The Ahlamu ; or Aḫlamū , were a group or designation of Semitic semi-nomads. Their habitat was west of the Euphrates between the mouth of the Khabur and Palmyra .
153-616: They were first mentioned in sources of Rîm-Anum , a king of Uruk , ca. 1800 BC and then in texts from Mari and finally in the 14th century BC in Egyptian sources in one of the Amarna letters in the days of Akhenaten in which it is affirmed that the Ahlamu had advanced to the Euphrates. Although the etymology and the meaning is ultimately uncertain, it can safely be said to derive from
306-508: A Chaldean warlord of the Bit-Yakin tribe, captured Babylon , restored Babylonian independence after eight years of Assyrian rule and allied with the eastern realm of Elam . Though Sargon considered Marduk-apla-iddina's seizure of Babylonia to be unacceptable, an attempt to defeat him in battle near Der in 720 was unsuccessful. At the same time, Yahu-Bihdi of Hama in Syria assembled
459-548: A Semitic language . It was once proposed as " companion or confederate " by an error of the scholar Wayne T. Pitard comparing it to an unrelated Arabic root, presumably ح ل ف ( ḥ-l-f ), which indeed means such. The more recent proposal by Edward Lipiński , connects it instead to غ ل م ( ḡ-l-m ) denoting a boy, lad, post-pubescent youth, a young man, a man full of virility or prowess, the prime of his life, full of testosterone, wild or lusty. The sense of puberty and hitting sexual, as well physical maturity, can be found as well in
612-524: A 19th-century BC ruler of Uruk named Naram-sin. Uruk continued as principality of Ur, Babylon, and later Achaemenid, Seleucid, and Parthian Empires. It enjoyed brief periods of independence during the Isin-Larsa period , under kings such as (possibly Ikūn-pî-Ištar , Sumu-binasa, Alila-hadum, and Naram-Sin), Sîn-kāšid , his son Sîn-irībam, his son Sîn-gāmil, Ilum-gāmil, brother of Sîn-gāmil , Etēia, AN-am 3 (Dingiram), ÌR 3 -ne-ne ( Irdanene ), who
765-614: A canal to drown Marduk-apla-iddina's vanguard and "the Aḫlamu, people of the steppe who go at his side", and then spread them out to dry them and filled with them the sorroundings of his city. Sennacherib wrote he uprooted all of the Aḫlamu and the Suteans . The Ahlamu could fight on their own as they acted as mercenaries with other peoples like the Hittites or the Mitannis . For instance,
918-540: A coalition of minor states in the northern Levant to oppose Assyrian dominion. In addition to these revolts, Sargon may have had to deal with unfinished conflicts from Shalmaneser 's reign. At some point in the 720s, the Assyrians captured Samaria after a siege lasting several years and ended the Kingdom of Israel , with its territory becoming the new Assyrian province of Samerina . Sargon claimed to have conquered
1071-610: A façade treatment was greatly developed as well, perhaps used to greatest effect in the Cone-Mosaic Temple. Composed of three parts: Temple N, the Round Pillar Hall, and the Cone-Mosaic Courtyard, this temple was the most monumental structure of Eanna at the time. They were all ritually destroyed and the entire Eanna district was rebuilt in period IVa at an even grander scale. During Eanna IVa,
1224-404: A hundred letters and other documents describing the work. The chief coordinator was Tab-shar-Ashur , Sargon's chief treasurer, but at least twenty-six governors from across the empire were also associated with the construction; Sargon made the project a collaborative effort by the whole empire. Sargon took an active personal interest in the progress and frequently intervened in nearly all aspects of
1377-567: A junior branch of the royal dynasty established at Hanigalbat centuries earlier. Some Assyriologists, such as John Anthony Brinkman , believe that Sargon did not belong to the direct dynastic lineage. The Babylonian Chronicles report that Shalmaneser died in January 722 and was succeeded in the same month by Sargon, who was between forty and fifty years old. The exact events surrounding his accession are not clear. Some historians such as Josette Elayi believe that Sargon legitimately inherited
1530-535: A minimal cost. Warka was also scouted by archaeologist Walter Andrae in 1902. In 1905 Warka was visited by archaeologist Edgar James Banks . From 1912 to 1913, Julius Jordan and his team from the German Oriental Society discovered the temple of Ishtar , one of four known temples located at the site. The temples at Uruk were quite remarkable as they were constructed with brick and adorned with colorful mosaics . Jordan also discovered part of
1683-488: A minor Assyrian king of the 19th century BC (after whom Sargon II is enumerated by modern historians), and the far more prominent 24th–23rd century BC Sargon of Akkad , conqueror of large parts of Mesopotamia and the founder of the Akkadian Empire . Sargon was probably an assumed regnal name . Royal names in ancient Mesopotamia were deliberate choices, setting the tone for a king's reign. Sargon most likely chose
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#17327649607791836-412: A monumental limestone-paved staircase and a trough running parallel to the staircase was used to drain the ziggurat. The Eanna district is historically significant as both writing and monumental public architecture emerged here during Uruk periods VI–IV. The combination of these two developments places Eanna as arguably the first true city and civilization in human history. Eanna during period IVa contains
1989-410: A mountain fortress, perhaps Hilakku , frightened Midas, who willingly became Sargon's vassal. In 709, Assyria sent an expedition to Cyprus . This was the first time that the Assyrians gained detailed knowledge of the island. Sargon did not personally participate in the campaign and the Assyrians relied on their Levantine vassals for transportation. Because Cyprus was far away, actually controlling
2142-649: A new canal from Borsippa to Babylon and defeating a people called the Hamaranaeans that had been plundering caravans near Sippar . In Sargon's inscriptions from this time, he used some traditionally Babylonian elements in his royal titles and frequently mentioned deities popular in Babylonia rather than those popular in Assyria. Some Assyrians, even members of the royal family, disagreed with Sargon's pro-Babylonian attitude. In Sargon's absence, developments in
2295-610: A new form and under a new name, 'The House of Inanna in Uruk' (Sumerian: e₂-ᵈinanna unuᵏⁱ-ga ). The location of this structure is currently unknown. Although it had been a thriving city in Early Dynastic Sumer, especially Early Dynastic II, Uruk was ultimately annexed by the Akkadian Empire and went into decline. Later, in the Neo-Sumerian period, Uruk enjoyed revival as a major economic and cultural center under
2448-500: A noble named Yamani as king. In 712, Yamani approached Judah and Egypt for an alliance but the Egyptians refused Yamani's offer, maintaining good relations with Sargon. After the Assyrians defeated Yamani in 711 and Ashdod was destroyed, Yamani escaped to Egypt and was extradited to Assyria by Pharaoh Shebitku in 707. In 710, Sargon decided to reconquer Babylonia . To justify the impending expedition, Sargon proclaimed that
2601-455: A prominent position under the Sargonid kings. Sargon's only known reference to Shalmaneser describes Ashur punishing him for his policies: Shalmaneser, who did not fear the king of the world, whose hands have brought sacrilege in this city (Assur), pu[t on...] on his people, [he] impo[sed] the compulsory work and a heavy corvée, paid them like a working class [...]. The Illil of the gods, in
2754-555: A provincial capital. Under the Neo-Assyrians and Neo-Babylonians , Uruk regained much of its former glory. By 250 BC, a new temple complex the 'Head Temple' (Akkadian: Bīt Reš ) was added to northeast of the Uruk period Anu district. The Bīt Reš along with the Esagila was one of the two main centers of Neo-Babylonian astronomy . All of the temples and canals were restored again under Nabopolassar . During this era, Uruk
2907-459: A result, Sennacherib distanced himself from Sargon. Sargon was barely mentioned in later ancient literature and nearly completely forgotten until the ruins of Dur-Sharrukin were discovered in the 19th century. He was not fully accepted in Assyriology as a real king until the 1860s. Due to his conquests and reforms, Sargon is today considered one of the most important Assyrian kings. Nothing
