CHAPTER XXXII 
THE EARLIEST RECORDED CONTRACT OF FISHING 
One of the very earliest—the earliest as far as I have found— 
recorded contract concerning fishing occurs in the second 
year of Darius I1., 422 B.c. It runs thus ! :— 
‘“RIBAT SON OF BEL-ERIBA THE SLAVE OF ENLIL-NADIN- 
SHUMI SPOKE OF HIS OWN FREE WILL TO ENLIL-NADIN-SHUMI 
SON OF MURASHU IN THE FOLLOWING MANNER: ‘ THE FISH- 
POND BETWEEN THE VILLAGE AHSHANU AND THE FARM OF 
BEL-ABU-UZUR IN THE FIELD OF THE MASTER OF THE MERCHANTS 
AND THE FISHPOND IN THE FIELD OF THE PREFECT AND THE 
FISHPOND BY THE VILLAGE OF BIT-NATUN-EL, GIVE ME FOR 
YEARLY PAYMENT. EACH YEAR I WILL GIVE ONE HALF TALENT 
OF PURE SILVER, AND FROM THE DAY ON WHICH THE FISHPONDS 
ARE GIVEN TO ME FOR FISHING, DAILY WILL I SUPPLY FISH FOR 
THY TABLE. AND THEN ENLIL-NADIN-SHUMI HEARD HIM, 
AND HE GAVE HIM FISHPONDS FOR A YEARLY TRIBUTE OF HALF 
A TALENT OF SILVER. 
‘‘SIGNED IN THE PRESENCE OF TWO JUDGES, BEFORE SIX 
WITNESSES, AND A SCRIBE.” 
The Tablet is impressed with five seals.? 
The next recorded fishing contract deals with netting in 
Babylonian waters. It is dated the 25th day of Elul in the 
fifth year of Darius II., or 419 B.c. B. Meissner’s translation 
of the document may be rendered as follows 3 :— 
1 A. Ungnad, Hundert Ausgewdhite Rechtsurkunden, No. 56. 
2 Two contracts (in 5th year of Darius II.) contain provisions that in 
case ‘‘ of any fish being lifted,” i.e. stolen, the keeper has to pay a fine of 
1o shekels, and in second case to compensate owner. Revue d’Assyriologie, 
vol. IV., pp. 182~183, by V. Scheil. 
3 Orientalistiche Liteyvaturzeitung (Berlin, 1914), p. 482. This was published 
by Clay in Publications of the Babylonian Section of the University of Pennsylvania, 
vol. II., Part I., No. 208. We find a receipt in the XXth century B.c, 
360 
