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Pal[ac]e of Sargon (II), great king, strong king, king of the world, king of Assyria, governor of Babylon, king of the land of Sumer and Ak[k]ad, favorite of the great gods.
The gods Aššur, Nabû (and) Marduk granted me a reign without equal and exalted my good reputation to the heights.
I continually acted as provider for (the cities) Sippar, Nippur, Babylon, and Borsippa (and) I made restitution for the wrongful damage suffered by the people of privileged status, as many as there were (of them); I abolished corvée duty for (the cities) Dēr, Ur, Uruk, Eridu, Larsa, Kullaba, Kissik, (and) Nēmed-Laguda, (and) gave relief to (10) their people. I restored the exemption (from obligations) of (the city) Baltil (Aššur) and the city Ḫarrān, which had fallen into oblivion in the distant past, and their privileged status that had lapsed.
The great gods looked upon me, among all rulers, with their steadfast hearts, granted manly strength to me, and made my stature exceedingly great.
Since the (first) day of my reign, there has been no ruler who could equal me and I have met no one who could overpower (me) in war or battle. I smashed all the enemy lands like pots and put halters on (all) rebels in the four (quarters of the world). I opened up innumerable distant mountainous areas whose pass(es) are difficult and I visited their remotest region(s). In a grandiose manner, I traversed inaccessible, difficult paths in terrifying location(s) (and) crossed every swamp.
With the power and might (granted me) by the great gods, my lords, who mobilized my weapons, I cut down all my foes. I ruled all together from the land Yadnana (Cyprus), which is in the middle of the Western Sea, as far as the border(s) of Egypt and the land Musku, the wide land Amurru, the land Ḫatti (Syria) in its entirety, all of (the land) Gutium, the distant Medes (who live) on the border of Mount Bikni, as far as the land Ellipi (and) the land Rāši on the border of the land Elam, those who (live) beside the Tigris River — the Ituʾu, Rubuʾu, Ḫaṭallu, Labdudu, Ḫamrānu, Ubulu, Ruʾuʾa, (and) Liʾtaʾu (tribes) — those who (live) beside the Surappu River (and) the Uqnû River — the Gambulu, Ḫindaru, (and) Puqudu (tribes) — the Sutians, the people of the steppe of (20) the land Yadburu, as many as there are, as far as the cities Samʾūna, Bāb-dūri, Dūr-Telīte, Ḫilimmu, Pillatu, Dunni-Šamaš, Bubê, (and) Tīl-Ḫumba, which are on the border of the land Elam, the land Karduniaš (Babylonia) from one end to the other (lit.: “above and below”), the lands Bīt-Amukāni, Bīt-Dakkūri, Bīt-Šilāni, (and) Bīt-Saʾalli, all of Chaldea, as much as there is (of it), (and) the land Bīt-Yakīn, which is on the shore of the sea, as far as the border of Dilmun. I then set eunuchs of mine as provincial governors over them and I imposed the yoke of my lordship upon them.
From the beginning of my reign until my fifteenth regnal year: I brought about the defeat of Ḫumbanigaš (Ḫumban-nikaš I), the Elamite, on the outskirts of (the city) Dēr. I surrounded (and) conquered the city Samaria. I carried off as booty 27,290 of its inhabitants, conscripted fifty chariots from among them, and allowed the remainder to practice their (normal) occupations. I set a eunuch of mine over them and imposed upon them (the same) tribute (as) the former king (had paid).
Ḫanūnu (Hanno), king of the city Gaza, with Rēʾe, the field marshal of Egypt, rose up to do war and battle against me at the city Rapḫia. I brought about their defeat. Rēʾe took fright at the clangor of my weapons and fled; his whereabouts have never been discovered. I captured Hanūnu, king of the city Gaza.
I received tribute from Pirʾû (Pharaoh), king of Egypt, Samsi, queen of the Arabs, (and) Itʾamar, the Sabaean, (namely) gold ore from the mountain(s), horses, (and) camels.
(As for) Kiakki of the city Šinuḫtu, who had thrown off the yoke of the god Aššur and withheld his audience gift, I counted him as booty, together with thirty of his chariots (and) 7,350 of his fighting men. I gave his royal city Šinuḫtu to Kurtî of the land (A)tuna and imposed upon him (Kurtî) (the payment of a tribute in) horses (and) mules that was higher than his previous tribute.
