- 1. .... to me
- 2. .... my ... I wept
- 3. .... bitterly I spoke
- 4. .... my hand
- 5. .... ascended to me
- 6. .... to me
—–———–———–———– - 7. .... hyæna of the desert
Column V.
- 1. Izdubar opened his mouth and said to Mu
- 2. .... my presence?
- 3. .... not strong
- 4. .... my face
- 5. .... lay down in the field,
- 6. .... of the mountain, the hyæna of the field,
- 7. Hea-bani my friend .... the same.
- 8. No one else was with us, we ascended the mountain.
- 9. We took it and the city we destroyed.
- 10. We conquered also Khumbaba who in the forest of pine trees dwelt.
- 11. Again why did his fingers lay hold to slay the lions?
- 12. Thou wouldst have feared and thou wouldst not have .. all the difficulty.
- 13. And he did not succeed in slaying the same;
- 14. his heart failed, and he did not strike .... over him I wept,
- 15. he covered also my friend like a corpse in a grave,
- 16. like a lion? he tore? him
- 17. like a lioness? placed .... field
- 18. he was cast down to the face of the earth
- 19. he broke? and destroyed his defence? ....
- 20. he was cut off and given to pour out? ....
—–———–———–———– - 21. Mu-seri-ina-namari on hearing this
Here the record is again mutilated, but Izdubar further informs Mua what he did in conjunction with Hea-bani. Where the story reopens on Column VI. Izdubar relates part of their adventure with Khumbaba.
Column VI.
- 1. .... taking
- 2. .... to thee
- 3. .... thou art great
- 4. .... all the account
—–———–———–———– - 5. .... forest of pine trees
- 6. .... went night and day
- 7. .... the extent of Erech the lofty
- 8. .... he approached after us
- 9. .... he opened the land of forests
- 10. .... we ascended
- 11. .... in the midst like thy mother
- 12. .... cedar and pine trees
- 13. .... with our strength
- 14. .... silent
- 15. .... he of the field
- 16. .... by her side
- 17. .... the Euphrates
Here again our narrative is lost, and where we again meet the story Izdubar is conversing with Xisuthrus. The conversation is contained in the broken fifth column of K 3382, first noticed and copied by Mr. Pinches.
Column V.
- 1. .... Mua
- 2. .... my ...
- 3. .... they are not like.
- 4. .... before me.
- 5. .... traversed the desert.
- 6. .... the glare of the desert.
- 7. .... the same.
- 8. .... the mountain.
- 9. .... we destroy.
- 10. .... (among) the royal tree (and) the pine they dwell.
- 11. .... lions.
- 12. .... times to come.
- 13. .... were slain, the same.
- 14. .... over him I wept.
- 15. .... burial.
- 16. .... him.
- 17. .... the desert.
- 18. .... over me; thou hast gone round ....
- 19. .... I turned back; the ship (?) I ....
- 20. (my friend) whom I have loved declared lovingly; Hea-bani my friend (made) ....
- 21. (I) am not as he, and would we had never gone up; I did not make a fortress ....
- 22. Izdubar to him also speaks, even to Xisuthrus:
- 23. Thus may I go and Xisuthrus afar off, who has conversed with him, may I see.
- 24. I went round, I went through all countries;
- 25. I passed through difficult lands;
- 26. I crossed all seas.
- 27. A good .... they did not dwell before me.
- 28. I exhausted myself through weakness; with my .... the crown I filled.
- 29. .... the house I did not reach, and my clothing was decayed.
- 30. .... of a leopard, a tiger, a raging winged bull ....
- 31. their (lairs) I approached; their skins I stripped off ....
- 32. .... may they bar its gate; with much bitumen ....
- 33. .... the contents ....
- 34. .... the sides ....
—–———–———–———– - 35. (Xisuthrus) to him speaks, even to Izdubar:
- 36. .... O Izdubar, sickness ....
- 37. .... gods and men ....
- 38. .... thy (father) and thy mother made ....
We now come to a fragment which forms the reverse of the tablet already translated, and recounts the visit of Izdubar to the two women Siduri and Sabitu. This reads as follows:—