The Library
1774 works catalogued century by century, from the literature the Bible was written among to the present — each with a note on what it is, why it lasted, and where to read it.
1800–1701 BC
1 work
c. 1754 BC
Akkadian
Hammurabi of Babylon
Two hundred and eighty-two rulings cut into a black diorite pillar beneath a relief of the king receiving the rod and ring from the sun god. If a man destroy the eye of another man, they shall destroy his eye; if a builder's house collapses and kills the owner's son, the builder's son is put to death.
1300–1201 BC
1 work
c. 1300 BC
Akkadian
Ludlul bel nemeqi
Attributed to Shubshi-meshre-Shakkan
A nobleman loses office, health, friends, and standing, and can find no fault in himself. His diviners cannot read his case, his god has abandoned him, and what is good to a man is an abomination to his god — until three dreams bring a stranger who restores him.
1100–1001 BC
1 work
c. 1200–1100 BC
Akkadian
Anonymous
Before anything was named, there were only Apsu the fresh water and Tiamat the salt sea mingled together. Marduk kills Tiamat, splits her body like a shellfish to make sky and earth, sets the constellations and the calendar, and makes humanity from the blood of the rebel god to free the gods from labour.
1000–901 BC
1 work
c. 1000 BC
Akkadian
Saggil-kinam-ubbib
An acrostic dialogue in twenty-seven stanzas between a sufferer and his friend. The sufferer says the godless prosper and the pious starve; the friend defends the order of things; and by the end the friend concedes that the gods gave humanity crooked speech and lies from the beginning.
600–501 BC
1 work
c. 750–300 BC; the Judah entries c. 550 BC
Akkadian
The scribes of Babylon
Terse year-by-year records of what the king did. One tablet notes that in the seventh year of Nebuchadnezzar he encamped against the city of Judah and on the second day of Adar captured the city and seized its king, appointing one of his own choice and taking heavy tribute back to Babylon.
5 of 1774 works