I gave to Amris (Ambaris) of the land Tabal, whom I had seated upon the throne of his father Ḫullî, a daughter of mine, (along) with the land Ḫilakku, which had not been part of his ancestors’ territory, and I (thus) expanded his land. However, that (man), who did not protect justice, sent a messenger to Ursâ (Rusâ), the Urarṭian, and Mitâ, king of the land Musku, about taking away territory of mine. I took Amris (Ambaris) to Assyria, (along) with (his) family, (his) relatives, the (other) offspring of his father’s house, (and) the nobles of his land, (along) with one hundred of his chariots. I settled there Assyrians who respect my authority. I set a eunuch of mine as provincial governor over them and I imposed tribute and payment(s) upon them.
Iaū-biʾdī (Ilu-biʾdī) of the land Hamath, a member of the lower class who had no right to the throne, an evil Hittite, plotted to become king of the land Hamath. He then incited the cities Arpad, Ṣimirra, Damascus, (and) Samaria to rebel against me, made (them) act in unison, and prepared for battle. I mustered the numerous troops of the god Aššur; I surrounded him, together with his fighting men, in Qarqar, the city where he resided (lit.: “the city of his dwelling”), (and) I captured him. I burned the city Qarqar down with fire (and) I flayed the skin from him. I killed the guilty people inside those cities and imposed peace. I conscripted 200 chariots (and) 600 cavalry from among the people of the land Hamath and added them to my royal (military) contingent.
When fate carried off Iranzi, the Mannean, a submissive subject who pulled my yoke, and (after) I had seated his son Azâ on his throne, Ursâ (Rusâ), the Urarṭian, spoke treacherous and mendacious words to (the rulers of) the lands of Uišdiš, Zikirtu, Missi, (and) Andia, (and to) the governors of the land Mannea, the important men, and (as a result) they threw down the corpse of Azâ, the son of their lord, on Mount Uauš, a rugged mountain. Ullusunu, the Mannean, whom they had seated on the throne of his father (Azâ), put his trust in Ursâ (Rusâ), the Urarṭian, and gave him twenty-two of his fortresses as a gift.
Angrily, I mustered the numerous troops of the god Aššur, became enraged like a lion, and set out to conquer those lands. Having seen the cloud of dust (kicked up) by my expeditionary force, Ullusunu, the Mannean, went out from his city and in fear stayed in hiding on a rugged mountain. I conquered his royal city Izirtu (and) the cities of Izibia and Armaet, his strong fortresses, and I burned (them) down with fire.
I inflicted a defeat upon Ursâ (Rusâ), the Urarṭian, at Mount Uauš, a rugged mountain, and captured two hundred and fifty members of his royal family. I conquered fifty-five fortified cities (and) fortresses in eight of his districts, together with eleven fortresses that were difficult (to conquer), and I burned (them) down with fire. I took away from him (Rusâ) the twenty-two fortresses of Ullusunu, the Mannean, and made (them part of) the territory of Assyria.
I conquered eight fortresses of the land Tuāyadi, a district belonging to Telusina of the land Andia; I carried off as booty 4,200 people, together with their property. Mitatti of the land Zikirtu took fright at my weapons and he, together wih the people of his land, fled into the mountains; his whereabouts have never been discovered. I burned his royal city Parda down with fire. I conquered twenty-three fortified settlements in its environs and carried off booty from them. I conquered the Mannean cities Šuandaḫul (and) Zurzukka that had put their trust in Mitatti and I took booty from them. I flayed the skin from Bag-dāti of the land Uišdiš. I deported Dayukku together with his family and settled (them) in the land Hamath.
In (his) rugged mountain (region), Ullusunu, the Mannean, heard of the deeds I had been doing, flew to me like a bird, and grasped hold of my feet. I pardoned (lit.: “overturned”) his innumerable sins and disregarded his crime. I had pity on him and had him sit on his royal throne. I gave (back) to him the twenty-two fortresses, together with two of his fortified cities, which I had taken away from the hands of Ursâ (Rusâ) and Mitatti, and I brought order to his disturbed land. I made a royal image of myself and inscribed upon it the victorious deed(s) of the god Aššur, my lord. I erected it for all time in his royal city Izirtu.