3060-547: A shift in the Euphrates River. By 300 AD, Uruk was mostly abandoned, but a group of Mandaeans settled there, and by c. 700 AD it was completely abandoned. Uruk played a very important part in the political history of Sumer. Starting from the Early Uruk period, the city exercised hegemony over nearby settlements. At this time ( c. 3800 BC), there were two centers of 20 hectares, Uruk in
3213-591: A single chamber cella with a terrazzo floor beneath which bucrania were found. In phase E, corresponding to the Uruk III period (c. 3200–3000 BC), the White Temple was built. The White Temple could be seen from a great distance across the plain of Sumer, as it was elevated 21 m and covered in gypsum plaster which reflected sunlight like a mirror. In addition to this temple the Anu Ziggurat had
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#17327649607793366-526: A younger brother, Sin-ahu-usur ( Sîn-ahu-usur ), who was by 714 the commander of Sargon's royal cavalry guard. After the inauguration of Dur-Sharrukin in 706, he was granted his own residence in the new capital. He appears to have held the influential position of grand vizier . Two wives of Sargon are known: Ra'ima ( Ra'īmâ ) and Atalia ( Ataliā ). Atalia was Sargon's queen ; her tomb was discovered in Nimrud in 1989. The general assumption among researchers
3519-543: Is 3 km (1.9 miles) north/south, and 2.5 km (1.6 miles) east/west. There are three major tells within the site: The Eanna district, Bit Resh (Kullaba), and Irigal. Archaeologically, the site is divided into six parts 1) the É-Anna ziggurat ' Egipar-imin, 2) the É-Anna enclosure (Zingel), 3) the Anu-Antum temple complex, BitRes and Anu-ziggurat, 4) Irigal, the South Building, 5) Parthian structures including
3672-453: Is 30 km (19 mi) east of modern Samawah , Al-Muthannā , Iraq . Uruk is the type site for the Uruk period . Uruk played a leading role in the early urbanization of Sumer in the mid-4th millennium BC. By the final phase of the Uruk period around 3100 BC, the city may have had 40,000 residents, with 80,000–90,000 people living in its environs, making it the largest urban area in
3825-669: Is built on structures from earlier periods dating back to the Ubaid period . According to the SKL , Uruk was founded by the king Enmerkar . Though the king-list mentions a father before him, the epic Enmerkar and the Lord of Aratta relates that Enmerkar constructed the House of Heaven (Sumerian: e₂-anna ; cuneiform: 𒂍𒀭 E₂.AN) for the goddess Inanna in the Eanna District of Uruk. In
3978-416: Is clear Eanna was dedicated to Inanna from the earliest Uruk period throughout the history of the city. The rest of the city was composed of typical courtyard houses, grouped by profession of the occupants, in districts around Eanna and Anu. Uruk was extremely well penetrated by a canal system that has been described as " Venice in the desert". This canal system flowed throughout the city connecting it with
4131-462: Is known of Sargon II's life before he became king. He was probably born c. 770 BC and cannot have been born later than c. 760 BC. His reign was immediately preceded by those of Tiglath-Pileser III ( r. 745–727) and Tiglath-Pileser's son Shalmaneser V ( r. 727–722). Although Sargon is generally regarded as the founder of a new dynastic line, the Sargonid dynasty , he
4284-627: Is not clear why Sargon resolved to lead the expedition against Tabal in person, considering the large number of campaigns led by his officials and generals. Tabal was not a real threat against the Assyrian Empire. Elayi believes that the most likely explanation is that Sargon saw the expedition as an interesting diversion from the quiet court life of Dur-Sharrukin . Sargon's final campaign ended in disaster. Somewhere in Anatolia , Gurdî of Kulumma , an otherwise poorly attested figure, attacked
4437-416: Is that Šarru-kīn is a phonetic reproduction of the contracted pronunciation of Šarru-ukīn to Šarrukīn , which means that it should be interpreted as "the king has obtained/established order", possibly referencing disorder either under his predecessor or caused by Sargon's usurpation. Šarru-kīn can also be interpreted as "the legitimate king" or "the true king" and it could have been chosen because Sargon
4590-460: Is that Assyrian kings could have multiple wives, but only one woman at a time could be recognized as queen. Sennacherib was once believed to have been Atalia's son, but he is now known to have been the son of Ra'ima, since a stele from Assur, translated in 2014, explicitly refers to Ra'ima as his mother. There is no evidence that Ra'ima was ever Sargon's queen. Atalia is believed to have outlived Sargon and her remains found in 1989 indicate that she
4743-611: The Epic of Gilgamesh , Gilgamesh builds the city wall around Uruk and is king of the city. Uruk went through several phases of growth, from the Early Uruk period (4000–3500 BC) to the Late Uruk period (3500–3100 BC). The city was formed when two smaller Ubaid settlements merged. The temple complexes at their cores became the Eanna District and the Anu District dedicated to Inanna and Anu , respectively. The Anu District
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4896-516: The Aramaic Uruk incantation . The last dated cuneiform tablet from Uruk was W22340a, an astronomical almanac, which is dated to 79/80 AD. The oldest known writing to feature a person's name was found in Uruk, in the form of several tablets that mention Kushim , who (assuming they are an individual person) served as an accountant recording transactions made in trading barley – 29,086 measures barley 37 months Kushim . Beveled rim bowls were
5049-467: The Borowski Stele , probably from Hama in Syria, which referenced his "royal fathers". Most historians cautiously accept that Sargon was Tiglath-Pileser's son but not the legitimate heir to the throne as the next-in-line after Shalmaneser. If Sargon was Tiglath-Pileser's son, his mother might have been the queen Iaba . Some Assyriologists, such as Natalie Naomi May, have suggested that Sargon
5202-565: The Orontes . Defeated, Yahu-Bihdi escaped into Qarqar, which Sargon besieged and captured. Sargon's army destroyed Qarqar and devastated the surrounding lands. Yahu-Bihdi was first deported to Assyria together with his family and then flayed alive . Hama and the other insurgent cities were annexed again. At the same time as large numbers of people from Syria were resettled in other parts of the empire, Sargon resettled some people to Syria, including 6,300 "guilty Assyrians", presumably Assyrians from
5355-469: The city wall . It was later discovered that this 40-to-50-foot (12 to 15 m) high brick wall, probably utilized as a defense mechanism, totally encompassed the city at a length of 9 km (5.6 mi). Utilizing sedimentary strata dating techniques, this wall is estimated to have been erected around 3000 BC. Jordan produced a contour map of the entire site. The GOS returned to Uruk in 1928 and excavated until 1939, when World War II intervened. The team
5508-678: The 'Great Sanctuary' (Cuneiform: E₂.IRI₁₂.GAL, Sumerian: eš-gal) of Ishtar was added between the Anu and Eanna districts. The ziggurat of the temple of Anu, which was rebuilt in this period, was the largest ever built in Mesopotamia. When the Seleucids lost Mesopotamia to the Parthians in 141 BC, Uruk continued in use. The decline of Uruk after the Parthians may have been in part caused by
5661-576: The 'Sumerian Mona Lisa ', dating from 3100 BC, is one of the earliest representations of the human face. The carved marble female face is probably a depiction of Inanna. It is approximately 20 cm tall, and may have been incorporated into a larger cult image. The mask was looted from the Iraq Museum during the fall of Baghdad in April 2003. It was recovered in September 2003 and returned to
5814-677: The Ahlamu and Gutians , as did his successor, Tiglath-Pileser I . Assyrian King Arik-den-ili turned westward into the Levant (now Syria and Lebanon ), where he managed to subjugate the Suteans , the Ahlamu and the Yauru , in the region of Katmuḫi, in the middle Euphrates . Tiglath-Pileser III mentioned in his royal inscriptions the Aḫlamu of the land Ulluba, as well as the " LÚ .aḫ-la-am-ak-ka-<di>" (the Aḫlam-Akkadî) . Sargon II wrote that in his war with Marduk-apla-iddina II he built
5967-485: The Arabic name of the present-day country of al-ʿIrāq is often thought to be derived directly from the name Uruk , it is more likely loaned via Middle Persian ( Erāq ) and then Aramaic ’yrg , which nonetheless may still ultimately refer to the Uruk region of southern Mesopotamia. In myth and literature, Uruk was famous as the capital city of Gilgamesh , hero of the Epic of Gilgamesh . Scholars identify Uruk as
