W17

Elamite inscription of King Huteludush-Inshushinak

Sorry this item has sold

A rare and almost complete royal inscription commemorating the re-building and restoration of a temple for Napirisha, Kiririsha, Inshushinak and Shimut by the last Middle Elamite king, Huteludush-Inshushinak (c. 1120-1110 BC). The inscription covers the two exposed edges of a baked clay architectural brick which would have adorned the corner of an entrance or gateway in the temple.

The inscription is written by hand over 59 lines and commemorates "Huteludush-Inshushinak, the greatest of kings, the king of Elam and Susiana" and goes on to include an interesting genealogical list of around a dozen royal relatives and dedicating the restoration of the above-mentioned temple in their honour. A copy of near-complete transliteration and translation of the inscription is provided with the brick so we have not included the full text here for the sake of brevity.

Huteludush-Inshushinak inherited a great kingdom but marked the end of the Middle Elamite empire following his defeat in battle in Khuzistan to king Nebuchadnezzar I of Babylonia (1125-1104 BC), an event with is evocatively  commemorated in Babylonian texts.

South-East Mesopotamia, Middle Elamite, reign of king Huteludush-Inshushinak, circa 1120-1110 BC

Size: 35 x 16.5 x 7 cms.

Repaired from two pieces with only some very small areas of loss as seen in the photographs.

Ex. private collection, London, UK. Acquired before 1985, most likely at Sothebys or Spinks in London, in 1964 or 1965. This brick had been in storage for over 20 years and was sold by the administrators of the storage facility in lieu of unpaid fees. Other antiquities acquired from the same source could be traced to the earlier provenance, hence the inclusion of these dates as the likely time and location of acquisition by the previous owner.

Inscriptions of Huteludush-Inshushinak rarely appear on the market; a shorter temple dedication written on a stone block by the same king was offered by Christies (London) May, 2002, lot 242 (unsold against an estimate of GBP30,000 - 40,000).