Rm.717
In the eleventh century BCE, a Babylonian scholar named Esagil-kīn-apli organized the entire corpus of Mesopotamian ritual, medical, and magical literature into a single curriculum. This tablet is his table of contents — the complete reading list of every incantation series that a practitioner of the āšipūtu, the exorcist's art, was expected to master.
The catalogue names over seventy text series spanning the full range of Mesopotamian intellectual life: mouth-washing rituals for divine statues, diagnostic medicine, dream interpretation, anti-witchcraft rites, love magic, snake-bite cures, celestial omens, terrestrial omens, and lamentation liturgy. Many of the series named here — the Evil Demons, the Burning (Maqlû), the Burning-Away (Šurpu), the Bathing-House (Bīt Rimki), the Diagnostics (Sakikkû), the Spoken Word (Kataduggû) — are known from surviving tablets in the libraries of Nineveh and Babylon. This catalogue is their index.
The text concludes with a hymn of praise for Esagil-kīn-apli himself: sage, healer, exorcist, scholar of Sumerian and Akkadian, master of the sealed designs of heaven and earth. The final blessing — "May his name endure for all time!" — has been answered. His name endures in this tablet, and now in English for the first time.
The Catalogue
First tablets of the incantation series of the exorcist's art, which for knowledge and understanding are established — the total of their names:
The Brick God; the Washing of the Mouth of God; and the Elevation of the Lord.
The Word of the Abyss; the burnt-offerings; and the Lustrations of God.
Incantations of the Sun God; Hand-Raising Prayers; and God Has Seized the Heart.
Rites of the months of Dumuzi, Abu, and Tašrītu; and the royal rites.
The Diagnostics; figurine-making; image-making; and the Spoken Word.
The Holy Water; the Evil Demons; "Who Are You?"; and "Evil, Be Dispelled."
Binding-Spells; Against Headache; and the Flour-Sprinkling.
Head Disease; Neck Disease; and All Sickness Together.
The Male Phantom; the Female Phantom; and the Image of Esagil.
[Line 11 lost.]
The Bathing-House; the House of Encirclement; and the Mouth-Washing.
Evil Sorceries; Evil Portents; Sorcery-Dissolution; and Oath-Dissolution.
Sun-God Incantations for god and man; Sorcery-Dissolution; Oath-Dissolution; the blowing of wind; and the turnings.
All Evil; the Burning; the Burning-Away; evil and favorable dreams; and the Rising of the Heart.
The Bound Pregnant Woman; the Beaten Woman; Lamaštu; and the Hired Man.
Eye Disease; Tooth Disease; and Mouth Disease.
Stomach Disease; Neck Disease; and Incantations for Every Disease.
Nosebleed; and Internal Hemorrhage.
Snake-Bite — Preserving Life; Scorpion-Bite — Preserving Life; and Fungal Disease — Preserving Life.
The Evil Footfall in a Man's House; judgment; plague; death — the passage-rites; and the offerings [...].
Rites for City, House, Field, Orchard, and Canal; and the rites of Nisaba [...].
Storm Attacks; Locust Attacks; and the exorcist [...].
Seizure in the Steppe; "May the Enemy Not Approach"; and the Eclipse.
The Fold of Cattle, Sheep, and Horses — Made Pure; and the Eclipse.
Omens of Stars, Birds, and Cattle; Dreams; Portents; and the Stones of All the Gods.
A Stone and Its Properties; a Plant and Its Properties; the stone tablet; the plant tablet; the binding-materials; and the filling.
The Colophon of the Sage
Total of the incantation series of the exorcist's art, belonging to Esagil-kīn-apli, son of Asalluhi-mansum —
a sage established for knowledge and understanding, exerciser of craft, who mastered all that Ea devised: rites, pure songs, acts, counter-rites, signs of heaven and earth — all that exists —
the totality of all wisdom, the secret of the purification-art,
the sealed designs of heaven and earth, the distilling of honey-aromatics and incantation-craft,
the work of anointing, healing, and curing; the diagnostics and the collection of ailments; the treatment —
cures for epilepsy, for the Wrath of Lugal-urra, for the Hand of God, for the Hand of Ishtar, for the lurking demon, for the phantom,
for evil sorcery, for the Hand of the Oath, for the Hand of Man,
and cures for every ailment in its totality — the bindings of every affliction: the sick man whom fever seizes, and the work of woman —
until the entirety of the exorcist's art you reach, you learn, you behold its secrets.