6120-487: The Assyrian army left. In 708, Mutallu of Kummuh withheld his tribute to Assyria for unknown reasons and allied with the new Urartian king Argishti II . Sargon sent one of his officers to capture Kummuh. The Assyrians heavily plundered Kummuh and annexed its lands. Mutallu survived, probably escaping to Urartu . May the ruler, its builder, reach and attain the old age, and (abundant) posterity, may its founder live into
6273-581: The Assyrian army refused to fight. Sargon assembled his bodyguards and led them in a near-suicidal charge against the nearest wing of the Urartian forces. Sargon's army followed him, defeated the Urartians, and chased them west, far past Lake Urmia. Rusa abandoned his forces and fled into the mountains. On their way home, the Assyrians destroyed the Gerdesorah and captured and plundered Musasir after
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6426-623: The Assyrian camp. Gurdî has variously been assumed to have been a local ruler in Anatolia or a tribal leader of the Cimmerians , during this time allied with the rebels in Tabal. In the ensuing battle, Sargon was killed. The Assyrian soldiers fleeing from the attack were unable to recover the king's body. Sargon died just over a year after the inauguration of Dur-Sharrukin. In addition to Shalmaneser V probably being Sargon's brother, Sargon had
6579-408: The Assyrians defeated Hanunu, whose army had been bolstered by allies from Egypt , at Rafah . Despite the transgression, Gaza was kept as a semi-autonomous vassal state and not outright annexed, perhaps because the location, on the border of Egypt, was of high strategic importance. A pressing concern for Sargon was the kingdom of Urartu in the north. Though no longer as powerful as it had been in
6732-484: The Assyrians' "known world". Since it had the king's image and words on it, it served as a representation of Sargon and a substitute for his presence. In 709, one of Sargon's officers besieged the Phoenician city of Tyre after its leader refused to ally with Assyria. It proved to be one of the few military blunders of Sargon's time; the city resisted the Assyrians for several years until Sargon's death, after which
6885-494: The Babylonian national deity Marduk had commanded him to liberate the south from the evil Marduk-apla-iddina . Though Babylonia and Elam still maintained good relations, the military alliance between the two had disintegrated. Sargon used diplomacy to convince cities and tribes within Babylonia to betray Marduk-apla-iddina. Through secret negotiations, several tribes and cities in northern Babylonia were won over, including
7038-454: The Eanna and Anu Districts. Temple N, Cone-Mosaic Courtyard, and Round Pillar Hall are often referred to as a single structure; the Cone-Mosaic Temple. It is clear Eanna was dedicated to Inanna symbolized by Venus from the Uruk period. At that time, she was worshipped in four aspects as Inanna of the netherworld (Sumerian: ᵈinanna-kur), Inanna of the morning (Sumerian: ᵈinanna-hud₂), Inanna of
7191-647: The Early Dynastic IIIb period (2500–2334 BC), also called the Pre-Sargonic period (before the rise of the Akkadian Empire under Sargon of Akkad ), Uruk continued to be ruled by Ur. Dynastic categorizations are described solely from the Sumerian King List , which is of problematic historical accuracy; the organization might be analogous to Manetho's . In 2009, two different copies of an inscription were put forth as evidence of
7344-461: The English translation of the same. The stratigraphy of the site is complex and as such much of the dating is disputed. In general, the structures follow the two main typologies of Sumerian architecture , Tripartite with 3 parallel halls and T-Shaped also with three halls, but the central one extends into two perpendicular bays at one end. The following table summarizes the significant architecture of
7497-639: The Gareus-temple, and the Multiple Apse building, 6) the "Gilgameš" city-wall with associated Sinkâsid Palace and the Seleucid Bit Akîtu. The location of Uruk was first noted by Fraser and Ross in 1835. William Loftus excavated there in 1850 and 1854 after a scouting mission in 1849. By Loftus' own account, he admits that the first excavations were superficial at best, as his financiers forced him to deliver large museum artifacts at
7650-731: The German Archaeological Institute in Baghdad as Jan J. A. Djik, Hermann Hunger , Antoine Cavigneaux, Egbert von Weiher , and Karlheinz Kessler [ de ] , or others as Erlend Gehlken. Many of the cuneiform tablets form acquisitions by museums and collections as the British Museum , Yale Babylonian Collection , and the Louvre . The latter holds a unique cuneiform tablet in Aramaic known as
7803-538: The German archaeologists spent 39 seasons working at Uruk. The results are documented in two series of reports: Most recently, from 2001 to 2002, the German Archaeological Institute team led by Margarete van Ess, with Joerg Fassbinder and Helmut Becker, conducted a partial magnetometer survey in Uruk. In addition to the geophysical survey, core samples and aerial photographs were taken. This
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#17327649607797956-819: The Golden Age. During the Early Dynastic II period (2800–2600 BC), Uruk was again the dominant city exercising control of Sumer. This period is the time of the First Dynasty of Uruk sometimes called the Heroic Age. However, by the Early Dynastic IIIa period (2600–2500 BC) Uruk had lost sovereignty, this time to Ur. This period, corresponding to the Early Bronze Age III, is the end of the First Dynasty of Uruk. In
8109-765: The Limestone Temple was demolished and the Red Temple built on its foundations. The accumulated debris of the Uruk IVb buildings were formed into a terrace , the L-Shaped Terrace, on which Buildings C, D, M, Great Hall, and Pillar Hall were built. Building E was initially thought to be a palace, but later proven to be a communal building. Also in period IV, the Great Court, a sunken courtyard surrounded by two tiers of benches covered in cone mosaic,
8262-432: The Riemchen Building. In the following period, Uruk V, about 100 m east of the Stone-Cone Temple the Limestone Temple was built on a 2 m high rammed-earth podium over a pre-existing Ubaid temple, which like the Stone-Cone Temple represents a continuation of Ubaid culture. However, the Limestone Temple was unprecedented for its size and use of stone, a clear departure from traditional Ubaid architecture. The stone
8415-506: The Stone Temple, has been discovered. The Stone Temple was built of limestone and bitumen on a podium of rammed earth and plastered with lime mortar. The podium itself was built over a woven reed mat called ĝipar , which was ritually used as a nuptial bed. The ĝipar was a source of generative power which then radiated upward into the structure. The structure of the Stone Temple further develops some mythological concepts from Enuma Elish , perhaps involving libation rites as indicated from
8568-430: The Suteans, a prominent Ahlamu group, were prized as capable and fierce warriors and were featured in the Ugaritic texts as such. In addition, because of their excellent knowledge of the Syrian desert steppes, they were sometimes hired as caravan guides or drovers , the same as the nomads Suteans for large commercial expeditions. Moreover, they lived in tents, under the jurisdiction of a sheikh , Rab Zārāti, lord of
8721-488: The Tigris and one of the branches of the Euphrates and arrived at the city Dur-Ladinni , near Babylon , Marduk-apla-iddina became frightened. He may have had little support from the people and priesthood of Babylon or had lost most of his army at Dur-Athara. Marduk-apla-iddina fled to Elam, where he unsuccessfully petitioned King Shutruk-Nahhunte II for aid. After Marduk-apla-iddina's departure, Sargon met little opposition on his march south. The people of Babylon opened
8874-407: The Urartian army and raided Urartian lands as far as immediately south-west of Lake Urmia . Ullusunu of Mannaea had switched by then his loyalty to Assyria. Rusa seized some of Ullusunu's fortresses and replaced him with Daiukku as the new king. Months later, Sargon invaded Mannaea, recaptured Ullusunu's fortresses and restored him to the throne. Rusa attempted to drive Sargon back, but his army
