DUR
markasu

Akkadian noun

Last edited: 2024-12-11
Primary meaning band
Literal translation band
Variants
DUR markasu
Edited by
band spatial concept

This is the conventional translation but perhaps "course" is more appropriate (maprasu form of rakasu)

(1) [NIM u SIG ša₂] ⸢MUL₂.BABBAR⸣ 2/3 KUŠ₃ e DUR MURUB₄ NIM (2) [2/3 KUŠ₃] SIG DUR MURUB₄ SIG (3) ki-i ina mul₂.GIR₂.TAB NIM ina zib.ME BUR₃ (4) a-na 1 DANNA 8 u NIM u SIG

‘(1) [Height and depth of] Jupiter: 2/3 cubit above the middle band it is ‘high’, (2) [2/3 cubit] below the middle band it is ‘low’. (3) If it is ‘high’ in Scorpio it is ‘low’ in Pisces. (4) For 1 bēru it ascends and descends 8 fingers.’

— BM 37266 (BMAPT No. 47) obv. 1-4

Genre: mathematical astronomy: procedure text
Provenance: Babylon
Date: ca. 350-250 BCE

Ossendrijver, M. 2012. Babylonian Mathematical Astronomy: Procedure Texts. New York: Springer. 334

Cite this entry
APA (7th)
Ossendrijver, M. (2024). DUR (Lemma #589). The ZODIAC Glossary: A Cross-Cultural Glossary of Ancient Astral Science. https://zodiacglossary.github.io/lemma/589/
Chicago (Author-Date)
Ossendrijver, M. (2024). DUR (Lemma #589). The ZODIAC Glossary: A Cross-Cultural Glossary of Ancient Astral Science. https://zodiacglossary.github.io/lemma/589/
MLA (9th)
Ossendrijver, M. (2024). DUR (Lemma #589). The ZODIAC Glossary: A Cross-Cultural Glossary of Ancient Astral Science. https://zodiacglossary.github.io/lemma/589/
Harvard
Ossendrijver, M. (2024) DUR (Lemma #589), The ZODIAC Glossary: A Cross-Cultural Glossary of Ancient Astral Science. Available at: https://zodiacglossary.github.io/lemma/589/ (Accessed: February 2, 2026).
BibTeX 
@misc{zodiac589,
	note = {[Online; accessed 2026-02-02]},
	author = {Ossendrijver, Mathieu},
	year = {2024},
	title = {DUR ({Lemma} #589)},
	url = {https://zodiacglossary.github.io/lemma/589/},
	howpublished = {https://zodiacglossary.github.io/lemma/589/},
}