Old Babylonian Lament: "Ishtar-Bahgdad"
This lament is found on one tablet, IM 58424, housed in the National Museum of Iraq in Baghdad. It was first edited and published by Brigitte Groneberg in 1997 (see →bibliography), which provides photographs and Antoine Cavigneaux's copy of the tablet (pictured here on the right). Lambert offered several improved readings in his review of Groneberg's book (Lambert 1999/2000: 276-277). Streck's re-editing of the entire text in 2003 provided many more improved readings (see Streck 2003; →bibliography). His edition forms the textual basis for the present treatment, unless otherwise noted. For this text's record at the Sources of Early Akkadian Literature project, see here. I know of no other English translation of the entire text aside from the present one.