Thereafter: the living things of the steppe will cry out — and the Emesal —
rites of Sumerian and Akkadian, to be sought and studied.
As your treasury, at evening: the Day-Signs of Anu and Enlil — "If a City Is Set on a Height" —
trained, deliberating, facing one another —
the watchman, the lion — exercise of binding, exercise of binding — the brood of the burrow of Meme, the one of broad understanding —
May his god and his lamassu be favorable. May his name endure for all time!
§ Tablet of Gimil-[...]
Colophon
Rm.717, held in the British Museum. A Neo-Babylonian or Late Babylonian catalogue tablet listing the complete curriculum of the āšipūtu — the Mesopotamian exorcist's art. The catalogue is attributed to Esagil-kīn-apli, son of Asalluhi-mansum, a legendary Babylonian scholar of the eleventh century BCE who is credited with reorganizing the medical-diagnostic series (Sakikkû) and the broader ritual-incantation corpus. A join with BM.41816 supplies obverse lines 20–23 and reverse lines 1–3.
The text names over seventy incantation and omen series that a fully trained exorcist was expected to master. Many of these series survive in fragmentary form in the libraries of Nineveh and Babylon. The catalogue closes with a hymn praising Esagil-kīn-apli's mastery of everything Ea devised, then expands the curriculum beyond the medical-exorcistic to include the Emesal liturgical tradition and the great omen compendia (Enūma Anu Enlil, Šumma Ālu). The implication is that the āšipūtu, in its fullest sense, encompasses the entire intellectual tradition of Mesopotamian civilization.
Good Works Translation from Akkadian cuneiform (ATF transliteration) by the New Tianmu Anglican Church, 2026. Translated independently from the Electronic Babylonian Literature (eBL) corpus (Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, CC BY 4.0). No existing English translation was consulted. The ATF source text contains Sumerographic series names with Akkadian glosses; the English renders each series name in translation.
Uncertain readings: Obverse 14, the end of the line is damaged — "blowing of wind" follows the suggestion of the eBL editorial note (e-dep IM). Obverse 21–23 and reverse 1–3 are partially broken, with restorations from the BM.41816 join. Reverse 15–18 are syntactically complex and may represent a continuation of the series catalogue, a praise passage, or both; the translation follows the most natural reading of each sign group but acknowledges that the passage resists confident interpretation.
First freely available English translation.
Compiled and formatted for the Good Work Library by the New Tianmu Anglican Church, 2026.
🌲
Source Text: Rm.717
Akkadian cuneiform transliteration from the Electronic Babylonian Literature (eBL) corpus, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München. CC BY 4.0. Presented here for reference, study, and verification alongside the English translation above.