I received tribute from Ianzû, king of the land Naʾiri, in his fortified city Ḫubuškia, (namely) horses, oxen, and sheep and goats.
(As for) Aššur-lēʾi of the land Karalla, (and) Ittī of the land Allabria who had thrown off the yoke of the god Aššur (and) held me in contempt, I flayed the skin from Aššur-lēʾi, deported the people of the land Karalla, as many as there were, and Ittî together with his family, and settled (them) in the land Hamath.
I deported the people of the cities Sukkia, Bāla, Abitikna, Pappa, (and) Lalluknu from their (own) places and (re)settled them in the city Damascus and the land Ḫatti (Syria).
I conquered six cities of the land Niksamma (and) captured Šēp-šarri, the city ruler of Šurgadia. I added those cities to the province of the land Parsuaš.
(As for) Bēl-šarru-uṣur of the city Kišesim, I brought him, together with (his) property (and) possessions, the treasure of his palace, to Assyria. I set a eunuch of mine as provincial governor over his city (and) (re)named it Kār-Nergal. [I m]ade a royal image of myself and erected it inside (that city). I conquered six settlements in its neighborhood and added (them) to its province.
I surrounded Kibaba, the city ruler of Ḫarḫar, (and) conquered (that city). I counted him as booty together with the people of his land. I reorganized (the administration of) that city. I settled there people from the lands that I had conquered (and) set a eunuch of mine as provincial governor over them. I (re)named (that city) Kār-Šarrukīn, set up the weapon of the god Aššur, my lord, there, (and) erected a royal image of myself inside (that city). I conquered six districts neighboring it and added (them) to his (or: its) province.
I surrounded (and) conquered the cities of Kišešlu, Qindāu, Bīt-Bagāya, (and) Anzaria. I restored (them) and reorganized (their administration). I (re)named them the cities of Kār-Nabû, Kār-Sîn, Kār-Adad, (and) Kār-Ištar (respectively).
In order to subjugate the land Media in the environs of the city Kār-Šarrukīn, I strengthened (its) garrison. I conquered thirty-four districts of the land Media and made (them part of) the territory of Assyria. I imposed upon them the annual payment of horses (as tribute).
I surrounded (and) conquered the city Erištana, together with the settlements in its environs, belonging to the district of Baʾīt-ili. I carried off booty from them. I destroyed, demolished, (and) burnt down with fire the lands Agazi, Ambanda, (and) Media, which border on the Arabs in the east, who had withheld their tribute.
(As for) Daltâ of the land Ellipi, a submissive subject who pulled the yoke of the god Aššur, five districts in his neighborhood revolted against him and no longer obeyed him as (their) lord. I went to his aid and surrounded (and) conquered those districts. I carried off to Assyria as substantial booty the people, together with their property, (along) with innumerable horses.
(As for) Urzana of the city Muṣaṣir, who had put his trust in Ursâ (Rusâ), the Urarṭian, and disregarded (his) position as vassal (to me), I enveloped the city Muṣaṣir with the main force of my army like locusts. However, that (man) fled away by himself to save his life and took to the hill(s). I entered the city Muṣaṣir in triumph and counted as booty his wife, his sons, his daughters, (his) property (and) possessions, the treasure of his palace, as much as there was (of it), (along) with 20,170 people, together with their property, (and) his deities Ḫaldi (and) Bagbartu, along with their numerous possessions.
Ursâ (Rusâ), king of the land Urarṭu, heard of the destruction of the city Muṣaṣir (and) the carrying off of his god Ḫaldi and by his own hands brought an end to his life with the iron dagger from his belt. I caused there to be mourning over the land Urarṭu, to its full extent. I imposed lamentation and dirge (singing) upon the people who lived there.
Tarhun-azi of the city Melid wanted (to offer) battle, broke (lit.: “overturned”) the treaty (sworn) by the great gods, and withheld his audience gift. Angrily, I smashed his royal city Melid, together with the settlements in its environs, like pots. I brought him out of his fortified city Tīl-Garimme, together with his wife, his sons, his daughters, the treasure of his palace, as much as there was (of it), (along) with five thousand of his captured warriors, and I considered him as booty. I reorganized (the administration of) the city Tīl-Garimme. I had Sutians — bowmen whom I had captured — occupy the land Kammanu in its entirety and I (thus) expanded my territory. I assigned that land to the authority of a eunuch of mine and imposed upon him (the same state) service (and) corvée duty as (in the time) of Kunzinānu (Gunzinānu), the previous king.
