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Amat-Mamu (daughter of Sin-ilum)

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Not to be confused with the nadītu scribe Amat-Mamu.

Amat-Mamu was a Babylonian nadītu priestess in Sippar from the 18th century BC who was the subject of legal proceedings involving her inheritance. Amat-Mamu was chosen as the heir of fellow nadītu Belessunu, who bequeathed Amat-Mamu with her land and slaves. In exchange, Amat-Mamu was to provide for Belessunu until her death. The estate was claimed by two of Belessunu's cousins, but the mayor ruled in favor of Belessunu and Amat-Mamu. Amat-Mamu then lost the deeds when they were kept in her uncle's home, requiring her to have them reconstituted in a new tablet. This tablet was preserved, and its description of Amat-Mamu's inheritance provides insight into Babylonian inheritance practices.

Family and inheritance[edit]

A depiction of Shamash on the Tablet of Shamash

Amat-Mamu was a nadītu, a priestess to the god Shamash.[1] She was the daughter of Sin-ilum (also transcribed as Sîn-ilum or Sin-ili). Sin-ilum was the son of Sin-tajjār, who in turn was the son of Akšāja.[2] Amat-Mamu had a cousin, an aunt, and a great aunt who were all nadītus as well.[3] Nadītus were sometimes allowed to choose their own heirs, including potential heirs outside of their own families.[4] Such an option was allowed to the nadītu Belessunu, daughter of Mannium, as part of the terms of her own adoption as the heir of her aunt Naramtum,[5][6] and Belessunu adopted Amat-Mamu as her heir.[1]

Amat-Mamu inherited four fields totaling forty-six acres: a five-acre field and a twenty-acre field in the Pzur-Ilaba district, a nine-acre field in the Akbarum district, and a twelve-acre field in the Pahuşu district. She also inherited two plots of land: one and one-third sar of partially developed land in the cloister and six sar of undeveloped land of Sippar-rabum. Amat-Mamu inherited three slaves from Belessunu: Ana-pani-Šamaš-nadi, Sin-mašmaš, and Sin-mašmaš's brother.[7] Also inherited were a house, two copper pots,[2][5] and two axes.[8] Amat-Mamu was given the deeds, or "mother tablets", entitling her to Belessunu's property.[9]

Per the terms of the agreement, Amat-Mamu was required to pay Belessunu's debts and provide for her while she lived.[2][5] The debt totaled two-thirds mina, six shekels of silver. To provide for Belessunu, Amat-Mamu was required to provide Belessunu with six gurs of grain, twelve minas of wool, twenty-four liters of oil, six feasts, twenty liters of flour, and two pieces of meat each year. The agreement specified that this agreement was only with Amat-Mamu, and no other person could lay claim to Belessunu's estate by providing for her.[8]

Two years after the agreement was made, two of Belessunu's cousins and fellow nadītus—Amat-Šamaš and Nīši-īnīšu—laid claim to the fields.[6] The mayor of Sippar, Zimri-Erah, ruled that the inheritance was rightfully Belessunu's. The cousins were penalized for making a false claim over property, and they were forced to give Amat-Mamu a tablet that relinquished their claims.[10] Professor Rivkah Harris speculated that Belessunu passed over her cousins in favor of Amat-Mamu because Amat-Mamu was a member of a wealthy family and therefore better able to support Belessunu during her life.[11]

Reconstitution of the tablets[edit]

The cuneiform tablets confirming Amat-Mamu's inheritance were stored in the home of her uncle, Ikun-pī-Sîn.[9][12] They were kept separate from the family archive so as not to suggest that the inheritance was part of the family estate.[13] It is unknown why they were kept in her uncle's house, though such storage arrangements with family members were not uncommon.[13]

When they were lost, her father Sîn-ilî had a deposition taken from the uncle admitting to their loss.[10] Amat-Mamu was forced to go to the court so the judges could authorize the creation of new tablets.[9] The tablets that Belessunu received as a girl during her own adoption were not reconstituted, for she and her witnesses to that contract had already died.[1] The court also ruled that should the previous tablets be found, they were still the sole property of Amat-Mamu.[13]

The sequence of events describing both the legal dispute and the tablets' loss was documented on the reconstituted tablet.[6][14] The reconstitution meant that some details were lost and inconsistencies were introduced, primarily in the description of the fields.[15] The tablet is dated to the 14th year of Samsu-iluna's rule, placing its creation in 1736 BC. It has been preserved and is designated by archeologists as CT 47.63.[16] Amat-Mamu's story is listed on the tablet alongside that of Belessunu, including Belessunu's dedication as a nadītu and her adoption by her aunt.[15] The tablet is used in the modern era as a reference to understand Babylonian property and inheritance law.[9][17]

Notes[edit]

  1. ^ a b c Charpin 2010, p. 63.
  2. ^ a b c Harris 1969, p. 138.
  3. ^ Harris 1969, p. 137.
  4. ^ De Graef 2016, pp. 280–282.
  5. ^ a b c Charpin 2010, p. 64.
  6. ^ a b c De Graef 2016, p. 281.
  7. ^ Charpin 2023, pp. 117–118.
  8. ^ a b Charpin 2023, p. 118.
  9. ^ a b c d Jacquet 2013, p. 77.
  10. ^ a b Charpin 2010, pp. 64–65.
  11. ^ Harris 1976, pp. 131–132.
  12. ^ De Graef 2016, pp. 281–282.
  13. ^ a b c De Graef 2016, pp. 282–283.
  14. ^ Charpin 2023, p. 119.
  15. ^ a b Charpin 2023, p. 111.
  16. ^ Charpin 2023, p. 110.
  17. ^ Charpin 2010, pp. 63–65.

References[edit]

  • Charpin, Dominique (2010). Writing, Law, and Kingship in Old Babylonian Mesopotamia. University of Chicago Press. ISBN 978-0-226-10159-0.
  • Charpin, Dominique (2023). "Old Babylonian Law and Justice according to Letters and Legal Documents". In Démare-Lafont, Sophie; Fleming, Daniel E. (eds.). Judicial Decisions in the Ancient Near East. SBL Press. pp. 103–222. doi:10.2307/jj.8784672. ISBN 978-1-62837-486-5.
  • Harris, Rivkah (1969). "Notes on the Babylonian Cloister and Hearth: A Review Article". Orientalia. 38 (1): 133–145. ISSN 0030-5367. JSTOR 43079057.
  • Harris, Rivkah (1976). "On Kinship and Inheritance in Old Babylonian Sippar". Iraq. 38 (2): 129–132. doi:10.2307/4200036. ISSN 0021-0889.
  • Jacquet, Antoine (2013). "Family Archives in Mesopotamia during the Old Babylonian Period". In Faraguna, Michele (ed.). Archives and archival documents in ancient societies: Legal Documents in Ancient Societies IV: Trieste 30 September-1 October 2011. Edizioni Università di Trieste. pp. 63–85. ISBN 978-88-8303-460-2.
  • De Graef, Katrien (2016). "Cherchez la femme! The Economic Role of Women in Old Babylonian Sippar". In Lion, Brigitte; Michel, Cécile (eds.). The Role of Women in Work and Society in the Ancient Near East. De Gruyter. pp. 270–295. doi:10.1515/9781614519089-016. ISBN 978-1-61451-908-9.
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