9027-459: The Urartu-aligned noble Mitatti occupied half of Iranzu's kingdom, but thanks to Sargon, Mitatti's uprising was suppressed. Shortly after the victory over the rebels, Iranzu died and Sargon intervened in the succession, supporting Iranzu's son Aza rise to the throne of Mannaea. Another son, Ullusunu , contested his brother's accession and was supported in his efforts against him by Rusa I of Urartu. Another of Sargon's prominent foreign enemies
9180-501: The ancient rulers Sargon of Akkad , from whom Sargon II likely took his regnal name, and Gilgamesh , Sargon aspired to conquer the known world, initiate a golden age and a new world order , and be remembered and revered by future generations. Over the course of his seventeen-year reign, Sargon substantially expanded Assyrian territory and enacted important political and military reforms. An accomplished warrior-king and military strategist , Sargon personally led his troops into battle. By
9333-400: The appellation, such as the Arameans and even some tribes that had elsewhere been called Amorites . That would imply either sub-tribes of an overarching "Aḫlamite" people or rather as separate distinct peoples identified as such by a similar lifestyle. That would be a nomadic designation of the roaming raiding forces that made forays and razzias to capture flocks, slaves and food supplies from
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#17327649607799486-418: The army and more than doubled the size of the empire. In contrast to Tiglath-Pileser, little is recorded of Shalmaneser's brief reign. Whereas kings typically elaborated on their origin in inscriptions, Sargon stated that the Assyrian national deity Ashur had called him to the throne. Sargon mentioned his origin in just two known inscriptions, where he referred to himself as Tiglath-Pileser's son, and in
9639-523: The biblical Erech ( Genesis 10:10), the second city founded by Nimrod in Shinar . In addition to being one of the first cities, Uruk was the main force of urbanization and state formation during the Uruk period, or 'Uruk expansion' (4000–3200 BC). This period of 800 years saw a shift from small, agricultural villages to a larger urban center with a full-time bureaucracy, military, and stratified society. Although other settlements coexisted with Uruk, they were generally about 10 hectares while Uruk
9792-411: The cardinal directions, a central hall flanked along the long axis by two smaller halls, and buttressed façades; the prototype of all future Mesopotamian temple architectural typology . Between these two monumental structures a complex of buildings (called A–C, E–K, Riemchen, Cone-Mosaic), courts, and walls was built during Eanna IVb. These buildings were built during a time of great expansion in Uruk as
9945-512: The channels, tanks, and vessels found there. The structure was ritually destroyed, covered with alternating layers of clay and stone, then excavated and filled with mortar sometime later. The Anu Ziggurat began with a massive mound topped by a cella during the Uruk period (c. 4000 BC), and was expanded through 14 phases of construction. These phases have been labeled L to A₃ ( L is sometimes called X ). The earliest phase used architectural features similar to PPNA cultures in Anatolia :
10098-432: The citadel it was constructed on, while temples and the ziggurat were relegated to a single corner. It was richly decorated with reliefs, statues, glazed bricks and stone lamassus (human-headed bulls). Other prominent structures in the city included temples, a building in the southwest called the arsenal ( ekal mâšarti ), and a great park, which included exotic plants from throughout the empire. The city's surrounding wall
10251-525: The cities of Arpad , Damascus , Sumur and Samaria . Three of the cities participating in the revolt (Arpad, Sumur and Damascus) were not vassal states; their lands had been converted into Assyrian provinces governed by royally appointed Assyrian governors. The revolt threatened to undo the administrative system established in Syria by Sargon's predecessors and the insurgents went on a killing spree , murdering all local Assyrians they could find. Sargon engaged Yahu-Bihdi and his coalition at Qarqar on
10404-452: The citizens of the city and spent the next three years in Babylon, in Marduk-apla-iddina's palace. Affairs in Assyria were in these years overseen by Sargon's son Sennacherib . Sargon participated in the annual Babylonian Akitu (New Years) festival and received homage and gifts from rulers of lands as far away from the heartland of his empire as Bahrain and Cyprus . Sargon engaged himself in various domestic affairs in Babylonia, digging
10557-644: The city grew to 250 hectares and established long-distance trade, and are a continuation of architecture from the previous period. The Riemchen Building, named for the 16×16 cm brick shape called Riemchen by the Germans, is a memorial with a ritual fire kept burning in the center for the Stone-Cone Temple after it was destroyed. For this reason, Uruk IV period represents a reorientation of belief and culture. The facade of this memorial may have been covered in geometric and figural murals. The Riemchen bricks first used in this temple were used to construct all buildings of Uruk IV period Eanna. The use of colored cones as
10710-409: The city of Sippar and the tribes Bit-Dakkuri and Bit-Amukkani . Sargon invaded Babylonia by marching alongside the eastern bank of the river Tigris until he reached the city of Dur-Athara , which had been fortified by Marduk-apla-iddina (moving also the entire Gambulu tribe, an Aramean people, into it), but was quickly defeated and renamed Dur-Nabu. Sargon created a new province surrounding
10863-429: The city was one of the largest in antiquity . The city's palace, which Sargon called a "palace without rival", was built on a huge artificial platform on the northern side of the city astride the wall, as was typical of Neo-Assyrian palaces, and was fortified with a wall of its own. At 100,000 square meters (10 hectares; 25 acres), it was the largest Assyrian palace ever built. The palace itself occupied three quarters of
11016-625: The city, but it is more likely that Shalmaneser captured the city since both the Babylonian Chronicles and the Hebrew Bible viewed the fall of Israel as the signature event of his reign. Sargon's claim to conquering it may be related to the city being captured again after Yahu-Bihdi's revolt. Either Shalmaneser or Sargon ordered the dispersal of the city of Samaria's population across the Assyrian Empire , following
11169-530: The city, Gambulu. Dur-Athara might have been seized specifically to prevent the Elamites from sending any significant aid to Marduk-apla-iddina. Sargon spent some time at Dur-Athara, sending his soldiers on expeditions to the east and south to convince cities and tribes to submit to his rule. Sargon's forces defeated a contingent of Aramean and Elamite soldiers by a river referred to as the Uknu. Once Sargon crossed
11322-424: The currency of the empire. Despite Sargon's repeated victories in the west, the Levant was not fully stabilized. Sargon established a new trading post near the border of Egypt in 716, staffed it with people deported from various conquered lands and placed it under the local Arab ruler Laban , an Assyrian vassal. In later writings, Sargon for unknown reasons falsely claimed that he in this year also subjugated
11475-541: The decline of Uruk. Archeologists have discovered multiple cities of Uruk built atop each other in chronological order. Unlike the Eanna district, the Anu district consists of a single massive terrace, the Anu Ziggurat , dedicated to the Sumerian sky god Anu . Sometime in the Uruk III period the massive White Temple was built atop the ziggurat. Under the northwest edge of the ziggurat an Uruk VI period structure,
11628-675: The desert regions south and west of Mesopotamia. In part, the Ahlamu certainly meant the Amorites . One of the tribes of the Ahlamu were the Arameans , who often acted together with the Suteans . Raids of the Ahlamu are also performed in the Persian Gulf and may have disrupted or interrupted trading in Dilmun . In one of his inscriptions, Assyrian king Adad-nirari II states that his father, Ashur-dan II , defeated different peoples of
