The First Tablet

Records of the Past, 2nd series, Vol. I, ed. by A. H. Sayce, [1888], at sacred-texts.com

p. 133

THE ASSYRIAN EPIC OF THE CREATION

FIRST TABLET OF THE STORY OF THE CREATION

Obverse

1. At that time the heaven above had not yet announced,
2. or the earth beneath recorded, a name;
3. the unopened ¹ deep was their generator,
4. Mummu-Tiamat (the chaos of the sea) was the mother of them all.
5. Their waters were embosomed as one, ² and
6. the corn-field ³ was unharvested, the pasture was un-grown.
7. At that time the gods had not appeared, any of them;
8. by no name were they recorded, no destiny (had they fixed).
9. Then the (great) gods were created,
10. Lakhmu and Lakhamu issued forth (the first),
11. until they grew up (when)
12. An-sar and Ki-sar were created.
13. Long were the days, extended (was the time, until)
14. the gods Anu, (Bel and Ea were born),
15. An-sar and Ki-sar (gave them birth).

The rest of the tablet is lost.

Footnotes

133:1 Or " first-born," if we adopt Delitzsch's reading ristu instead of la patû.

133:2 This is shown to be the signification of istenis by S 1140, 8.

133:3 Gipara; see W.A.I., V. i. 48-50. Nirba kân yusakhnapu giparu ’sippâti summukha inbu, "the corn-god continuously caused the cornfield to grow, the papyri were gladdened with fruit;" S 799, 2. Ana gipâri eltu erubbi (Accadian mi-para-ki azagga imma-dan-tutu), "to the holy cornfield he went down." The word has nothing to do with "clouds" or "darkness."