The Nimrud Slab, also known as the Calah Orthostat Slab, is the top half of a "summary inscription" of the reign of Adad-nirari III (811 to 783 BC) discovered in 1854 by William Loftus in his excavations at Nimrud on behalf of the Assyrian Excavation Fund.[1]
| Nimrud Slab | |
|---|---|
The Nimrud Slab in Rawlinson's Editio princeps. The original slab has been lost.
| |
| Material | Gypsum |
| Writing | Akkadian cuneiform |
| Created | c. 800 BC |
| Discovered | 1854 Nineveh, Iraq |
| Discovered by | William Loftus |
| Present location | Unknown |
It is the best known of the inscriptions of Adad-nirari III,[2] since it includes a description of early Assyrian conquests in Syria and Palestine.
The inscription was carved on a gypsum slab, and the surviving part of the inscription is thought to represent the top half of the original slab. The original slab is lost after it was thought to have been left behind in Nimrud. However, a squeeze was taken by Edwin Norris, which allowed the text to be published by Rawlinson.
The text as translated by Luckenbill as below:[2]
[I subdued] from the bank of the Euphrates, the land of Hatti, the land of Amurru in its entirety, the land of Tyre, the land of Sidon, the land of Humri, the land of Edom, the land of Palastu, as far as the great sea of the setting sun. I imposed tax and tribute on them.