11781-402: The distant days (of the future) ... may he who dwells therein, make jubilation in health of body, joy of heart, well-being of soul; may he have abundance of luck. Dur-Sharrukin was completed in 707 after a decade of construction. Sargon returned to Assyria to prepare the city's inauguration. A year later, he moved the royal court to Dur-Sharrukin. The inauguration began with Sargon "inviting
11934-465: The earliest examples of writing. The first building of Eanna , Stone-Cone Temple (Mosaic Temple), was built in period VI over a preexisting Ubaid temple and is enclosed by a limestone wall with an elaborate system of buttresses . The Stone-Cone Temple, named for the mosaic of colored stone cones driven into the adobe brick façade, may be the earliest water cult in Mesopotamia. It was "destroyed by force" in Uruk IVb period and its contents interred in
12087-467: The earliest recorded writing , dating to approximately 3300 BC. Later cuneiform tablets were deciphered and include the famous SKL , a record of kings of the Sumerian civilization. There was an even larger cache of legal and scholarly tablets of the Neo-Babylonian , Late Babylonian , and Seleucid period, that have been published by Adam Falkenstein and other Assyriological members of
12240-413: The empire and extended the same rights and obligations to them as native Assyrians. He forgave defeated enemies on several occasions and maintained good relations with foreign kings and with the ruling classes of the lands he conquered. Sargon also increased the influence and status of both women and scribes at the royal court. Sargon embarked on his final campaign, against Tabal in Anatolia , in 705. He
12393-770: The end of his reign, all of his major enemies and rivals had been either defeated or pacified. Among Sargon's greatest accomplishments were the stabilization of Assyrian control over the Levant , the weakening of the northern kingdom of Urartu , and the reconquest of Babylonia . From 717 to 707, Sargon constructed a new Assyrian capital named after himself, Dur-Sharrukin ('Fort Sargon'), which he made his official residence in 706. Sargon considered himself to have been divinely mandated to maintain and ensure justice. Like other Assyrian kings, Sargon at times enacted brutal punishments against his enemies but there are no known cases of atrocities against civilians from his reign. He worked to assimilate and integrate conquered foreign peoples into
12546-415: The established local lords continue to rule their respective cities as vassals. Supplanting them and integrating the lands further into the imperial bureaucracy would have been costly and time-consuming due to their remoteness. As part of this eastern campaign, Sargon defeated some local rebels, including Bag-dati of Uishdish and Bel-sharru-usur of Kisheshim . In Mannaea, Ullusunu had succeeded in taking
12699-414: The evening (Sumerian: ᵈinanna-sig), and Inanna (Sumerian: ᵈinanna-NUN). The names of four temples in Uruk at this time are known, but it is impossible to match them with either a specific structure and in some cases a deity. The site, which lies about 50 miles (80 km) northwest of ancient Ur , is one of the largest in the region at around 5.5 km (2.1 sq mi) in area. The maximum extent
12852-490: The evolution of writing ; writing may have originated in Uruk around 3300 BC. Evidence from excavations such as extensive pottery and the earliest known tablets of writing support these events. Excavation of Uruk is highly complex because older buildings were recycled into newer ones, thus blurring the layers of different historic periods. The topmost layer most likely originated in the Jemdet Nasr period (3100–2900 BC) and
13005-440: The expansion of his own empire. In addition to the name's historical connections, Sargon connected his regnal name to justice. In several inscriptions, Sargon described his name as akin to a divine mandate to ensure that his people lived just lives, for instance in an inscription in which Sargon described how he reimbursed the owners of the land he chose to construct his new capital city of Dur-Sharrukin on: In accordance with
13158-474: The former complains about the interruption of sending messengers between the two courts under the pretext of the assaults by Ahlamu bandits. From the 12th century BCE, the Mesopotamians increasingly referred to the same mobile groups as " Arameans ." They are also known as enemies of the Assyrians. When Assyria resurfaces again, already in the time of King Ashur-resh-ishi I , he alluded to victories over
13311-477: The gates with enthusiasm and he made a triumphal entry. Elayi speculated in 2017 that Sargon may have made an agreement with the city's priests, who might have preferred Assyrian rule over a Chaldean king. After some ceremonies in the city, Sargon relocated with his army to Kish to continue the war and suppress remaining resistance. Marduk-apla-iddina returned to Mesopotamia , taking up residence in his home city of Dur-Yakin and continuing to resist. Dur-Yakin
13464-415: The gods" to Dur-Sharrukin, placing statues of various gods in the city's temples. Sargon invited "princes of (all) countries, the governors of my land, scribes and superintendents, nobles, officials and elders of Assyria" to a great feast. The common people who had helped build the city were also invited to partake in the celebration, dining in the same hall as the king. Already shortly after its inauguration,
13617-478: The governor of Nimrud, requesting building materials, reads as follows: 700 bales of straw and 700 bundles of reeds, and each bundle no more than a donkey can carry, must be at hand in Dur-Sharrukin by the first day of Kislev . Should even one day pass by, you will die. Dur-Sharrukin reflected Sargon's self-image and how he wished the empire to see him. At about three square kilometers (1.2 square miles),
13770-457: The heartland who had fought against Sargon upon his accession but whose lives had been spared. Sargon described their resettlement as an act of mercy: "their transgression I disregarded, I had mercy on them". Around the same time as Yahu-Bihdi, Hanunu of Gaza in the south also rebelled against Assyria. After Sargon had defeated Yahu-Bihdi, he marched south. After capturing some other cities on his way, probably including Ekron and Gibbethon ,
13923-521: The historical tradition as preserved in the Sumerian king-list confirms it. From Uruk the center of political gravity seems to have moved to Ur . The recorded chronology of rulers over Uruk includes both mythological and historic figures in five dynasties. As in the rest of Sumer, power moved progressively from the temple to the palace. Rulers from the Early Dynastic period exercised control over Uruk and at times over all of Sumer. In myth, kingship
14076-544: The island would have been difficult, but the campaign resulted in several Cypriote rulers paying tribute to Sargon. After the departure of the expedition, the Cypriotes, probably with the aid of an Assyrian stonemason sent by the royal court, fashioned the Sargon Stele . The stele was an ideological marker indicating the boundary of the Assyrian king's sphere of influence and to mark the incorporation of Cyprus into
14229-412: The kingdom's natural resources (mainly silver and wood, required for the construction of Dur-Sharrukin) and to prevent Urartu from establishing control and contacting Phrygia. Sargon used a divide and rule approach in Tabal; territory was distributed between the different Tabalian rulers to prevent any one of them from growing strong enough to present a problem. Sargon also encouraged the loose hegemony of
14382-413: The local governor, king Urzana, refused to welcome Sargon. An enormous quantity of spoils were carried back to Assyria. Urzana was forgiven and allowed to continue to govern Musasir as an Assyrian vassal. Though Urartu remained powerful and Rusa retook Musasir, the 714 campaign put an end to direct confrontations between Urartu and Assyria for the rest of Sargon's reign. Sargon considered the campaign one of
14535-439: The location otherwise lacked obvious practical or political merit. In one of his inscriptions, Sargon alluded to fondness for the foothills of Mount Musri: "following the prompting of my heart, I built a city at the foot of Mount Musri, in the plain of Nineveh, and named it Dur-Sharrukin". Since no buildings had ever been constructed at the chosen location, previous architecture did not have to be taken into account and he conceived
