Foundation for Finnish Assyriological ResearchState Archives of Assyria Literary Texts (SAALT) contains critical editions of literary texts based on texts from Assurbanipal’s library that fall outside the State Archives of Assyria proper and are not part of the CNA database. The discovery of this library by Hormuzd Rassam in the middle of the nineteenth century was the first great milepost of the infant discipline of Assyriology. Even now, a century and a half later, it remains the single most important group of texts discovered in Mesopotamia. Documents from the library concern almost every aspect of ancient Mesopotamian history and culture. Most of these texts, as distinct from the State Archives of Assyria, are written in Babylonian and include the gems of Mesopotamian literature and science. In selecting texts for the SAALT series, the term “literary” is taken in its widest interpretation.
The production of SAALT volumes is not based on the CNA database. Editors of texts are free to use their own transliteration system and format. However, since the transliterations are not based on the CNA database format, detailed glossaries and indices cannot be prepared. With this limitation, the volumes of the SAALT series are meant to be similar in nature to the SAA volumes, providing transliterations, translations, and critical commentary.