According to the Assyrian King List [http://oracc.museum.upenn.edu/riao/kinglists/assyriankinglist/index.html] (AKL), Arik-dīn-ili was the seventy-fifth king of Assyria and ruled for twelve years. He succeeded his father, Enlil-nārārī [http://oracc.museum.upenn.edu/riao/thekingdomofassyria13631115bc/enlilnarari/index.html], to the throne. In turn, he was succeeded by Adad-nārārī I [http://oracc.museum.upenn.edu/riao/thekingdomofassyria13631115bc/adadnararii/index.html]. The AKL [http://oracc.museum.upenn.edu/riao/kinglists/assyriankinglist/index.html] states that Adad-nārārī [http://oracc.museum.upenn.edu/riao/thekingdomofassyria13631115bc/adadnararii/index.html] was the brother of Arik-dīn-ili. However, another version of the King List, the Nassouhi [http://oracc.museum.upenn.edu/riao/kinglists/assyriankinglist/nassouhilist/index.html#column3] manuscript, states that Adad-nārārī [http://oracc.museum.upenn.edu/riao/thekingdomofassyria13631115bc/adadnararii/index.html] was Arik-dīn-ili's son. The latter genealogy is supported by Adad-nārārī [http://oracc.museum.upenn.edu/riao/thekingdomofassyria13631115bc/adadnararii/index.html]'s own inscriptions, in which he refers to himself as son of Arik-dīn-ili and the grandson of Enlil-nārārī [http://oracc.museum.upenn.edu/riao/thekingdomofassyria13631115bc/enlilnarari/index.html] (text no. 1 [http://oracc.museum.upenn.edu/riao/Q005738/] i 18 and 25).
Eight inscriptions of this ruler are preserved. Two inscriptions commemorate the monarch's renovation of the Šamaš temple in Aššur (text nos. 1 and 2), while three more commemorate building works on structures whose names are not preserved (text nos. 3-5). Text no. 8 is a poorly preserved narration of Arik-dīn-ili's military expeditions, which he carried out to the east, north and west of Aššur. The fragmentary nature of the text makes it difficult to categorise it with certainty. However, it has been argued that this inscription constitutes the first example of Assyrian royal annals (Weidner 1932, 148). Also Adad-nārārī [http://oracc.museum.upenn.edu/riao/thekingdomofassyria13631115bc/adadnararii/index.html] provides a summary of his father's (or brother's) activities and describes him as "extender of borders and boundaries" (text no. 1 [http://oracc.museum.upenn.edu/riao/Q005738/], i 18-24).
A stone tablet found in the Šamaš temple at Aššur is inscribed with a text of Arik-dīn-ili recording his renovation of that holy structure. Because the inscription was not completed, as clearly indicated by the fact that there are six blank lines in the middle of the building account, it has been suggested that the inscription was written near the end of Arik-dīn-ili's reign and that his renovation of Šamaš's temple remained unfished at the time of his death. The king mentions that the foundations were laid in the eponymy of Berūtu. The tablet is in the collection of the Vorderasiatisches Museum (Berlin).
Access the composite text [http://oracc.museum.upenn.edu/riao/Q005730/] of Arik-dīn-ili 1.
A stone cylinder from Aššur bears a text stating that Arik-dīn-ili rebuilt the Šamaš temple. The object is in London (British Museum).
Access the composite text [http://oracc.museum.upenn.edu/riao/Q005731/] of Arik-dīn-ili 2.
A fragment of a clay cone preserves part of an inscription of Arik-dīn-ili from Aššur. It is not sufficiently preserved to be able to determine which structure its building report commemorated. The piece is in the Eski Șark Eserleri Müzesi of the Arkeoloji Müzeleri (Istanbul).
Access the composite text [http://oracc.museum.upenn.edu/riao/Q005732/] of Arik-dīn-ili 3.
A badly damaged inscription of Arik-dīn-ili is partially preserved on a clay cone from Aššur; the piece is now in Istanbul. Because little of the building report is extant, it is not certain which accomplishment of the king this text records.
Access the composite text [http://oracc.museum.upenn.edu/riao/Q005733/] of Arik-dīn-ili 4.
Parts of the first four lines of an inscription of Arik-dīn-ili from Aššur are preserved on a clay cone fragment now housed in the Eski Șark Eserleri Müzesi of the Arkeoloji Müzeleri (Istanbul). The name of the structure being renovated is missing.
Access the composite text [http://oracc.museum.upenn.edu/riao/Q005734/] of Arik-dīn-ili 5.
A piece of a clay cone discovered at Aššur has inscription of Arik-dīn-ili written on it. Only the ruler's name and genealogy are preserved. The object is now in Istanbul (Eski Șark Eserleri Müzesi of the Arkeoloji Müzeleri).
Access the composite text [http://oracc.museum.upenn.edu/riao/Q005735/] of Arik-dīn-ili 6.
A proprietary label of Arik-dīn-ili is inscribed on a brick found at Aššur. The present whereabouts of the object are not known.
Access the composite text [http://oracc.museum.upenn.edu/riao/Q005736/] of Arik-dīn-ili 7.
A fragmentary clay tablet originating from Aššur preserves a text that records Arik-dīn-ili's military expeditions. Due to the object's poor state of preservation, it is uncertain if the text is a chronicle or a royal inscription with 'chronicle-like' narration. The tablet is in the J. Pierpont Morgan Library Collection of Yale Babylonian Collection (New Haven).
Access the composite text [http://oracc.museum.upenn.edu/riao/Q005737/] of Arik-dīn-ili 8.
Jamie Novotny & Poppy Tushingham
Jamie Novotny & Poppy Tushingham, 'Arik-dīn-ili', The Royal Inscriptions of Assyria online (RIAo) Project, The RIAo Project, a sub-project of MOCCI, 2021 [http://oracc.museum.upenn.edu/riao/thekingdomofassyria13631115bc/arikdinili/]