14688-488: The loyalty of his northern vassals and to curb the influence of Elam ; though Elam itself did not pose a threat towards Assyria, it would not be possible to reconquer Babylonia without first breaking Marduk-apla-iddina 's alliance with the Elamites. In 713, Sargon campaigned in the Zagros Mountains again, defeating a revolt in the land of Karalla, meeting with Ullusunu of Mannaea and receiving some tribute. In
14841-528: The major events of his reign. It was described in exceptional detail in his inscriptions and several of the reliefs in his palace were decorated with representations of the sack of Musasir. The foundations of Dur-Sharrukin ("fortress of Sargon") were laid in 717. Dur-Sharrukin was built between the Husur river and Mount Musri , near the village of Magganabba , around 16 kilometres (10 miles) northeast of Nineveh . The new city could use water from Mount Musri but
14994-423: The maritime trade on the ancient Euphrates River as well as the surrounding agricultural belt. The original city of Uruk was situated southwest of the ancient Euphrates River, now dry. Currently, the site of Warka is northeast of the modern Euphrates river. The change in position was caused by a shift in the Euphrates at some point in history, which, together with salination due to irrigation, may have contributed to
15147-400: The most common type of container used during the Uruk period. They are believed to be vessels for serving rations of food or drink to dependent laborers. The introduction of the fast wheel for throwing pottery was developed during the later part of the Uruk period, and made the mass production of pottery simpler and more standardized. The Mask of Warka , also known as the 'Lady of Uruk' and
15300-483: The mountain passes would become blocked by snow. This meant that conquest, if that had been the intention, would not be possible. Sargon reached Gilzanu , near Lake Urmia, and made camp. The Urartian forces regrouped and built new fortifications west and south of Lake Urmia. Though Sargon's forces had been granted supplies and water by his vassals in Media, his troops were exhausted and nearly mutinous. When Rusa arrived,
15453-467: The mountains including Ahlamu nomads. According to the inscription of another Assyrian king, Shalmaneser I , the Ahlamu with the Mitannian support of Shattuara II of Hanigalbat were defeated in their uprising against the Assyrians. The Ahlamu even obstructed communication between kingdoms, as was mentioned Babylon King Kadashman-Enlil II in his relations with Hittite King Ḫattušili III in which
15606-405: The museum. The Sumerian King List (SKL) lists only 22 rulers among five dynasties of Uruk. The sixth dynasty was an Amorite dynasty not mentioned on the SKL . The following list should not be considered complete: "Then Kish was defeated and the kingship was taken to Eanna (Uruk)." "Meshkiangasher entered the sea and disappeared." "12 kings; they ruled for 2,310 years. Then Uruk
15759-417: The name due to its use by Sargon of Akkad. In late Assyrian texts, the names of Sargon II and Sargon of Akkad are written with the same spelling. Sargon II is sometimes explicitly called the "second Sargon" ( Šarru-kīn arkû ). Though the precise extent of the ancient Sargon's conquests had been forgotten, the legendary ruler was still remembered as a "conqueror of the world". Sargon II also energetically pursued
15912-444: The name which the great gods have given me – to maintain justice and right, to give guidance to those who are not strong, not to injure the weak – the price of the fields of that town [Khorsabad] I paid back to their owners ... The name was most commonly written Šarru-kīn , although Šarru-ukīn , is also attested. Sargon's name is commonly interpreted as "the faithful king" in the sense of righteousness and justice. Another alternative
16065-484: The new capital was densely populated. Few sources survive describing Sargon's final campaign and death. Based on the Assyrian Eponym List and the Babylonian Chronicles , the most likely course of events is that Sargon embarked to campaign against Tabal , which had risen up against him, in the early summer of 705. This campaign was the last of several attempts to bring Tabal under Assyrian control. It
16218-407: The new city as an "ideal city", its proportions based on mathematical harmony. There were various numerical and geometrical correspondences between different aspects of the city and Dur-Sharrukin's city walls formed a nearly perfect square. The numerous surviving sources on the construction of the city include inscriptions carved on the walls of its buildings, reliefs depicting the process and over
16371-470: The past, when it at times rivalled Assyria in strength and influence, Urartu still remained an alternative suzerain for many smaller states in the north. In 718, Sargon intervened in Mannaea , one of these states. This campaign was as much a military effort as it was a diplomatic one; King Iranzu of Mannaea had been an Assyrian vassal for more than 25 years and had requested Sargon to aid him. A rebellion by
16524-576: The people of Egypt. In actuality, Sargon is recorded to have engaged in diplomacy with Pharaoh Osorkon IV , who gifted Sargon with twelve horses. In 716, Sargon campaigned between Urartu and Elam , perhaps part of a strategy to weaken these enemies. Passing through Mannaea , Sargon attacked Media , probably to establish control there and neutralize the region as a potential threat before confronting either Urartu or Elam. The local Medes were disunited and posed no serious threat to Assyria. After Sargon defeated them and established Assyrian provinces, he let
16677-476: The residents of Assur. Several of Shalmaneser's policies and acts were revoked by Sargon. Hullî , a king in Tabal (a region in Anatolia ) deported by Shalmaneser, was reinstalled and Sargon reversed Shalmaneser's attempt to decrease trade with Egypt. Sargon II was the first king in more than a thousand years to bear the name Sargon. There were two Mesopotamian kings of the same name before his reign: Sargon I ,
16830-465: The rest of the empire were dealt with by his officials and generals. Midas of Phrygia remained a threat to Assyrian interests; to ensure that communication and trade remained open to Assyrian vassals in Anatolia , the Assyrians carefully monitored him. In 709, the Assyrian governor of Quwê , Ashur-sharru-usur personally resolved to end the Phrygian threat. His raids into Phrygia and the capture of
16983-624: The same year, Sargon sent his turtanu ( commander-in-chief ) to help Talta of Ellipi , an Assyrian vassal west of the Zagros Mountains. Sargon probably considered it important to keep good relations with Ellipi since it was a key buffer state between Assyria and Elam. Talta was threatened by a revolt, but after Assyrian intervention he retained his throne. Rusa still intended to extend Urartian influence into southern Anatolia despite Sargon's 714 victory. In 713 Sargon campaigned against Tabal in southern Anatolia again, trying to secure
17136-487: The south and Nippur in the north surrounded by much smaller 10 hectare settlements. Later, in the Late Uruk period, its sphere of influence extended over all Sumer and beyond to external colonies in upper Mesopotamia and Syria. In Uruk, in southern Mesopotamia, Sumerian civilization seems to have reached its creative peak. This is pointed out repeatedly in the references to this city in religious and, especially, in literary texts, including those of mythological content;
17289-556: The sovereignty of Ur . The Eanna District was restored as part of an ambitious building program, which included a new temple for Inanna. This temple included a ziggurat , the 'House of the Universe' (Cuneiform: E₂ . SAR.A ) to the northeast of the Uruk period Eanna ruins. Following the collapse of Ur ( c. 2000 BC), Uruk went into a steep decline until about 850 BC when the Neo-Assyrian Empire annexed it as
17442-645: The standard resettlement policy . This specific resettlement resulted in the loss of the Ten Lost Tribes of Israel . In his inscriptions, Sargon claimed to have resettled 27,280 Israelites. Though likely emotionally damaging for the resettled populace, the Assyrians valued deportees for their labor and generally treated them well, transporting them in safety and comfort together with their families and belongings. Shortly after his failure to retake Babylonia from Marduk-apla-iddina in 720, Sargon campaigned against Yahu-Bihdi. Among Yahu-Bihdi's supporters were
