A Glimpse into the Šumu-libši Archive: The Sociohistorical Context of a Prebend Sale from the E-kar-zaginna of Ea in Babylon and Related Texts

CT 51, 56 (BM 34545) is a prebend sale from the E-kar-zaginna temple in Babylon within the Šumu-libši family. It is suggested here that the prebend belonged to a lamentation singer (kalû) and was inherited by his son, who sold it because he became an exorcist (mašmaššu) rather than a kalû. Some of the protagonists and witnesses in the sale belonged to the circles of well known urban families, among them the Egibis and members of the clergy. In addition to another promissory note (BM 34536), CT 51, 56 constitute a fragment of a yet unknown archive of the Šumu-libšis, a family of the minor clergy in Babylon.