1,2 I skilfully surrounded it; 3,4 tall cedars for its porticos I fitted; 5,6 _ikki_ and cedar woods with layers of copper, 7 on domes and arches 8,9 and with bronze work, I strongly overlaid its gates 10 with silver, gold, precious stones, 11,12 whatsoever they call them, in heaps; 13 I valiantly collected spoils; 14 as an adornment of the house were they arranged, 15 and were collected within it; 16,17 trophies, abundance, royal treasures, 18 I accumulated and gathered together. 19 As to the moving of My Royalty 20 to any other city, 21 there has not arisen a desire: 22 among any other people 23 no royal palace have I built: 24 the merchandise and treasures of my kingdom 25,26,27 I did not deposit within the provinces of Babylon: 28 a pile for my residence 29,30 to grace My Royalty was not found: 31 Therefore with reverence for Merodach my Lord, 32,33 the exterior and interior in Babylon 34 as his treasure city 35,36 and for the elevation of the abode of My Royalty 37 his shrine I neglected not: 38 its weak parts which were not completed, 39 its compartments that were not remembered, 40 as a securely compacted edifice 41,42 I dedicated and set up as a preparation for war 43,44 by Imgur Bel, the fortress of invincible Babylon, 45 400 cubits in its completeness, 46 a wall of Nimitti-Bel 47 an outwork of Babylon 48,49 for defence. Two lofty embankments, 50 in cement and brick, 51 a fortress like a mountain I made, 52 and in their sub-structure 53 I built a brickwork; 54 then on its summit a large edifice 55 for the residence of My Royalty 56,57 with cement and brick I skilfully built 58 and brought it down by the side of the temple: 59 and in the exact middle, on the second day 60 its foundation in a solid depth 61,62 I made good and its summit I carried round; 63 and on the 15th day its beauty _(Continued on Column IX_.) COLUMN IX