Together with the Measurements of Esagil and Ezida, the so called Esagil Tablet is part of a category of compositions, labelled metrological texts, which deal with the dimensions of temples. Even though quite different in respect to the other sources of the present corpus, these texts contribute to our understanding and knowledge about the architectural plans of the two main sanctuaries of ancient Babylon: the temple Esagil and the ziggurat Etemenanki. For this reason they deserve to be included here.
The Esagil Tablet is known to us from two Late Babylonian manuscripts: the most famous, which was part of the archive of the priest Anu-bēlšunu located in the Bīt-rēš of Seleucid Uruk; and its duplicate, most probably a writing exercise, found in Babylon.
Despite its designation, very little of the text is concerned with the Esagil of Marduk at Babylon. In fact, only the first sections (§§ 1–3) discuss components of this sanctuary, and the particular subject of their interest is the dimensions of two courtyards which, due to their size, should be understood as parts of the temple precinct but not of the temple buildings themselves. These courtyards are: Kisalmah, the Grand Court (§ 1: ll. 1–7), which should be located south of the temple and which is also mentioned in other texts such as Tintir 2, Gate List of Esagil C, and Nabonidus 4; and the Court of Ištar and Zababa (§ 2: ll. 8–10). Section 3 (ll. 11-15) summarizes the previous sections and lists the main gates of the temple, also known from the Gate Lists of Esagil A, B, C.
The other sections of the composition (§§ 4-7) concern the ziggurat Etemenanki. In particular, §§ 4-5 (ll. 16-19; 20-24) list the measurements of the area of the ziggurat's base, according, respectively, to the Standard Neo-Babylonian system and to the earlier Kassite and Early Babylonian systems. Section 6 (ll. 25-35) gives the dimensions of the different temple rooms located in the topmost storey of the sanctuary. Finally, § 7 (ll. 36-42) records the length, breadth, and height of the multi-tiered ziggurat.
On the basis of the use of the two different metrological systems mentioned above, it is probable that the composition dates to a time when both were in use and so, as George 1992 points out, to the late eighth or early seventh century BC. However, the main interest of the text seems to be mathematical rather than topographical and therefore a later date could also be possible.
Further Reading
Giulia Lentini
Giulia Lentini, 'Esagil Tablet', Babylonian Topographical Texts online (BTTo), BTTo, a sub-project of MOCCI, 2022 [http://oracc.museum.upenn.edu/btto/Babylon/Metrologicaltexts/EsagilTablet/]