Offspring of Kutushar, the mighty queen,
O Nergal, strong one of the gods, darling of Ninnenna.
Thou treadest in the high heavens, lofty is thy place.
Thou art great in Hades, there is none like thee
With Ea, in the multitude of the gods, is thy council preëminent.
With Sin in the heavens thou see’st through everything.
Given thee has Bel, thy father the black headed race, all living creatures,
The living creatures of the field he has entrusted to thy hand.
Assyrian hymns of class I can be divided into two portions, the first portion, the invocation, the second portion, the ascription of praise. It is especially the invocation in which the court style is seen. Every member at the court of a monarchy has an official title, be that member king, queen, prince or noble. That title consists first of all in the lineage or genealogy by virtue of which he has his rank. So it is with the Assyrian deity. Thus the hymn to Nebo No. 1 begins:
O lord, first born of Marduk,