(As for) Tarḫu-lara of the land Gurgum, whose heir Mutallu had cut him down with the sword, sat upon his (Tarḫu-lara’s) throne without my permission, and governed his land — furiously, I quickly marched to the city Marqasa with (only) my personal chariot and my cavalry who never leave my side (even) in friendly territory. I counted his heir Mutallu as booty, together with the (ruling) family of the land Bīt-Paʾalla, as many as there were, (along) with gold, silver, (and) the countless property of his palace. I reorganized (the administration of) the people of the land Gurgum, to its full extent. I set a eunuch of mine as provincial governor over them and considered them as people of Assyria.
Azūri, king of the city Ashdod, plotted (so as) to no longer (have to) deliver tribute (to me) and sent (messages) hostile to Assyria to the kings in his environs. Because of the evil that he had done, I did away with his lordship over the people of his [lan]d. I set his favorite [brother] Aḫī-Mīti as king over them, but (95) the Hittites, who (always) speak treachery, hated his rule and elevated over them Iāmānī, who had no right to the throne (and) who, like them, did not know how to respect (any) authority.
Furiously, I neither assembled the main force of my army nor organized my (military) camp. I marched to the city Ashdod with (only) my warriors who (100) never leave my side (even) in [fri]endly territory. However, that Iāmānī heard from afar of the approach of my expeditionary force and fled to the (far) edge of Egypt, on the border with the land Meluḫḫa; his whereabouts have never been discovered. (105) I surrounded (and) conquered the cities Ashdod, Gath (and) Ashdod-Yam. I counted as booty his gods, his wife, his sons, his daughters, (his) property (and) possessions, the treasure of his palace, (along) with the people of his land. I reor[ganized] (the administration of) those cities, [settled] there people from the lands that I had conquered ... [... in the e]ast, [and set a eunuch of mine as [pro]vincial [governor] over [them]. I considered them [a]s people of Assyria and they (now) pull my yoke.
The king of the land Meluḫ[ḫa] — who in ... the land U[r]izzu, an inaccessible place, (whose) route [... who]se ancestors [from the] distant [past] until now had nev[er s]ent their mounted messenger(s) to the kings, my ancestors, in order to inquire about their well-being — [h]e[ar]d from af[ar] of the might of the gods Aššur, [Nabû], (and) Marduk. [Then, fe]ar of (my) royal brilliance overwhelmed him and terror overcame him. He threw him (Iāmānī) in manacles and handcu[ffs], (in other words in) iron [fe]tters, and they brou[ght] (him) the long journey to Assyria, into my presence.
Mutallu of the land Kummuḫu — an evil Hittite who did not fear the words of the gods, plotted evil, (and always) spoke treachery — put his trust in Argišti, king of the land Urarṭu, (his) ally, who (nevertheless) could not save him, stopped his annual delivery of tribute (and) payment(s), and withheld his audience gift. Angrily, I set out against him with (only) my personal chariot and my cavalry who never leave my side (even) in friendly territory. He saw the cloud of dust (kicked up) by my expeditionary force, went out from his city, and his whereabouts have never been discovered. (115) I surrounded (and) conquered that city, together with 62 fortified settlements in its environs. I carried off as booty his wife, his sons, his daughters, (his) property (and) possessions, everything valuable, the treasure of his [palace], (along) with the people of his land; I did not spare anyone. I reorganized (the administration of) that district. I settled there people of the land Bīt-Yakīn that I had conquered. I set a eunuch of mine as provincial [gove]rnor over them. I imposed the yoke of my lordship upon them. I conscripted from among them 150 chariots, 1,500 cavalry, 20,000 bowmen, (and) 1,000 shield and spear bearers and made (them) subject to him (the new governor).
