Pivot Stone

2100 BC - 2000 BC
Limestone
Tell Asmar
14.5 cm x 33.5 cm diam.
A8164

Oriental Institute Museum

Artifact Description

Pivot Stone

This stone served as the socket in which rested and turned the pivot of a door leading from the courtyard to the sanctuary of a temple dedicated to Gimilsin (Shu-Sin), a king of the third dynasty of Ur who was worshipped as a god. The stone bears a cuneiform inscription written in the Sumerian language.

Inscription

To the divine Shu-Sin, mentioned by name by Anu, beloved of Enlil, the king whom Enlil thought of in his holy heart for the shepherdship of the country and of the four quarters, mighty king, king of Ur, king of the four quarters, his god, Ituria the governor of Eshnunna, his servant, has built his temple.

Collected by

Henri Frankfort, Field Director of the Iraq Expedition
Excavated by The Oriental Institute 1931-1932

Suggested Readings

Kramer, Samuel Noah. Cradle of Civilization. Alexandria, VA: Time-Life Books, 1967.

Leick, Gwendolyn. A Dictionary of Ancient Near Eastern Architecture. London: Routledge, 1988.

Roaf, Michael. Cultural Atlas of Mesopotamia and the Ancient Near East. New York: Facts on File, 1990.

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