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Tablets from the vicinity of Emar and elsewhere

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  07 August 2014

Stephanie Dalley  and
Beatrice Teissier
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Extract

The cuneiform Akkadian tablets published here belong to a private collector in England. They were bought from a dealer in 1981. Most of them are closely associated by prosopography, seal impressions and types of text with those excavated at Meskene, ancient Emar on the Euphrates, and published comprehensively by D. Arnaud, in: Recherches au Pays d'Aštata, Emar VI. 1–4 (Paris 1985–7), as well as a few now in private hands and published in various journals.

Owing to many problems in fixing the chronology of the Late Bronze Age, exact dates cannot yet be given to these texts, although useful synchronisms have emerged from published Emar material. No. 26 in the main corpus mentions the Kassite king Melisihu, dated c. 1186–1172 B.C. or 1181–1167 B.C. No. 201 in the main corpus mentions Ini-Tešup king of Carchemish son of Šahurunuwas and grandson of Šarri-kušuh (a.k.a. Piyassilis). The latter had been installed in Carchemish by his father Suppiluliumas I and confirmed by his brother the Hittite king Arnuwandas, prior to the time of Emar archives, when the Nuzi records may already have come to an end and Assyria under Assur-uballiṭ I (1365–1330) had begun to assert its power.

Type
Research Article
Information
IRAQ , Volume 54 , 1992 , pp. 83 - 111
Copyright
Copyright © The British Institute for the Study of Iraq 1992 

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References

1 The authors would like to thank warmly the owner of the tablets for giving them the opportunity to study this material, and to acknowledge most gratefully the help of Dr. D. Beyer for giving them a copy of his doctoral thesis in microfiche as well as a xerox of his plates, enabling them to make a much fuller and more rewarding study. They are also grateful to J. D. Hawkins for reading the Hittite hieroglyphs on the seal impressions. Dr. Teissier's part of the paper consists of all the descriptions and discussion of the Late Bronze Age sealings, but not those on the Ur III tablets.

2 Numbers preceded by “Arnaud” hereafter refer to edition numbers of texts in those volumes. For a new group of similar tablets from the Middle Euphrates, see now Arnaud, D., Textes syriens de l'âge du Bronze Récent, avec une contribution d'Hatice Gonnet, Sceaux hiéroglyphiques anatoliens de Syrie (Aula Orientalis Supplementa 1; Barcelona, 1991 Google Scholar).

3 See Beckman, G., “Three tablets from the vicinity of Emar”, JCS 40 (1988), 61 n. 1Google Scholar. Not only Meskene but also the adjacent Tell Fagouz and Tell Hadidi have yielded tablets; and Arnaud, D., Recherches d'Aštata VI/3 Google Scholar includes texts not found during excavations.

4 Brinkman, J.. apud Oppenheim, A. L., Ancient Mesopotamia, 2nd ed. (1975), 338 Google Scholar.

5 Boese, J., UF 14 (1982), 23 Google Scholar.

6 Tili-šarruma, “son of the king” of Carchemish, is found both in an Emar text and at Ugarit; see Tsukimoto, A., “Eine neue Urkunde des Tili-Šarruma Sohn des Königs von Karkamiš”, Acta Sumerologica 6 (1984)Google Scholar. The misleading title “son of the king” is analysed by Imparati, F., “La politique extérieure des Hittites”, Hethitica VIII (1987), 191–5Google Scholar.

7 Stein, D. suggested lowering the date for the end of the Nuzi archives to c. 1330 in ZA 79 (1989), 36–60 CrossRefGoogle Scholar. Different conclusions are reached by Freu, J., “Problèmes de chronologie et de géographie hittites”, Hethitica VIII (1987), 123–75Google Scholar.

8 See Hawkins, J. D., Karkamiš, s.v. in: Ebeling, E. and Meissner, B., Reallexikon der Assyriologie, 5. Band (Berlin 1976–1980)Google Scholar.

9 A variant form of the name, Pí-su-dKUR, is almost certainly attested in Arnaud no. 42. Cf. NAss. Bēlšunu becomes Bessun(u).

10 Hawkins, J. D., “Kuzi-Tešub and the ‘Great Kings’ of Karkamiš”, Anatolian Studies 38 (1988), 99–108 CrossRefGoogle Scholar.

