The number-syllabary texts.

• Author: Pearce, Laurie E.

There exists a small group of texts, previously identified and dubbed "number-syllabaries," in which Syllabary A (henceforth, [S.sup.a]) signs are paired with numerical equivalents. In this article, they are referred to by the sigla, A-E.(1)

A = W22825+22808 Publication: E. von Weiher, Uruk: Spatbabylonische Texte aus dem Planquadrant U18, part 4 (Mainz am Rhein: Verlag Philipp von Zabern, 1993), 130-31, 223, no. 218. B = Rm. 806(2) Publication: below, fig. 1. C = BM 47732+48191(3) Publication: below, fig. 2. D = BM 46603(+)46609(4) Publication: below, fig. 3. E = BM 77233(5) Publication: below, fig. 4. The publication of A provides a welcome impetus to fully publish texts B-E and to discuss the relationships among the tablets comprising this curious corpus.6

The order of syllabic signs in Sa prescribes and defines the organization of all number-syllabary texts. In number-syllabaries, as in lexical texts, one of the elements in the entry is preceded by the DIS-sign, which denotes "item:".(7) Although many lexical texts have DIS preceding the first of two (or more) entries, in the number-syllabaries, DIS precedes the second element, the syllabic sign.(8) The order of the entries, numeral - DIS - syllabic sign, is certain because of the frequency and distribution of signs within the vertical rulings which demarcate each column. Further discussion of the organization of the texts and the relationships among them is facilitated by reference to the transliterations which follow, and to the copies, which appear as figs. 14 at the end of this article.

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B i ii iii [] [x+]12 [DIS SAB] [] [x+]12 [DIS UD] [] [x+]2, 41 DIS AD [] 5, 20 DIS DA [20] 5 [] 12, 30 DIS TA 7, [20?] [] 12, 20 DIS TI []x 32, 30 DIS UM 1,[10][+x] []x 26, 40 DIS DUB 21, [] [] 22 DIS MIS 30[+x] 10 [] 14, 50 DIS URUDU 10[+x] [x+]22 DIS AM [x+]2? DIS IM

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D, obverse i-iii (on BM 46603) i ii iii 7 BU (entire column missing) 7, 13 SUD 3, 30 KU 3, 40 LU 5 3, 11 RU 6, 40 HA 44 a.ra.kam? 6, 50 KIR [] IS 4 LI 23 GA 4, 12 LA 23, 20 GAN 10 [] LUM 13, 31 EN 32, 20[+x] IN [] ERI D, obverse iv-vi (on BM 46609) iv v vi 12, 20 TI [] [] 32, 20 UM 51 ANSE 32, 40 DUB 56 TU 12, 30 LUL 22 MIS 24[] TUM [] ALLA 5 24, 50 URUDU 26, 14 EGIR 11, 10 GUR? 49 GUR 5 48 DAR D, reverse iv-vi (on BM 46603) ii i 42, 23[x]? IDIM? [] SIR [] KU? [] SE [] TIK [] SE [] DUR [] NIM [] [SIG.sub.5] 5 [] TUM [] TE? [] NIR [] KAR? nu.gal x x x 5 [] LIL x nu.gal x x x 22, 30 GAN x [] KIB SAB E i ii traces traces 2, 41+x [DIS SIR] TUM 3, 42 [DIS IDIM] BI 3, 42 DIS [IDIM] 5 traces 8, 20 DIS S[E] traces 3, 30 DIS SE traces 15, 30 DIS NIM traces 15, 30 DIS NIM traces 15, 30 DIS N[IM] 10 2, 35 [DIS TUM] A is a three-column tablet in which the columns on the reverse are atypically ordered from left to right.(15) Approximately 120 of the 358 signs of [S.sup.a] were written on the preserved portion of this tablet. The number of signs and their arrangement indicates that A represents about one-third of a complete number-syllabary text. It lists the sign forms one time each, and does not repeat signs with multiple [S.sup.a] values. A differs from the other number-syllabary texts in its inclusion, on the obverse (lines ii 12, 15, 21; iii 10), of numerals not paired with [S.sup.a] sign equivalents. The space in the sign column corresponding to each of these three-digit numerals (which all begin with "9") is uninscribed.(16) A vi 14 (which preserves the numeral "54") corresponds to the end of the standard text of [S.sup.a]. For unknown reasons, the scribe of A added twelve lines of numerals which are not paired with any signs.

B is the smallest of the number-syllabary fragments. Its size and thickness make it impossible to determine how much of the original tablet is preserved. However, from the position of the signs in the [S.sup.a] order (signs 64-73), it is clear that this fragment is from the obverse of the tablet.

D is sufficiently preserved to determine that the tablet originally could have contained the entire text of [S.sup.a] on its two sides. Each side must have had six columns, of which five are partially preserved on the obverse.(17) The signs are listed only one time each, according to the order of, but not as frequently as in, [S.sup.a].(18) Neither the signs nor the numerals are preceded by DIS.(19)

C and E vary from the pattern already described, for they list each sign as many times as it appears in [S.sup.a]. When a [S.sup.a] sign appears more than once in these exemplars, the numerical equivalent is always the same for that sign.

Having described the organizational principles of the corpus and having considered the distinctive features of each text, I shall now consider the relationships among the texts. Simple inspection of the texts reveals the following shared numeral-sign pairings:(20)

Both B and D preserve the sign sequence TI, UM, DUB, MIS, URUDU, with their corresponding numeral- sign equivalents:(21)

[S.sup.a] Sign B D TI 12, 20 12, 20 UM 32, 30 32, 30 DUB 26, 40 32, 40 MIS 22 22 URUDU 14, 50 24, 40 The numerals on both tablets are identical for three of the five signs: TI, UM, and MIS. The third numeral in each sequence seems certain, although the area is worn on the surface of D, allowing for the possibility of a different numeral. The surface is worn on both tablets in the area of the fifth numeral.(22)

A has numeral-sign equivalents in common with C and D as shown in the chart below.(23)

[S.sup.a] Sign A C D ZUR 6, 12 6, 11 or 12 SIZKUR 6, 22 6, 22 TU 56 56 56 TUM 25 20[+x], 2[+x] 24 or 25(24) EGIR 26, 14 [x+]4 26, 14 DIM 4, 10 1 MAR 21, 10 21, 10 DIB 3, 40 3, 30(25) 3, 40 HAB 22, 10 22, 10 - 9, 22 - - TAB 2 2 KAS 34, 10 34, 10 LAH 34 34 KAL 30, [], 2 33(26) GU 22, 20 23, 10(27) GA 4, 20 4, [] C shares two sequences of numerals with MMA 86.11.364: those paired with the signs, DIM - KAL, the other with the signs PA - ID.(28) The two texts were undoubtedly identical in their entirety.

E shares no sign sequences with the other texts; it cannot be determined if E represents an additional exemplar of a known system or is independent.

Texts C and E demonstrate that the scribes intended the numerals to represent only the sign form and not the possible syllabic readings of the sign. Had the scribes intended a numeral to represent distinct syllabic readings, each entry in C and E would presumably have been furnished with discrete numbers.

Those texts in which the signs are not repeated as often as they appear in [S.sup.a] also support this conclusion. The scribes certainly understood the implications of the multivalent nature of the Akkadian syllabary...