A number of Ashurbanipal's inscriptions from Babylonia mention his older brother Šamaš-šuma-ukīn in a positive light and, thus, were certainly composed before the start of the Brothers' War in 652. The inscriptions of Ashurbanipal that do not refer to Šamaš-šuma-ukīn and that were written on clay cylinders are presumed to have been written after Babylon opened its gates to Ashurbanipal in late 648, while Kandalānu, Ashurbanipal's hand-selected replacement as the king of Babylon, sat on the throne.
The inscriptions of Sîn-balāssu-iqbi (Asb. 2003–2018), the governor of Ur, also predate the Šamaš-šuma-ukīn rebellion. That governor of Ur — who undertook construction of the moon-god temple Ekišnugal on Ashurbanipal's behalf, rather than Šamaš-šuma-ukīn's — is attested as the governor of Ur only for the years 658 and 657, although he undoubtedly held that position for a much longer period of time. A pre-652 date for these texts is confirmed by the fact that his (younger?) brother Sîn-šarru-uṣur had replaced him as governor of Ur (shortly) before the outbreak of the Šamaš-šuma-ukīn rebellion.[260]
[260] Note that another of Sîn-balāssu-iqbi's brothers, Sîn-tabni-uṣur, was governor of Ur in 650–649. See, for example, Frame, Babylonia pp. 278–279.
Jamie Novotny
Jamie Novotny, 'Dates of Ashurbanipal's Babylonian Inscriptions', RINAP 5: The Royal Inscriptions of Ashurbanipal, Aššur-etel-ilāni, and Sîn-šarra-iškun, The RINAP/RINAP 5 Project, a sub-project of MOCCI, 2023 [http://oracc.org/rinap/rinap5/rinap53introduction/datingandchronology/datesofashurbanipalsbabylonianinscriptions/]