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12 Arnaud, D., “Catalogue des textes cunéiformes trouvés au cours des trois premières campagnes à Meskéné qadimé ouest”, Annales archéologiques arabes syriennes XXV (1975), 87–93 Google Scholar; Beyer, D., “Les empreintes de sceaux”, in: Meskéné-Emar, Dix ans de travaux 1972–1982, Editions Recherche sur les Civilisations (Paris, 1982), 61–8Google Scholar; Recherches sur les Empreintes de Sceaux d'Emar (Fouilles de Meskéné et de Tell Faq'qus), (microfiche of Doctoral Thesis, Lille-Theses, 1989)Google Scholar.

13 Beyer, op. cit., 1982, pp. 61–2; 1989, pp. 49–51.

14 Beyer, ibid.

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16 Beyer, , “Quelques observations sur les sceaux-cylindres hittites et syro-hittites d'Emar”, Hethitica VIII (1987), 36 Google Scholar.

17 Beyer, D., “Du moyen Euphrate au Luristan: bagues-cachets de la fin du deuxième millénaire”, in: Mari Annales de Recherches Interdisciplinaires I (1982), 169–89Google Scholar; op. cit., 1989, 270 ff.

18 Porada, E., Seal Impressions from Nuzi (Annual of the American Schools of Oriental Research 24; New Haven, 1947)Google Scholar; Parker, B., “Cylinder Seals from Palestine”, Iraq 11 (1949), 1–43 CrossRefGoogle Scholar; Collon, D., The seal impressions from Tell Atchana/Alalakh (Alter Orient und Altes Testament 27; Neukirchen-Vluyn, 1975)Google Scholar; ead., The Alalakh Cylinder Seals—A Mew Catalogue of the actual seals excavated by Sir Leonard Woolley at Tell Atchana, and from neighbouring sites on the Syrian—Turkish border (British Archaeological Reports, International Series 132; Oxford, 1982)Google Scholar; Schaefler-Forrer, C. F-A., Corpus des Cylindres-Sceaux de Ras-Shamra Ugaril el d'Enkomi-Alasia (Editions Recherche sur les Civilisations; Paris, 1983)Google Scholar.

19 The dynastic cylinder seal used by kings of Amurru, impressed on tablets from Ugarit and used for four generations, was also uninscribed and was carved in the Syro-Mittanian style. It was used concurrently with a stamp seal inscribed with the name of an individual king. See Schaeffer, C., Ugaritica III (Paris, 1956), 33, figs. 44–7Google Scholar.

20 Cf. Porada, op. cit., (1947), e.g. no. 141.

21 Collon, D., First Impressions, Cylinder Seals in the Ancient Near East (British Museum Publications; London 1987), 61–5Google Scholar.

22 Beyer, D., “Notes préliminaires sur les empreintes de sceaux de Meskéné”, Le Moyen Euphrate, zone de contacts et d'échanges (Actes du Colloque de Strasbourg, 10–13 03 1977; Leiden, 1980), 268–9 pl. 1Google Scholar; figs. 2–5. We take the first line as an epithet of the god, not the unrecognized name of a king without a patronym; see notes to no. 5 below.

23 Collon, op. cit., (1987), 45–6; “Išar-Lim”, in: M.A.R.I. 5 (1987), 141–53Google Scholar.

24 Beyer, op. cit., (1989), 405–6.

25 Beyer, op. cit, (1989), 418.

26 Arnaud, op. cit., (1975), 89.

27 Beyer, op. cit., (1989), e2A; ME 21.

28 Petschow, H., Mittelbabylonische Rechts- und Wirtschaftsurkunden der Hilprecht-Sammlmg Jena (Berlin, 1974), passimCrossRefGoogle Scholar.

29 Middle Assyrian sealing practices have been summarized by Matthews, D., “Middle Assyrian Glyptic from Tell Billa”, Iraq 53 (1991), 19–22 CrossRefGoogle Scholar.

30 Kümmel, H. M., ZA 79 (1989), 191–200 Google Scholar.

31 See below for possible readings of d30 here.

32 Beyer, op. cit., (1980) 268–9; op. cit., (1989), 488. Arnaud, No. 202 says explicitly that the seal of Ninurta was used together with a royal seal.

