Affiliation:
1. Harvard University Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations 6 Divinity Avenue Cambridge USA
2. Hebrew University of Jerusalem Jerusalem Israel
Abstract
Abstract
In this article, we shed new light on the series with the emic title ‘Ancient Sumerian’, previously known from the Late Babylonian ritual texts for the New Year Festival. We first establish a new reading of the title, the key to which lies in a Late Babylonian pseudepigraphic letter. Following that, we present the contents of the series, including the edition of the hitherto unpublished tablet BM 32544+ that according to its colophon belongs to the series. Finally, we discuss the possible purposes of the series in its Late Babylonian context, where ritual in its written form took on an unprecedented role in the temple cult.