mer explains Sigrist 3, where a widow forfeits her husband’s estate
(“house”) to her son upon her remarriage to a “stranger” (kúr), mean-
ing someone outside the husband’s extended family.^100 Similar penal-
ties are imposed on a widow in later periods.^101 The latter is the
most likely explanation of NATN 302, where a widow sues her
brother-in-law for her late husband’s share of his inheritance, notwith-
standing Owen’s claim that the widow had automatic inheritance
rights but the son did not.^1026.2.5.3 Devolution
The evidence is insufficient for us to distinguish between the different
types of marital property. It is most likely that automatic devolution
was upon the woman’s sons, like the paternal estate (NG 7, 199:III
3'–15'). If she predeceased her husband, her sons would have to wait
until after their father’s death to inherit (NG 83). The mother, how-
ever, had a wide discretion to bequeath, for example, a dowry-slave
to a daughter (NG 195:24'–32'), a house received as a marital gift
to a female, most probably her daughter (NG 10—tablet broken), or
to her daughter-in-law, in return for support in her old age (NG 103).
In NG 171:2–9, a slave bequeathed to a guda priest, whose relation
to the testatrix is unknown, is unsuccessfully claimed by her sons.- C
A salient feature of the contracts of this period is the profligate use
of the promissory oath. The standard form is in the name of the
king (mu lugal); sometimes it is in the name of a king and a god,
and sometimes by the life of the king (zi lugal), following Akkadian
practice. The oath is used not only for obligations ancillary to stan-
dard contracts, as in other periods, but also at times—apparently
superfluously—to secure the main object of standard real contracts
such as loan and lease. It is also used independently (see 7.7 below).(^100) Following the interpretation of Wilcke, “Care of the Elderly.. .,” 48. (Same
text edited by Sollberger in AOAT 25, 440–41.)
(^101) E.g., at Emar a penalty clause in the husband’s will dispossessed his widow
if she went after a “stranger” (sararu).
(^102) “Widow’s Rights...”
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