A Mesopotamian cuneiform clay foundation brick inscribed for Nebuchadnezzar II
Neo Babylonian, circa 604-562 B.C.
The brick impressed with six complete and one partial line of cuneiform with the standard text: 'Nebuchadnezzar, King of Babylon, who provides for Esagila and Ezida, the eldest son of Nabopolassar, king of Babylon, am I', 21.5cm x 16cm
Footnotes:
Provenance:
Prince Homayoun Mirza Massoud Collection, acquired in Baghdad, circa 1940s, and brought to the UK in 1979.
Thence by descent.

Prince Homayoun Mirza Massoud was born in 1886 and his grandfather, Naser Al Din Shah Qajar, ruled Iran from 1849 to 1896. The prince lived in Isfahan with his father, Prince Massoud Mirza Zell-Al Soltan, governor of the city and one of the most powerful and influential statesmen of the Qajar period. Homayoun Mirza was a renowned hunter and this was an endeavour to which he dedicated a large part of his life. He had seven daughters, whom visiting British diplomats referred to as 'The Seven Deadly Sins' because of their rather colourful social lives.

The text is well preserved with the lowest band of cuneiform interrupted along the edge. There is a hairline crack visible on the side of one of the top edge corners, it extends to the back but does not appear to go all the way round as a repair. There is some black material on the back of the brick. There is overall surface wear including scratching and encrustation.
The base has been drilled in two places for its mount.