The pegs were placed at the foundation of the temple of Nergal in the city of Urkesh as mentioned in the cuneiform inscriptions on them.

The pegs were deposited to protect and preserve the temple and the Hurrian prince of Urkesh, Tish-atal, who dedicated it.

[1] The white limestone tablet, which fits under the copper plate and measures 10 by 9 centimetres (3.9 by 3.5 in),[1][2] bears the following inscription: "Tishatal, [Endan] king of Urkesh, has built a temple for the god Nergal.

[4] The Met lion measures 11.7 by 7.9 centimetres (4.6 by 3.1 in)[5][2] and while it was made from a different mold to that of the Louvre, it is considered stylistically the same.

The legible traces seem to confirm that the inscribed text is also a copy of the full inscription found on the Louvre stone tablet.

The Met lion was also purchased in 1948 from a New York antiquities dealer with funds from the Joseph Pulitzer bequest.