17595-517: The strongest Tabalian state, Bit-Purutash (sometimes called "Tabal proper" by modern historians), over the other Tabalian rulers. The king of Bit-Purutash, Ambaris , was granted Sargon's daughter Ahat-Abisha in marriage and some additional territory. This strategy was not successful; Ambaris began conspiring with the other rulers of Tabal and with Rusa and Midas. Sargon deposed Ambaris, deporting him to Assyria, and annexed Tabal. The Philistine city of Ashdod rebelled under its king Azuri in 713, and
17748-732: The tent camp. In the Kassitic Nippur , they served as guards. Some of them had Kassitic or Babylonian names, although history says that they were not always reliable. Uruk Uruk , known today as Warka , was an ancient city in the Near East, located east of the current bed of the Euphrates River, on an ancient, now-dried channel of the river. The site lies 93 kilometers (58 miles) northwest of ancient Ur , 108 kilometers (67 miles) southeast of ancient Nippur , and 24 kilometers (15 miles) southeast of ancient Larsa . It
17901-431: The throne from his brother Aza. Instead of deposing Ullusunu and proclaiming a new king, Sargon accepted Ullusunu's submission and endorsed him as king, forgiving his uprising and gaining his allegiance. Urartu remained Sargon's main strategic rival in the north. In 715, Urartu was severely weakened by an unsuccessful expedition against the Cimmerians , a nomadic people in the central Caucasus . The Cimmerians defeated
18054-399: The throne. Most scholars however believe him to have been a usurper; one theory is that Sargon killed Shalmaneser and seized the throne in a palace coup . Sargon rarely referenced his predecessors and, upon accession, faced massive domestic opposition. Shalmaneser probably had sons of his own who could have inherited the throne, such as the palace official Ashur-dain-aplu , who retained
18207-457: The valleys of the Great and Little Zab for three days before halting near Mount Kullar (the location of which remains unidentified). There Sargon chose a longer route through Kermanshah , probably since he knew the Urartians anticipated him attacking through the pass. The longer route delayed the Assyrians with mountains and greater distance. The campaign had to be completed before October, when
18360-453: The variant ح ل م ( ḥ-l-m ). He further compares the word form as a broken plural pattern that is found common in Arabic : bands of wild young men. There is also a scholarly debate as to whether this term is a proper name of a group or rather a designation of a type of group. The significance comes in identifying possible genealogical backgrounds and connections of some groups that are given
18513-426: The work, from commenting on architectural details to overseeing material transportation and the recruitment of labor. Sargon's frequent input and efforts to encourage more work is probably the main reason for how the city could be completed so fast and efficiently. Sargon's encouragement was at times lenient, particularly when dealing with grumbling among the workers, but at other times threatening. One of his letters to
18666-683: The world at the time. King Gilgamesh , according to the chronology presented in the Sumerian King List ( SKL ), ruled Uruk in the 27th century BC. After the end of the Early Dynastic period, marked by the rise of the Akkadian Empire , the city lost its prime importance. It had periods of florescence during the Isin-Larsa period, Neo-Assyrian and Neo-Babylonian periods and throughout the Achaemenid (550–330 BC), Seleucid (312–63 BC) and Parthian (227 BC to AD 224) periods until it
18819-416: The wrath of his heart, overthrew [hi]s rule, and [appointed] me, Sargon, as king [of Assyria]. He raised my head; he let [me] take hold of the scepter, the throne (and) the tiara [...]. Sargon did not otherwise hold Shalmaneser responsible for the policies placed on Assur, since he wrote elsewhere that most of these had been enacted in the distant past. Tiglath-Pileser, not Shalmaneser, imposed forced labor on
18972-482: Was 20 metres (66 ft) high and 14 metres (46 ft) thick, reinforced at 15-meter (49 ft) intervals with more than two hundred bastions . The internal wall was named Ashur, the external wall Ninurta , the city's seven gates Shamash , Adad , Enlil , Anu , Ishtar , Ea and Belet-ili after gods of the Mesopotamian pantheon . In the years following the campaign against Urartu , Sargon worked to retain
19125-469: Was a member of a collateral branch of the Adaside dynasty from the western part of the empire. In Babylonia , Sargon and his successors were considered part of the "dynasty of Hanigalbat " (a western territory), while earlier Assyrian kings were considered part of the "dynasty of Baltil" (Baltil being the name of the oldest portion of the ancient Assyrian capital of Assur ). Perhaps Sargon was connected to
19278-523: Was abolished as a vassal kingdom and annexed. Suspecting an Assyrian invasion, Rusa kept most of his army by Lake Urmia , close to the Assyrian border, which was already fortified against Assyrian invasion. The shortest path from Assyria to the Urartian heartland went through the Kel-i-šin pass in the Taurus Mountains . One of the most important places in all of Urartu, the holy city Musasir ,
19431-499: Was built. A small aqueduct drains into the Great Courtyard, which may have irrigated a garden at one time. The impressive buildings of this period were built as Uruk reached its zenith and expanded to 600 hectares. All the buildings of Eanna IVa were destroyed sometime in Uruk III, for unclear reasons. The architecture of Eanna in period III was very different from what had preceded it. The complex of monumental temples
19584-524: Was crucial to keep control over the regions of Tabal and Quwê to prevent communication between Midas and Rusa. Tabal—several minor states competing with each other, contested between Assyria, Phrygia and Urartu—was particularly important since it was rich in natural resources (including silver). Sargon campaigned against Tabal in 718, mostly against Kiakki of Shinuhtu , who withheld tribute and conspired with Midas. Sargon could not conquer Tabal because of its isolation and difficult terrain. Instead, Shinuhtu
19737-467: Was crushed by Sargon or one of his generals. Azuri was replaced as king by Ahi-Miti . In 712 the vassal king Tarhunazi of Kammanu in northern Syria rebelled against Assyria, seeking to ally with Midas. Tarhunazi had been placed on his throne during Sargon's 720 campaign in the Levant. This revolt was dealt with by Sargon's turtanu ; Tarhunazi was defeated and his lands were annexed. His capital, Melid ,
19890-442: Was defeated and the kingship was taken to Ur ." "Then Hamazi was defeated and the kingship was taken to Uruk." "3 kings; they ruled for 187 years. Then Uruk was defeated and the kingship was taken to Ur ." "Then Kish was defeated and the kingship was taken to Uruk." Sargon II Sargon II ( Neo-Assyrian Akkadian : 𒈗𒁺 , romanized: Šarru-kīn , meaning "the faithful king" or "the legitimate king")
20043-459: Was defeated and the population of Carchemish was deported and replaced with Assyrians. The city and its surrounding lands were turned into an Assyrian province and an Assyrian palace was constructed. The conquest might have inspired Sargon to build his own new capital city ( Dur-Sharrukin ), a project which could be financed with the silver plundered from Carchemish. Sargon took so much silver from Carchemish that silver began to replace copper as
20196-423: Was defeated by Rīm-Sîn I of Larsa in his year 14 (c. 1740 BC), Rîm-Anum and Nabi-ilīšu. Uruk has some of the first monumental constructions in architectural history, and certainly the largest of its era. Much of Near Eastern architecture can trace its roots to these prototypical buildings. The structures of Uruk are cited by two different naming conventions, one in German from the initial expedition, and
20349-491: Was defeated in the foothills of Sahand . Sargon also received the tribute of Ianzu , king of Nairi , another former Urartian vassal. Preparing for a campaign against Rusa, Sargon defeated some minor rebels in Media. In Anatolia , Urik of Quwê , changed his allegiance from Sargon to Midas of Phrygia and began sending envoys to Rusa. To prevent the formation of a northern alliance, Sargon attacked Quwê, defeating Urik and recapturing some cities that had fallen to Midas. Quwê
20502-580: Was divided into five main districts: the Adad Temple, Royal Orchard, Ištar Gate, Lugalirra Temple, and Šamaš Gate districts. Uruk, known as Orcha ([Ὄρχα] Error: {{Lang}}: Non-latn text/Latn script subtag mismatch ( help ) ) to the Greeks, continued to thrive under the Seleucid Empire . During this period, Uruk was a city of 300 hectares and perhaps 40,000 inhabitants. In 200 BC,