At that time, the appointed moment came for Daltâ, king of the land Ellipi, a submissive subject who pulled my yoke, and he went the way of death. Nibê (and) Ašpa-bara, sons of h[is] sisters, jointly divided up his wide land (with regard to the right) to sit on his royal throne and (then) were doing battle (with one another). Nibê quickly sent a messenger to Šutur-Naḫūndi, the Elamite, in order to get revenge. He (Šutur-Naḫūndi) gave him aid and came to his assistance. In order to get revenge and to save his life, Ašpa-bara (120) besought me with supplications and entreaties and asked me for (military) aid. I sent seven of my eunuchs, together with their troops, to avenge him. They brought about the defeat of Nibê, together with the Elamite army, his allies, at the city Marubištu. I seated Ašpa-bara on his throne, brought order to the disturbed land Ellipi, and made (it) subject to him.
Marduk-apla-iddina (II) (Merodach-Baladan), descendant of Yakīn, king of Chaldea, a murderer (lit.: “seed of murder”) (and) the (very) image of a gallû-demon, who does not fear the word of the lord of lords (Marduk), put his trust in the sea (and its) surging waves, broke (lit.: “overturned”) the treaty (sworn) by the great gods, and withheld his audience gift. He turned to Ḫumbanigaš (Ḫumban-nikaš I), the Elamite, for aid, caused all the Sutians, the people of the steppe, to rebel against me, and prepared for battle. He proceeded to the land of Sumer and Akkad and for twelve years he ruled and governed Babylon, the city of the Enlil of the gods (Marduk), against the will of the gods.
At the command of the god Aššur, the father of the gods, and of the great lord, the god Marduk, I got my (chariot) teams ready (and) prepared my (military) camp. I ordered the march against the Chaldean, a dangerous enemy. However, that Marduk-apla-iddina heard of the approach of my expeditionary force. His own fear(s) then fell upon him and he flew away from Babylon to the city Iqbi-Bēl during the night like a bat. He gathered together the inhabitants of his cities (lit.: “his inhabited cities”) and the gods dwelling in them (his cities), and he brought them into the city Dūr-Yakīn. Then, he strengthened its enclosure walls. He formed the Gambulu, Puqudu, Damūnu, Ruʾuʾa (and) Ḫindaru (tribes) into bands, brought (them) inside it (Dūr-Yakīn), and made preparations for battle. Moving back a distance of one measuring rope from in front of its main wall, he made a moat two hundred cubits wide; he made (the moat) one and a half nindanu deep and reached ground water. He cut a channel from the Euphrates River, (thereby) making (its water) flow (in)to its meadowland. He filled the city’s flatlands, where battles (are fought), with water and cut the bridges. Together with his allies (and) his battle troops, he pitched his royal tent in a bend of the river (lit.: “between rivers”) like a crane and set up his (military) camp.
I had my fighters fly [o]ver his canals like eagles and they brought about his defeat. With the blood of his warriors, they dyed the water of his canals as red as red wool. I cut down like sheep the Sutians, his allies, who had gone over to his side and come to his aid, together with the Maršanians, and I splattered the remainder of the people who survived with deadly venom. However, that (man) abandoned [his] royal tent, gold bed, gold throne, gold chair, gold scepter, silver chariot, gold parasol, and his neck ornament inside his (military) ca[m]p and fled off by himself; like a cat, he hugged the side of his (city’s) wall and entered his city.
I surrounded (and) conquered the city Dūr-Yakīn. I rounded up that man, together with his wife, his sons, his daughters, gold, silver, property (and) [possess]ions, the treasure of his palace, as much as there was (of it), (along) with substantial booty from his city and the survivor(s), the remainder of his people who had fled before my weapons, and I counted them as booty. I burned his fortified city Dūr-Yakīn down with fire. I destroyed (and) demolished its high enclosure walls; I tore out its foundation. I made it like a (ruin) mound left by the Deluge.
(As for) the citizens of (the cities) Sippar, Nippur, Babylon, and Borsippa who through no fault of their own had been held captive in it (Dūr-Yakīn), I put an end to their imprisonment and let them see the light (of day). (With regard to) their fields, which long ago, while the land was in disorder, the Sutians had taken away and appropriated for their own, I struck down (those) Sutians, the people of the steppe, with the sword. I (re)assigned to them (the citizens) their territories, (whose boundaries) had been forgotten (and) fallen into disuse during the troubled period in the land. I (re)-established the freedom (from obligations) of (the cities) Ur, Uruk, Eridu, Larsa, Kullaba, Kissik, (and) Nēmed-Laguda. Moreover, I returned their gods that had been carried off as booty to their cult centers and restored their regular offerings that had been discontinued.
