Lot Essay
A translation of this text reads as follows; "Sin-iddinam, mighty man, supplier of Ur, king of Larsa, king of Sumer and Akkad, the king who built Ebabbar, the temple of Utu, who restored the regulations of the temples of the gods, am I.
When An, Enlil, Nanna and Utu granted to me a pleasant reign of justice whose days were long, by my wide-ranging wisdom which was brought to perfection and which excels, in order to provide clean water for my city and country, to extol (my) ways, and to glorify publicly for later days my heroism, I prayed intently to An and Enlil. When they had accepted my firm petition, they commissioned me with their unchanging word to dredge the Tigris and to restore it, thereby making a name for myself for many days to come.
Then at the command of An and Inanna, by the good will of Enlil and Ninlil, with the help of my god Ishkur, and by the exalted strength of Nanna and Utu, I magnificently dredged the Tigris, the well-supplied river of Utu in my great achievement. I directed its flow to the border, the line I had chosen, and regulated its mighty (waters) to the swamp, thus supplying uninterrupted water, an unceasing source of prosperity for Larsa and my country.
After I had dredged the Tigris, the great river, the wages of a man were: 1 gur of barley, 2 sila of bread, 4 sila of beer, 2 shekels of oil, this is what they received each day. I let no man have either less or more. With the labour of my land I finished that task. By the command and decision of the great gods I restored the Tigris, the broad river, and established my name for far off, distant days."
When An, Enlil, Nanna and Utu granted to me a pleasant reign of justice whose days were long, by my wide-ranging wisdom which was brought to perfection and which excels, in order to provide clean water for my city and country, to extol (my) ways, and to glorify publicly for later days my heroism, I prayed intently to An and Enlil. When they had accepted my firm petition, they commissioned me with their unchanging word to dredge the Tigris and to restore it, thereby making a name for myself for many days to come.
Then at the command of An and Inanna, by the good will of Enlil and Ninlil, with the help of my god Ishkur, and by the exalted strength of Nanna and Utu, I magnificently dredged the Tigris, the well-supplied river of Utu in my great achievement. I directed its flow to the border, the line I had chosen, and regulated its mighty (waters) to the swamp, thus supplying uninterrupted water, an unceasing source of prosperity for Larsa and my country.
After I had dredged the Tigris, the great river, the wages of a man were: 1 gur of barley, 2 sila of bread, 4 sila of beer, 2 shekels of oil, this is what they received each day. I let no man have either less or more. With the labour of my land I finished that task. By the command and decision of the great gods I restored the Tigris, the broad river, and established my name for far off, distant days."