For DAY 13 of the nuntarriyašḫa- festival, the outline tablets state “On the next day, the king goes to Zippalanda. Its (i.e. the city’s) festival.” Such a terse statement naturally hampers attempts to identify corresponding day-tablets for these celebrations. However, at least one fragment, KBo 58.119, can be securely attributed to this day, since its colophon explicitly names the nuntarriyašḫa- festival. In the present edition, additional tablets are proposed as belonging to the same composition.

In connection with the autumn celebrations in Zippalanda, one should also consider the “Spring and Autumn Festival in Zippalanda” (CTH 592), a single composition prescribing two otherwise identical rituals performed once in spring and once in autumn. As already noted by Nakamura M. 2002a: 106 (differently Popko M. 2004d: 260), this composition shows significant correspondence with the outline tablets of both the AN.DAḪ.ŠUM and the nuntarriyašḫa- festivals. Most notably, at the end of the festival the king departs from Zippalanda for different destinations depending on the season: to Ankuwa in spring and to Katapa in autumn. This sequence corresponds precisely to: AN.DAḪ.ŠUM’s 36th and 37th days, and nuntarriyašḫa-’s DAYS 13 and 14, respectively. It is therefore reasonable to assume that CTH 592 was at some point incorporated into both major festivals, or at least its textual tradition influenced the design of the Zippalanda sub-festival within them.

While acknowledging the significance of CTH 592 for understanding the nuntarriyašḫa- festival, the present edition treats the texts of DAY 13 of the nuntarriyašḫa- festival independently from the “Spring and Autumn Festival in Zippalanda” (CTH 592).

The day-tablets for DAY 13 are organized here into two versions. Version 1 (CTH 626-DAY13.1) describes the main part of the celebrations, while Version 2 (CTH 626-DAY13.2) seems to document the king's final activities before leaving Zippalanda on the following day and thus technically anticipates DAY 14.

Nakamura M. 2002a: 104–107 proposed two day-tablets for DAY 13: 678/z (subsequently published as KBo 58.119) mentioning the nuntarriyašḫa- festival in the colophon, and 473/u (subsequently published as KBo 51.132), mentioning “the beginning of the second day in Zippalanda during autumn.” He also emphasized the correspondence between CTH 592 and the outline tablets of both the nuntarriyašḫa- and the AN.DAḪ.ŠUM festivals, stating that it would be “wenig wahrscheinlich, daß ein solches Fest in Zippalanda außerhalb des Rahmens des nuntarriyašḫa-Festes gefeiert wird.” (Nakamura M. 2002a: 106; see already Nakamura M. 2001a: 444).

A radically different interpretation was proposed by Popko M. 2004d: 260f., who accepted only KBo 58.119 and rejected any identification of DAY 13 with CTH 592, insisting that the latter must be treated independently (“sicherlich vom nuntarrijašḫa-Fest zu trennen ist,” repeating his opinion in Popko M. 1994a: 160). Instead, Popko suggested KUB 11.30+ as an alternative candidate.

This edition follows Nakamura’s approach, but includes KUB 11.30+, as argued by Popko, together with several duplicate fragments of that text.

The events currently reconstructed for DAY 13 are as follows. At some point during the day in Zippalanda, within the temple of the local Storm-god, the functionary known as ‘the man of the Storm-god’ “releases the message (to the Storm-god of Zippalanda)” (ḫalukan tarnai) invoking the deity. Subsequently, various local priests enter the temple together with the chief of the royal bodyguards and the chief of the palace attendants. The deity is then lifted and ceremonially displayed within the temple.

Only after this does the king depart from the local ḫalentu- complex, presumably to encounter the deity – although a break in the text renders the details unclear. When the narrative resumes, the Sun-goddess of the Earth is honored by a lord from the (local?) palace, who supplies animals for sacrifice. Thereafter, either at a temple gate or a city gate, the king makes offerings to the Storm-god of Zippalanda, Mt. Daḫa and Ḫašammili (under the name Ḫašmayu). Following another lacuna, the celebrations continue at Mt. Daḫa, where the king performs additional offerings while the Storm-god is installed in a tent.

Further rites conducted by the king take place at a ḫuwaši- stele, at a hearth, and at a pond. These are followed by a series of offerings that include sweet bread made from barley porridge, honey presented in a jar, and wine poured from a long-necked jug. This specific combination of offerings also appears on DAY 5 in Arinna and seems characteristic of ritual practice during the reign of Tudḫaliya IV.