I ruled all together the land Bīt-Yakīn, from one end to the other end (lit.: “above and below”), as far as the cities Samʾūna, Bāb-dūri, Dūr-Telīte, Bubê, (and) Tīl-Ḫumba, which are on the Elamite border; I settled there people from the land Kummuḫu, which is (located) in the land Ḫatti, that I had conquered with the support of the great gods, my lords, and I had (them) occupy its (Bīt-Yakīn’s) abandoned regions. I had Nabû-damiq-ilāni construct a fortress on the Elamite border, at the city Sagbat, in order to bar access to (lit.: “the feet of”) the enemy Elamite(s). (140) I divided up that land into equal parts and assigned (them) to the authority of a eunuch of mine, the governor of Babylon, and a(nother) eunuch of mine, the governor of the Gambulu (tribe).
Happily, with a joyful heart (and) a radiant face, I entered Babylon, the cult center of the Enlil of the gods (Marduk); I grasped hold of the hands of the great lord, the god Marduk, and brought (him) safely along the the road to the akītu-house. (With regard to) 154 talents, 26 minas, (and) 10 shekels of red gold, 1,604 talents (and) 20 minas of pure silver, copper (and) iron in immeasurable quantities, obsidian, lapis lazuli, banded agate, blue turquoise, green turquoise, ... of banded agate (and) muššaru-stone in large quantities, blue-purple wool, red-purple wool, garments with multi-colored trim and linen garments, boxwood, cedar, cypress, (and) every kind of aromatic, the products of Mount Amanus, whose scent(s) are pleasant — from the beginning of my kingship until (my) third year, I presented (these things) as gifts to the deities Bēl, Zarpanītu, Nabû, Tašmētu, and the (other) gods who dwell in the cult centers of the land of Sumer and Akkad.
Upēri, king of Dilmun, who(se) lair is situated (at a distance of) thirty leagues in the middle of the Eastern Sea, like (that of) a fish, heard of the might of the gods Aššur, Nabû, (and) Marduk and brought me his gift.
Moreover, seven kings of the land Yāʾ, a region of the land Yadnana (Cyprus) — whose abode(s) are situated far away, at a distance of seven days (journey) in the middle of the Western Sea (and) the name of whose land, from the distant past until now, none of the kings, my ancestors, neither in Assyria nor in the land Karduniaš (Babylonia), had ever heard — heard from afar, in the middle of the sea, of the deeds I had been doing in Chaldea and the land Ḫatti (Syria). Their hearts then pounded and fear fell upon them. They brought before me in Babylon gold, silver, (and) utensils of ebony (and) boxwood, products of their land, and they kissed my feet.
While I was bringing about the defeat of the land Bīt-Yakīn and all of the Arameans and of making my weapon prevail over the land Yadburu on the border of the land Elam, a eunuch of mine, the governor of the land Que (Cilicia), marched ...ly three times into the territory of Mitâ (Midas) of the land Musku. He destroyed, demolished, (and) burned down his cities with fire. He carried off substantial booty from them. Moreover, that (man), Mitâ of the land Musku, who had not submitted to the kings who preceded me and had never changed his mind (about doing so), sent his messenger before me at the Eastern Sea to do obeisance (to me) and to bring (me) tribute (and) presents.
At that time, using (as laborers) people from the lands that I had conquered, whom the gods Aššur, Nabû, (and) Marduk had made bow down at my feet, and who (now) pull my yoke, (and) in accordance with divine will (and) my heart’s desire, I built a city at the foot of Mount Muṣri, upstream from Nineveh, and I named it Dūr-Šarrukīn.
The gods Ea, Sîn, Šamaš, Nabû, Adad, Ninurta, and their great spouses who were duly born inside Eḫursaggalkurkurra (“House, the Great Mountain of the Lands”), the mountain of the netherworld, gladly took up residence in resplendent sanctuaries (and) artfully-built shrines inside the city Dūr-Šarrukīn. I established innumerable regular offerings as their shares (of temple income). I had nešakku-priests, ramku-priests, surmaḫḫu-priests, men well versed in their (fields of) knowledge (and) initiated in secret rites, (and) naṭpu-ecstatics serve them (lit.: “stand before them”).
