The Babylonian Practice of Marking Slaves

Abstract

A PRACTICE connected with Babylonian slavery, knowledge of which is involved in considerable obscurity, is that of the method of marking slaves. The interpretation of this custom depends largely upon the meaning assigned to galabu,' abuttu, and muttatu. Laws I and II of the Sumerian Family Laws provide as the penalty to be imposed on a child who repudiates his parents; DUBBIN MI-NI-IN-?A-A, for disloyalty to father, and MUTTATI-A-NI DUBBIN SA-NE-IN-SI-ES, for disloyalty to mother. The sign transliterated DUBBIN may mean 'a sharp pointed instrument', 'finger', or 'nail-mark' (OBW 10O). But DUBBIN MI-NI-IN-SA-A is translated in the Akkadian text, u-gal-la-ab-su. This part of the law has been translated by Lenormant (EA 3, p. 22), 'ils lui rasent'; by Sayce (Records of the Past 3, p. 24) confirming it by (his) nailmark (on the deed)'; by Oppert (Doe. Jur. 56, 1. 26) 'et confirmat ungue impresso'; by Milller (Gesetze Ham. 270) 'macht er ihm ein Mal'; and Winckler (Gesetze 11am. 85), 'soll er ihm die Marke schneiden.' Haupt in his Sumerische FamilienGesetze (p. 35) stated that the expression should not be read 'er legt ihm den Fingernagel an,' but 'er scheert es.' Jensen (KB 6, p. 377, 1. 11) believed galabu to mean 'cut', referring to incised marks, and DUBBIN to be the instrument of cutting. MUTTATI-A-NI DUBBIN SA-NE-IN-SI-ES is translated in the Semitic text mu-ut-ta-a?-9u u-gal-bu-ma, which Sayce translated 'his hair is cut off'; Oppert (Doc. Jur. 57, 1.31) 'et