North, adjoining the property of Hankas; in
length below toward the South, adjoining the property of Imbiyati; in
breadth above toward the West, adjoining the property of Hankas; in
breadth below toward the East, limited by the river Besim.
Such is what Marduk-nasir, Captain of the King, has received from the
hands of Nis-Bel, son of Hankas. He has paid the price for it. Sapiku son
of Itti-Marduk-balat, son of Zikar-Ea, is the measurer[5] of the field.
Weights of
1 Chariot with its team of horses[6] 100 silver
6 Harnesses 300 "
1 Ass from Phoenicia 30 "
6 Harnesses, 1 Ass from Phoenicia 50 "
Weights of
1 Mule 15 silver
1 Cow (pregnant) 30 "
30 Measures of corn, 60 Measures of 12 epha[7] 137 "
1 Hemicorion, 10 Shovels of 4 epha 16 "
2 Dogs, good 12 "
9 Greyhounds from the East 18 "
1 Hunting dog 1 "
1 Shepherd dog 1 "
1 Dog (bloodhound[8]) 6 "
Total 616[9] (weights of) silver.
Such is what Nis-Bel, son of Hankas, has paid in the hands of
Marduk-nasir, Captain of the King, as equivalent of the price of a field
of 25 hins of (grain).
At any epoch whatever, in the days to come (or process of time) either an
_aklu,[10]_ or a no-servant, or a farmer, or a husbandman, or a workman,
or any other guardian who presents himself, and who settles in the house
of Hankas, and will endeavor to lay waste this field, will earn its
first-fruits, will turn it over, will plough it (mix up the earth), will
have it put under water, who will occupy this property by fraud or
violence and will settle in its territories, either in the name of the
god, or in the name of the King, or in the name of the representative of
the Lord of the country, or in the name of the representative of the
house, or in the name of any person whatever, whoever he may be, who will
give it, will earn the harvest of the land, will say,[11] "These fields
are not granted as gifts by the King"; whether he pronounce against them
the holy malediction or he swears by these words, "The head is not the
head"; and establish anyone therein, in saying, "There is no eye"; or who
will carry away this tablet, or will throw it into the river, or will
break it into pieces, or will bury it under a heap of stones, or will burn
it by fire, or will bury it in the earth, or will hide it in a dark place,
that man (shall be cursed):
May the god Anu, Bel, Hea, the great gods, afflict him and curse him with
maledictions which are not (retracted).
May the god Sin, the splendid in the high heaven, envelop all his members
with incurable leprosy until the day of his death; and expel him to the
farthest limits like a wild beast.
May Samas, the Judge of heaven and earth, fly before him; that he change
into darkness the light of the day.
May Istar, the Sovereign, the Queen of the gods, load him with infirmities
and anguish of illness like arrows, may she increase (day and night his
pains,) so that he runs about like a dog, in the ways of his town.
May Marduk, the King of heaven and earth, the Lord of the eternity without
end, entangle his weapons with bonds which cannot be broken.
May Ninip, the god of crops and boundaries, sweep away its limits and
tread upon his crops, and remove its limit.
May Gula, the mother (nurse), the great Lady, infect his bowels with a
poison, and that he void pus and blood like water.
May Bin, the supreme Guardian of heaven and earth, inundate his field like
a ...[12]
May Serah suffocate his first-born.
May Nabu, the holy minister of the gods, continually pour over his
destinies laments and curses; and blast his wishes.
May all the great gods whose name is invoked on this table, devote him to
vengeance and scorn, and may his name, his race, his fruits, his
offspring, before the face of men perish wretchedly.
By this table, the author of the everlasting limits has forever
perpetuated his name.
[Footnote 1: See at the end.]
[Footnote 2: These 25 hins represent 75 litres, 16 gallons and a half, for
seeding a surface of 207 acres.]
[Footnote 3: The great U, or arura.]
[Footnote 4: Again in this deed no statement is given in account of the
measurings. The space is determined merely by the indication of the
boundaries.
This document is also the charter of a royal donation: it is not clear
whether the below-mentioned objects are the price, or if, what is much
more verisimilar, they are only the accessoria of the field.]
[Footnote 5: Measurer is expressed by "masi-han."]
[Footnote 6: Cf. I Kings x. 29: "A chariot ... of Egypt for 600 shekels of
silver; and a horse for 150."]
[Footnote 7: It is a question here of the utensils used for measuring,
viz., thirty of one kind, and sixty of another.]
[Footnote 8: The quality of the dogs is somewhat uncertain.]
[Footnote 9: There is evidently a fault in the total number, 616 instead
of 716.