I built inside [it (the city)] a palace using (lit.: “of”) elephant ivory, ebony, boxwood, musukkannu-wood, cedar, cypress, daprānu-juniper, juniper and terebinth, (namely) Egalgabarinutukua (“Palace That Has No Equal”), to be my lordly residence, and I laid their foundations upon inscribed objects (made) of gold, silver, lapis lazuli, jasper, parūtu-alabaster, copper, tin, iron, lead, and pieces of aromatic woods. Then, I established their brickwork (and) roofed them with large cedar beams. I bound the doors of cypress (and) musukkannu-wood with band(s) of shining copper and installed (them in) their entrance(s). I had built in front of their gates a portico (bīt appāti), a replica of a Hittite palace, which is called a bīt ḫilāni in the language of the land Amurru.
Eight twin lion (colossi) of shining copper that weigh 4,610 full (lit.: “tested”) talents (and) that were cast by the craft of the god Ninagal and filled with radiance — upon (those) lion colossi I installed four matching cedar columns, whose diameter(s) are one nindanu each, the product of Mount Amanus, and I positioned cross-beams (upon them) as a cornice for their gates. I skillfully fashioned magnificent mountain sheep colossi of massive mountain stone and in the four directions I had (them) hold their (the gates’) respective (lit.: “fitting”) door bolt(s). I depicted the settlements that I had conquered upon large limestone slabs and surrounded their (the palatial halls’) lower courses (with them). I made (them) an object of wonder. I placed inside these palatial halls representations — (made) by the craft of the sculptor — of the settlements of every land that I had conquered, from east to west, by the strength of the god Aššur, my lord.
In a favorable month, (on) an auspicious day, I invited the god Aššur, the father of the gods, the great lord, (and) the (other) gods and goddesses who dwell in Assyria (to come) inside them and, in a grandiose manner, I offered them (the gods) gifts of red ṣāriru-gold (and) pure silver, extensive presents as (my) substantial audience gift. I thus made their (the gods’) moods joyful. I offered before them prize bulls in prime condition, fattened sheep, geese, ducks, dormice, strings of fish and birds, the wealth of the Deep (apsû) that never (170) lessens, kurunnu-beer (and) white honey, products of the pure mountains, the best of the lands that I had conquered, which the progenitor of the gods, the god Aššur, had added to my royal share, (along) with pure voluntary sacrifices, pure food offerings, splendid incense offerings, (and) innumerable libations. Reverently, I knelt (and) prayed before him that he preserve (my) life, grant (me) a long life, and firmly establish my reign.
The great mountain, the god Enlil, the lord of (all) lands, who dwells in Eḫursaggalkurkurra, (and) the (other) gods and goddesses who dwell in Assyria returned to their city amid songs of joy and hymns of praise.
With rulers from every land, provincial governors of my land, overseers, commanders, nobles, eunuchs, and elders of Assyria, I sat down inside my palace and held a festival. [I recei]ved as their substantial tribute (180) gold, silver, utensils of gold (and) silver, valuable stone(s), copper, iron, untensils of co[pper] (and) ir[o]n, every kind of aromatic, fine oil, garments with multi-colored trim and linen garments, blue-purple wool, red-purple wool, elephant hide(s), elephant ivory, antimony, ebony, [box]wood, [la]rge Egyptian horses that are tr[ai]ned to the yoke, mules, donkeys, camels, ox[en, (and) sheep and goats].
May the god [Aš]šur, the father of the gods, lo[ok] steadfastly upon (this) city that has been duly selected [by me] (lit.: “the choice of the steadfastness of [my] hea[rt]”) [and] (upon) this palace with his holy, radiant face and may he ordain their renovation for future days. May (the following commands) come from (lit.: “be set in”) his holy mouth: May the guardian spirit (and) the protective god (190) stay continually in them, day and night, and may they never leave them. [At his] comma[nd], may the ruler who constructed them live long (and) reach extreme old age. May their builder remain in good health forever. May (this command) issue from his (the god Aššur’s) holy lips. May the one who dwells inside them rejoice there in physical well-being, merriment, and [hap]piness, (and) be fully satisfied with (his) good fortune.