His name was uncommon. Another Rabâ-ša-Marduk was governor of Isin but this was not until the reign of Nabu-apla-iddina, around four hundred years later. Rabâ-ša-Marduk received twelve sūtu, where a sūtu is ca. 0.27 hectares, of high quality dates for his sacrifice, in the 11th year of Nazi-Maruttaš on the 19th day of the month of ulūlu. Four years later, he again received a crop of dates for sacrificial services rendered. Then, in 1290 BC, he was supplied a mina of tallow for a journey to Babylon. There are a series of tablets recording rations for Rabâ-ša-Marduk excavated at Nippur of uncertain date but possibly up to Nazi-Maruttaš’ 21st year, including one provisioning another journey to Babylon. A medical tablet originally from Babylon was found in excavations at Assur. It was probably one of the scientific and literary works looted by Tukulti-Ninurta I during his conquest of the city. It is accompanied by a colophon on lines36 to 38, “Eighteen prescriptions for headache, first tablet, from the hand of Rabiā-ša-Marduk.” Amongst the remedies it includes: A later work, šumma amēlu muḫḫašu umma ukāl, a therapeutic exorcist work known primarily from the library of Ashurbanipal shares much of the content and may have borrowed from it. His mission to the Hittite court must have taken place during the first half of Kadašman-Turgu’s reign as this was when there was an overlap with that of Muwatalli’s rule. He was accompanied by an incantation priest. His host, Muwatalli, was the only Hittite king known to have not fathered a son of the first rank and this may have been the reason behind the importation of foreign experts. If so, the effort was in vain as Muwatalli would be succeeded by Urḫi-Teššup, the son of a concubine, who reigned briefly under the name of Mursili III before his overthrow. Nevertheless, Rabâ-ša-Marduk was enticed to stay with the provision of a fine house and a marriage to a member of the king’s family. The Kassite king Kadašman-Enlil II would complain bitterly to Ḫattušili III about the failure to return loaned artisans, but Ḫattušili countered that the, now probably elderly, physician was free to go as he pleased.
