A History of Ancient Near Eastern Law

Diyala region differentiate between loans that bear interest (¢ubullum)

and those that do not (¢ubuttatum).^196

7.3.2 Where the price was credited to a purchaser over seven years,

but the contract of sale was rescinded for non-payment, interest was

added to the price still payable by the defaulting purchaser.^197 Interest

was also payable on the price received by a seller should he not

provide the field paid for.^198 The term ku 5 - §rá ús used for interest

added is the same as that for the rent due on leased fields.^199 At the

same time, ur 5 is also used in the context of a field rental.^200

7.3.3 The interest due is once declared as “half ”^201 and once so

calculated^202 and expressly written into the document. In both cases,

the currency credited is silver, for which normally (in later times) 20

percent is charged. In the case of the field bought but not paid for,^203

the amounts stated equal 33 percent, the traditional interest rate for

barley.^204 Explicitly mentioned rates are therefore exceptional and

account for the loan being written down.

7.3.4 Nothing is said about penalties for default, but it may be

inferred from the penalty clauses in purchase contracts (see 7.1.5.2.2

above) that the double penalty also applied to loans. It is not clear

whether the ..(a-ru-ba?) payment in MVN 3 105:2–3 was a

penalty.^205

(^196) MAD 1 17, 105, 110, 291, 321: ¢ubullum; Gelb, Old Akkadian.. ., no. 32: ¢ubut-
tatum.
(^197) Grand document juridique, K (Wilcke, “Neue Rechtsurkunden.. .,” 56–58).
Note that there is no separate loan contract.
(^198) MVN 3 81: payment had apparently been made over 9 years.
(^199) See Krecher, “Neue sumerische.. .,” commentary on no. 24; Steinkeller, “The
Renting.. .,” 143–145.
(^200) FAOS 5/1 Ean. 1 xii 12; xvi 23–24; Ent. 28 ii 22–24 || 29 iii 6–8; see also
Grand document juridique, G vii 9–11: ur 5 kú-a-ne-ne ì-su-su “he will repay their
interest-bearing loan,” which could also mean “he will pay their rental payments”
(due on the field in question).
(^201) SRU 74, with commentary (see also Yang, Sargonic Inscriptions.. ., 119–120).
(^202) Krecher, “Neue sumerische.. .,” no. 24:1–3.
(^203) Grand document juridique, K; see above.
(^204) MVN 3 105; see Wilcke, “Neue Rechtsurkunden.. .,” 56–58.
(^205) Wilcke, “Neue Rechtsurkunden.. .,” 57.
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