A song of Inana and Dumuzid (Dumuzid-Inana J): translation

^1-12"...... beloved sister of Dumuzid, beloved ...... of Durtur, ...... seed implanted into the womb by a good bull, my lady, born to ladyship! With her aid the cattle-pen was filled with butter and cream, with her aid the sheepfold was long provided with milk. On the high plain, my ......, you are Jectin-ana. O girl, ...... indeed! Your little ones ...... indeed! Unug ...... indeed! Kulaba ...... indeed! ...... you are ......."

^13-17Because of her brother, the girl lacerated her eyes and lacerated her mouth; she lacerated her buttocks, the place not spoken of to men. She made her way towards the tavern of the palace. The girl questioned a minister who was coming out of the palace.

^18-24The minister who was coming out of the palace answered the girl: "Those endowed with divine powers, ten incantation priests, prostration priests, bathed priests and ablution priests will never cease coming every month, once a month, to the great shrine, for (?) your brother, who has taken possession of the en priesthood, the en priesthood of Unug ......, for (?) your brother, who has taken possession of the en priesthood."

^25-32At that time there were seven, there were seven, the song performers of Unug were seven; in Zabalam the lament singers were fifty. They knew the stars of the heavens, and they knew the roads of the earth. In the broad heavens, they carried the first-fruit offerings. They raised songs, and they lowered songs; they did not declare the beginning of the song to them. They were elders not yet assigned to their positions.

^33-38The little sister dwelling among them spoke to them
1 line unclear
"While we raise the song, you will lower the song." ...... she did not dwell among them....... She dwelt in the ...... of the ercema (?). She dwelt ...... the ercema (?), of precious metal and lapis lazuli, of the goldsmith.

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Revision history

28.i.1999-13.ii.1999 : JAB : adapting translation
05.viii.1999 : GC : proofreading
18.x.1999 : GZ : SGML tagging
29.x.1999 : ER : proofreading SGML
29.x.1999 : ER : converting to HTML 4.0
7.ix.2001 : ER : header and footer reformatted; substantive content of file not changed