A reading, published with its checks still open. A Vigslist translation.
Born in Fury — an Old Babylonian hymn to Nergal (“Nergal D”). A hymn to the lord of the Netherworld, beloved of Ekur.
Published as a reading. No first-translation claim is made for this piece. The checks that would settle such a claim are named in the notes below and are still open; the wording on this page claims nothing they have not settled.
designates the composition "Nergal D," and its transliteration notes that a later version of one line exists ("Later version translates with arāku") — a later, possibly bilingual version of this hymn tradition stands somewhere in the literature, and until the lettered-hymn catalogues and the ETCSL corpus are eyeballed, no first-English claim is made for the composition. The witness reading stands on its own either way.**
Built 2026-10-22 from a fresh live eBL fetch (saved in ).
One fragment: BM.79988, Sippar collection, British Museum — "fragment; literary (?); Sumerian; Old Babylonian." Genres on the record: Literature → Hymns → Divine. No photograph is linked on the record; the transliteration is served in full. CDLI number on the record: P274241. The tablet's own colophon counts the whole hymn at 150 lines; this witness preserves about a fifth of it.
A birth hymn for the plague god, built in couplets: each line is sung twice, once bare and once with Nergal's name set into it, so the god is named into every attribute. Born in fury, begotten in radiance — Nergal, born in fury. Preciously begotten, a great wild bull, august son of the Great Mountain. He walks in the night and binds the door. On the reverse the great gods hold a small council over him — Enlil speaks, Enki speaks; Nunamnir speaks, Nudimmud speaks; "the pure word was made heavy in the mountain" — and the fragment closes where Sumerian hymns close, at the father's feet: Great Mountain, father Enlil, your praise is supreme.
Transliteration exactly as the record serves it. Counts: 30 line-units — 0 whole, 14 part, 16 fragments, 0 invented. The couplet structure carries several part-restorations; every bracket is the record's.
Dragon scan (standing order): no ušumgal, muš-serpent, mušḫuššu or bašmu stands on this fragment. Nergal's animal here is the wild bull (immal). The dragon-named Nergal hymn of the program remains K.4809+ (published) — a different text.
1–2. a huš-ba ru-a ni₂ huš-a r[u-a] · {d}ne₃-eri₁₁!-gal a huš-ba ru#-a ni₂ huš#-a# [ru-a]
"Born in fury, begotten in radiance — Nergal, born in fury, begotten in radiance."
3–4. nam kal-kal-la u₃-tu-da# immal₂! gal dumu ma[h {d}kur-gal-la] · {d}ne₃-eri₁₁!-gal u₃-tu-da immal₂ gal dumu ma[h {d}kur-gal-la]
"Preciously begotten, a great wild bull, august son of the Great Mountain — Nergal, begotten a great wild bull, august son of the Great Mountain."
5–6. ur-saĝ me-lim₄ mah igi il₂ ni₂ gal šu g[ur₃-ru ni₂ ...] · {d}ne₃-eri₁₁!-gal me-lim₄ mah igi il₂ ni₂ gal š[u gur₃-ru ni₂ ...]
"Hero of august radiance, who lifts his eyes, clothed in great radiance [...] — Nergal, of august radiance, who lifts his eyes [...]"
7–8. nir-ĝal₂ diĝir gal-gal-e-ne ni₂ su-zi r[i?-a?] · {d}ne₃-eri₁₁!-gal diĝir gal-gal-e-ne su-z[i ri-a?]
"Prince, clad in radiance and terror among the great gods — Nergal, among the great gods clad in terror."
9–10. en saĝ il₂-la ki-aĝ₂ e₂-kur-ra mu p[a₃? ...] · {d}ne₃-eri₁₁!-gal ki-aĝ₂ e₂-kur-ra mu p[a₃? ...]
"Lord who lifts his head, beloved of Ekur, whose name [is proclaimed ...] — Nergal, beloved of Ekur [...]"
11–12. diĝir GIR₃-GIR₃ du₁₁-ga-bi ŠE₃ ĝa₂ x [...] · {d}ne₃-eri₁₁!-gal GIR₃-GIR₃ du₁₁-ga-bi-[še₃ ŠE₃ ĝa₂ ...]
"God whose utterance [...] — Nergal, whose utterance [...]" (Fragment — the predicate is lost in both lines.)
13–14. en ĝi₆-a du-du {ĝeš}ig [keš₂ ... ni₂-bi-a sila-bi ...] · {d}ne₃-eri₁₁!-gal ĝi₆-a du-du {ĝe[š}ig keš₂ ... ni₂-bi-a sila-bi ...]
"Lord who walks in the night, who binds the door [...] in his radiance, in his street [...] — Nergal, who walks in the night, who binds the door [...]" (Part.)
15–16. a₂ su₁₃-su₁₃-ud ĝar-ra-bi x [...] · {d}ne₃-eri₁₁!-gal ĝar-ra-bi [...]
"Whose arm is stretched out long [...] — Nergal [...]" (Fragment. The record notes a later version of this line rendered with arāku, "to be long.")
17–18. [(x)] x {kuš}usan₃ u₂ nu-[...] · [{d}ne₃]-eri₁₁!-gal x [...]
"[...] the whip [...] — Nergal [...]" (Fragments.)
19. [(x) x] x x [...]
Traces.
2′. "[...] whose word is not [...] " (Fragment.)
3′. [mu?]-5? mu-10-a? šu ur₃-ur₃ kur-ta?# x x x e₃?#
"[...] five years, ten years [...] wiped [...] came out from the mountain [...]" (Fragment.)
4′. [x] {d}ne₃-eri₁₁!-gal šu ur₃ x ugu-ne | he₂-ni-ib-DIB?#-be₂
"[...] Nergal — wipe (the hand) over them; let him pass over [...]" (Part.)
5′. [x] kalam-ma? bar-ra he₂-en-x x x nu-mu-ta-zalag-ge
"[...] in the land [...] let him not be brightened outside [...]" (Fragment.)
6′–9′. [(x)] x {d}+en-il₂-le du₁₁-ga {d}+en-ki-ke₄ · [in]im ku₃-gin₇ kur-ra ši-im-da-an-dugud · [(x)] x {d}nu-nam-nir du₁₁-ga {d}nu-dim₂-mud · inim ku₃-gin₇ kur-ra ši-im-da-an-dugud
"[...] Enlil spoke, and Enki — the pure word was made heavy in the mountain. [...] Nunamnir spoke, and Nudimmud — the pure word was made heavy in the mountain." (Part — the council of the great gods, two by two.)
10′. kur gal a-a {d}+en-lil₂ za₃-mi₂-zu mah-am₃
"Great Mountain, father Enlil — your praise is supreme." (Part.)
Colophon (11′). mu!-šid-bi 150
"Its count: 150 (lines)."
Doors on the face as stated in the header. Release holds behind the triple-check and Richard's read. Branding on any future publication: a Vigslist translation.
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