The Corpus of Hittite Divinatory Texts (HDivT)

Digital Edition and Cultural Historical Analysis

Birgit Christiansen

Citatio: Andrea Trameri (Hrsg.), hethiter.net/: CTH 573.65 (INTR 2025-08-08)


CTH 573.65

Bird oracle fragment mentioning the Tawannanna and illness

introductio



Short description

In this fragment of bird oracles, the text mentions the Tawannanna (kolon 7) and (most likely) angry deities (k. 8). Thus, the oracle procedure may have included an investigation about the queen, after the discovery of the anger of certain gods, likely revealed through oracles. Notably, one of the following paragraphs mentions someone becoming ill (k. 18, ištarakzi), possibly the Tawannanna herself, although this is not certain.

The section k. 9–12, based on the recognizable content, appears to contain sentences from a flight description. However, if that is the case, at least some of the terminology and formulary would be unusual; andan (k. 11), for example, does not appear in the standard formulary. In another paragraph, the meaning of sentence k. 21 is also partially unclear.

Texts

Manuscript AKUB 50.10Bo 1145Ḫattuša

Literature from the Konkordanz

  • Y. Sakuma, Diss., 2009: II 365f.

History of publication

Handcopy: A. Archi (KUB 50, Archi A. 1979f).

Edition: Sakuma Y. 2009b, II 365-366.

Tablet characteristics

This fragment contains two sections of text belonging to separate columns. We can read the end of approximately twelve lines of text from the left column, and the beginning of an equal number of lines from the right column. The surface of the tablet is weathered in some areas, making certain signs difficult to read.

Palaeography and handwriting

Tentative dating NS (jh.); diagnostic signs: DA(?), IT(?), TAR(?). The poor state of preservation of the fragment, and its small size, do not allow a meaningful palaeographic analysis.

Overview of contents

Section 1ID=1left column §1´
Section 2ID=2left column §2´
Section 3ID=3right column §3´
Section 4ID=4right column §4´
Editio ultima: 2025-08-08