33 Beyer, op. cit., (1989), group E, e.g. 3–6.

34 Beyer, op. cit., (1989), 59.

35 Arnaud, D., “La Syrie du moyen-Euphrate sous le protectorat hittite: contrats de droit privé”, Aula Orientalis V (1987), 233 Google Scholar, henceforth referred to as Aula V.

36 See e.g. Kwasman, T., Neo-Assyrian Legal Documents in the K. Collection of the British Museum (Rome, 1988), 496 Google Scholar.

37 See e.g. Arnaud No. 12:25' with 27'. The transliterations there largely ignore the distinction.

38 See e.g. Arnaud No. 16:37 with 38.

39 Huehnergard, J., “Five tablets from the vicinity of Emar”, RA 77 (1983), 43 Google Scholar, has noted other characteristics that distinguish Syrian from Syro-Hittite texts.

40 “Les hittites sur le Moyen-Euphrate: protecteurs et indigènes”, Hethitica VIII (1987) n. 29Google Scholar; see also Arnaud, , “La Syrie du moyen-Euphrate sous le protectorat hittite: l'administration d'après trois lettres inédites”, Aula Orientalis II (1984), 183 n. 12Google Scholar, and the letter no. 1 of d30-abu.

41 Imparati, F., Hethitica VIII (1987), 192–3Google Scholar, has suggested that Uppa at Emar is the same man as Upparmuwa at Ugarit, perhaps a comparable abbreviation.

42 Akkadica 22 (1981), 11 Google Scholar.

43 Stol, M., On Mountains, Millstones and Trees (Leiden, 1979), 75–82 Google Scholar.

44 In recent publications of Mari texts.

45 In addition to references given by Birot, M., Kupper, J. R. and Rouault, O., in Repertoire analytique (ARM XVI/1)Google Scholar, see now especially Durand, J.-M., Archives épistolaires, ARM XXVI/1, 180:11, 13, 32, and XXVI/2, 404:6, 410:8' 433:33Google Scholar (where the god-name is omitted from the index list of divinities).

46 del Monte, G., and Tischler, J., Die Orts- und Gewässernamen der hethitischen Texte (RGTC 6; Wiesbaden, 1978), 358 Google Scholar.

47 Dussaud, R., Topographic historique de la Syrie antique et médiévale (Paris, 1927), 202 CrossRefGoogle Scholar.

48 See Soubeyran, D., MARI 3 (1984), 276 Google Scholar.

49 Birot, M., ARM XIV, 110:7; XXVI/2, 405:6, 24Google Scholar.

50 Arnaud, nos. 373:42, 176', 192'; 375:4', and 446:45'.

51 Arnaud, no. 373:115', 182'–3'.

52 Ugaritica V, p. 584 Google Scholar; Gibson, J. C. L., Canaanite Myths and Legends (Edinburgh 1977), 70 Google Scholar; Weinfeld, M., Deuteronomy 1–11 Google Scholar, a new translation with introduction and commentary ( Anchor Bible; Doubleday, 1991), p. 373 Google Scholar.

53 See W. von Soden, AHw s.v. būru.

53a Weinfeld, loc. cit., n. 52.

54 See e.g. Hoftijzer, J., “What did the gods say?” in: The Balaam text from Deir ‘Alla re-evaluated (Leiden, 1991), ed. Hoftijzer, J. and van der Kooij, G. Google Scholar.

55 Laroche, E., Les Noms des Hittites (Paris, 1966), 155 Google Scholar, with correction given by J. D. Hawkins.

55a Edzard, D. O., Hymnen, Beschwörungen und Verwandtes (ARET V; Rome 1984), no. 4.iii.6, with no. 1.iii.12Google Scholar.

56 Recent work for Nuzi adoption contracts is surveyed and summarized by Eichler, B. L., “Nuzi and the Bible: a retrospective”, in: Behrens, H., Loding, D. and Roth, M., Studies in Honor of A. W. Sjöberg, (Philadelphia, 1989)Google Scholar.

57 “On some Aspects of the Adoption of Women at Nuzi”, in: Studies on the civilization and culture of Nuzi and the Hurrians, vol. 2, ed. Owen, D. I. and Morrison, M. A. (Eisenbrauns, 1987), 131, 152 Google Scholar.

58 Beyer, op. cit., (1989), p. 81.