Robert McCray Whiting 1976

“Tiš-atal of Niniveh and Babati, Uncle of Šu-Sin,”
in JCS 28:3, pp. 173-182.
Webpage

Whiting devotes this contribution to the presentation of a tablet from Tell Asmar (ancient Eshunna), bearing the field nr. 1931-T615, also mentioned in OIP 43, p. 167, found in an area of the southwest of the palace complex (findspot L 32:3), dating to the 3rd year of Šu-Sin.

The text reports also the name of “Tiš-atal, the man of Niniveh”, receiving a huge amount of flour during his visit to Eshunna, escorted by ca. 100 men. The text is sealed by a man called Babati.

On p. 174, the author recalls all the attestations (three in total) of the name Tiš-atal:

1) Ti-iš-a-tal en-da-an Ur-kèš.KI: undated foundation inscription in Hurrian (AO 19938);

2) ^dDi(!)-sa-a-tal LUGAL Kár(a)-&#7723ar.ki: Ur III/early Isin-Larsa style seal (Collection De Clercq 1 121);

3) Ti-iš-a-tal lú Ni-nu-a.ki: the document published in this paper.

The author investigates the identity of the actual person these three names are referring to, suggesting that possibly they could belong to the same very person, justifying his presence at Eshunna as “a part of a ‘state visit’ made as a diplomatic venture following the successful campaign of Šu-Sin into the neighbouring territory of Simanum” (p. 178).

The last part of the paper (pp. 178-182) analyses the seal impression of Babati who was šagana of Maškan-šarrum, ensi of Awal/Abal.