Obverse
1. KA DUB SAG-MEŠ EŠ₂.GAR₃ āšipūti ša ana NIG₂.ZU u IGI.DU₈.A kunnu PAP MU.NE
2. SIG₄ LUH KA DINGIR.RA u nišūt bēli
3. INIM ABZU ginuqqû u ŠU.LUH.HA DINGIR.RA
4. KI.UTU.KAM ŠU.IL₂.LA.KAM u DINGIR.ŠA₃.DAB.BA
5. nēpeš iti Dumuzi iti Abu iti Tašrītu u sakkê šarrūtu
6. SA.GIG ALAM.DIM₂.MU NÍG.DIM₂.DIM₂.MU u KA.TA.DU₁₁.GA
7. A.KÙ.GA UDUG.HUL A.BA.ME.EN u HUL.BA.ZI.ZI
8. ŠU.GUR.GUR A₂.SAG₃.GIG.GA.TA u ZI₃.SUR.RA
9. SAG.GIG.GA GÚ₂.GIG.GA u TU.RA KILIB₃.BA
10. GURUŠ.LIL₂.LA₂ KI.SIKIL.LIL₂.LA₂ u ALAM.NÍG.É.SAG.ÍL
12. É.RIM.KI É.ME.SE₃.RI u KA.LUH.U₃.DA
13. UŠ₁₁.HUL AŠ₂.HUL.GÁL₂ UŠ₁₁.BURU₂.DA u NAM.ÉRIM₂.BUR₂.RU.DA
14. KI.UTU.KAM ša DINGIR LÚ.U₁₈.LU UŠ₁₁.BUR₂.RU.DA NAM.ÉRIM₂.BUR₂.RU.DA e-dep IM u lamsātu
15. HUL kala Maqlû Šurpu MÁŠ.GE₆ HUL SIG₅.GA u ŠÀ.ZI.GA
16. MUNUS.PEŠ₄.KEŠ₂.DA MUNUS.LA.RA.AH Lamaštu u LÚ.TUR.HUN.GÁ₂
17. IGI.GIG.GA ZÚ.GIG.GA u KA.HAB.DIB.BA
18. ŠÀ.GIG.GA GÚ₂.GIG.GA u TU₆.TU₆ GIG DÙ.A.BI
19. MÚD KIR₄.KÙ.RU.DA u ŠÀ.SUR.KÙ.RU.DA
20. ZÚ MUŠ.TI.LA GÍR.TAB TI.LA u SAG.NIM.MA TI.LA
21. GÌR HUL ina É NA TAR-si diʾi šibṭu NAM.UŠ₂ šutūqi u SIŠKUR₂ [...]
22. nēpeš URU É A.ŠA₃ KIRI₆ ÍD u [... Nisaba ...]
23. U₄.DE₃.RA DIB.BE₂.DA ZÚ.BURU₅.DIB.BE₂.DA u MAŠ.MAŠ [...]
Reverse
1. EDIN.NA DIB.BE₂.DA GI lú.KÚR NAM.BA.TE.GE₂₆.E.DE₃ u KI.ŠU₂ AL.DIB
2. TUR₃ ÁB GU₄.HI.A U₈.UDU.HI.A u ANŠE.KUR.RA SIKIL.E.DE₃ u KI.ŠU₂ AL.DIB
3. EŠ.BAR MUL.MEŠ MUŠEN.MEŠ u GU₄.HI.A MÁŠ.GE₆ INIM.GAR NA₄.DUR₂.NA.DE₅ DINGIR DÙ.A.BI
4. NA₄ GAR-šu U₂ GAR-šu ṭuppi NA₄ ṭuppi U₂ takṣiri u malāli
5. ŠU.NIGIN EŠ₂.GAR₃ āšipūtu ša Esagil-kīn-apli māru Asalluhi-mansum
6. ABGAL NIG₂.ZU.ŠE₃ IGI.DU₈.A GUB.BA KIN GI.TAG.GA mala Ea ibšimu KID₃.KID₃.DA ŠER₃.KÙ.GA
7. NÍG.AG.A NAM.BUR₂.BI GIŠKIM AN-e u KI-ti₃ mala bašâ
8. kullat nagbi nēmeqi niṣirti kù.gal.ù.tu
9. kanakku GIŠ.HUR AN-e u KI-ti₃ AD.HAL LAL₃.GAR u TU₆.TU₆ BAR.RA
10. šipir šimmat rīmūtu u SA.GAL SA.GIG kissat šināti malāḫ
11. bulṭu AN.TA.ŠUB.BA Lugal-urra ŠU.DINGIR.RA ŠU Inanna alû lilûenna
12. SAG.HUL.HA.ZU ŠU NAM.ÉRIM₂.MA ŠU NAM.LÚ.U₁₈.LU
13. u bulṭu kal gimri riksu lipit LÚ.GIG KUM₂ DAB-su u šipir MUNUS
14. adi kiššat āšipūtu takaššadu tammaru niṣirti
15. arkānu NÍG.ZI.GÁL₂ EDIN.NA GÚ₃.BAL.E.NE u EME.SAL
14'. KID₃.KID₃.DA šumeri u akkadî šiteʾa taḫḫazu
16. ZAG.GAR.RA A.ZA.AD U₄.ŠU.UŠ U₄ AN Enlil URU ina SUKUD GAR-in
17. kitpudu šutādinu mitḫurti
18. A₂.MA.AL.LU UR.A DUB.LÁ₂ AK.A DUB.LÁ₂ AK.A EREŠ₅ GI.BUR₃ Meme GEŠTUG₂.MIN DAGAL.LA GAR.RA.NA
19. DINGIR LAMMA.BI HÉ₂.SÁ₆ U₄.UL.DÙ₃.A.ŠE₃ MU.BI BA.AN.GÁL₂.LA.KE₄
20. giṭṭu Gimil-[...]
Source Colophon
Transliteration from the Electronic Babylonian Literature (eBL) corpus, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München. Licensed CC BY 4.0. Museum number: Rm.717, with join BM.41816 (obverse 20 through reverse 3). The ATF preserves both Sumerographic series names and their Akkadian equivalents as they appear on the tablet.
🌲