20655-893: Was finally abandoned shortly before or after the Islamic conquest of 633–638. William Kennett Loftus visited the site of Uruk in 1849, identifying it as "Erech", known as "the second city of Nimrod ", and led the first excavations from 1850 to 1854. Uruk ( / ˈ ʊ r ʊ k / ) has several spellings in cuneiform ; in Sumerian it is 𒀕𒆠 unugᵏⁱ ; in Akkadian , 𒌷𒀕 or 𒌷𒀔 Uruk ( UNUG). Its names in other languages include: Arabic : وركاء or أوروك , Warkāʾ or Auruk ; Classical Syriac : ܐܘܿܪܘܿܟ , ʿÚrūk ; Biblical Hebrew : אֶרֶךְ ʾÉreḵ ; Ancient Greek : Ὀρχόη , romanized : Orkhóē , Ὀρέχ Orékh , Ὠρύγεια Ōrúgeia . Though
20808-615: Was followed up with high-resolution satellite imagery in 2005. Work resumed in 2016 and is currently concentrated on the city wall area and a survey of the surrounding landscape. Part of the work has been to create a digital twin of the Uruk archaeological area. The current effort also involves geophysical surveying. The soil characteristics of the site make ground penetrating radar unsuitable so caesium magnetometers, combined with resistivity probes, are being used. About 400 Proto-cuneiform clay tablets were found at Uruk with Sumerian and pictorial inscriptions that are thought to be some of
20961-535: Was fortified, a great ditch was dug surrounding its walls, and the surrounding countryside was flooded through a canal dug from the Euphrates . Guarded by the flooded terrain, Marduk-apla-iddina set up his camp outside the city walls. His forces were defeated by Sargon's army, which had crossed through the flooded terrain unimpeded. Marduk-apla-iddina fled into the city as the Assyrians began collecting spoils of war from his fallen soldiers. Sargon besieged Dur-Yakin but
21114-419: Was given to Mutallu of Kummuh . Mutallu was a trusted ally since the kings of Kummuh had long maintained good relations with the Assyrian court. After the Assyrian army defeated a revolt by the kingdom of Gurgum in 711 and it was annexed, Sargon's control of southern Anatolia became relatively stable. Shortly after Sargon's victory, Ashdod revolted again. The locals deposed Ahi-Miti and in his stead proclaimed
21267-405: Was given to a rival Tabalian ruler, Kurtî of Atunna . Kurtî conspired with Midas at some point between 718 and 713, but later maintained his allegiance to Sargon. Sargon returned to Syria in 717 to defeat an uprising led by Pisiri of Carchemish , who had supported Sargon during Yahu-Bihdi 's revolt but was now plotting with Midas to overthrow Assyrian hegemony in the region. The uprising
21420-426: Was killed in battle and the Assyrian army was unable to retrieve his body, preventing a traditional burial. According to ancient Mesopotamian religion , he was cursed to remain a restless ghost for eternity. Sargon's fate was a major psychological blow for the Assyrians and damaged his legacy. Sargon's son Sennacherib was deeply disturbed by his father's death and believed that he must have committed some grave sin. As
21573-562: Was led by Jordan until 1931 when Jordan became Director of Antiquities in Baghdad, then by A. Nöldeke, Ernst Heinrich, and H. J. Lenzen. Among the finds was the Stell of the Lion Hunt, excavated in a Jemdat Nadr layer but sylistically dated to Uruk IV. The German excavations resumed after the war and were under the direction of Heinrich Lenzen from 1954 to 1967. He was followed in 1968 by J. Schmidt, and in 1978 by R.M. Boehmer. In total,
21726-632: Was located in the southern part of Mesopotamia, an ancient site of civilization, on the Euphrates river. Through the gradual and eventual domestication of native grains from the Zagros foothills and extensive irrigation techniques, the area supported a vast variety of edible vegetation. This domestication of grain and its proximity to rivers enabled Uruk's growth into the largest Sumerian settlement, in both population and area, with relative ease. Uruk's agricultural surplus and large population base facilitated processes such as trade, specialization of crafts and
21879-510: Was located just west of this pass and was protected by fortifications. Rusa ordered the construction of the Gerdesorah , a new fortress strategically positioned on a hill. The Gerdesorah was still under construction when the Assyrians invaded. Sargon left the Assyrian capital of Nimrud in July 714. Rejecting the shortest route through the Kel-i-šin pass, Sargon marched his army through
22032-527: Was lowered from heaven to Eridu then passed successively through five cities until the deluge which ended the Uruk period. Afterwards, kingship passed to Kish at the beginning of the Early Dynastic period, which corresponds to the beginning of the Early Bronze Age in Sumer. In the Early Dynastic I period (2900–2800 BC), Uruk was in theory under the control of Kish. This period is sometimes called
22185-572: Was not the legitimate heir to the throne. The ancient Sargon of Akkad also became king through usurpation. The origin of the conventional modern version of the name, Sargon, is not entirely clear but it is probably based on the spelling in the Hebrew Bible ( srgwn ). Sargon's reign began with large-scale resistance against his rule in Assyria's heartland . Although quickly suppressed, this political instability led several peripheral regions to regain independence. In early 721, Marduk-apla-iddina II ,
22338-450: Was originally called 'Kullaba' (Kulab or Unug-Kulaba) prior to merging with the Eanna District. Kullaba dates to the Eridu period when it was one of the oldest and most important cities of Sumer. The Eanna District was composed of several buildings with spaces for workshops, and it was walled off from the city. By contrast, the Anu District was built on a terrace with a temple at the top. It
22491-425: Was probably a scion of the incumbent Adaside dynasty . Sargon grew up during the reigns of Ashur-dan III ( r. 773–755 BC) and Ashur-nirari V ( r. 755–745 BC), when rebellion and plague affected the Neo-Assyrian Empire ; the prestige and power of Assyria dramatically declined. This trend reversed during the tenure of Tiglath-Pileser, who reduced the influence of powerful officials, reformed
22644-528: Was quarried from an outcrop at Umayyad about 60 km east of Uruk. It is unclear if the entire temple or just the foundation was built of this limestone . The Limestone Temple is probably the first Inanna temple, but it is impossible to know with certainty. Like the Stone-Cone temple the Limestone temple was also covered in cone mosaics. Both of these temples were rectangles with their corners aligned to
22797-407: Was replaced with baths around the Great Courtyard and the labyrinthine Rammed-Earth Building. This period corresponds to Early Dynastic Sumer c. 2900 BC, a time of great social upheaval when the dominance of Uruk was eclipsed by competing city-states . The fortress -like architecture of this time is a reflection of that turmoil. The temple of Inanna continued functioning during this time in
22950-408: Was significantly larger and more complex. The Uruk period culture exported by Sumerian traders and colonists had an effect on all surrounding peoples, who gradually evolved their own comparable, competing economies and cultures. Ultimately, Uruk could not maintain long-distance control over colonies such as Tell Brak by military force. Geographic factors underpin Uruk's unprecedented growth. The city
23103-409: Was the king of the Neo-Assyrian Empire from 722 BC to his death in battle in 705. Probably the son of Tiglath-Pileser III ( r. 745–727), Sargon is generally believed to have become king after overthrowing Shalmaneser V ( r. 727–722), probably his brother. He is typically considered the founder of a new dynastic line, the Sargonid dynasty . Modelling his reign on the legends of
23256-496: Was the powerful and expansionist Midas of Phrygia in central Anatolia. Sargon worried about a possible alliance between Phrygia and Urartu and Midas' use of proxy warfare by encouraging Assyrian vassal states to rebel. Sargon could not fight against Midas directly but had to deal with uprisings by his vassals among the Syro-Hittite states , most of them located in remote locations in the mountains of southern Anatolia . It
23409-409: Was unable to take the city. As the siege dragged on, negotiations were started and in 709 it was agreed that the city would surrender and tear down its exterior walls in exchange for Sargon sparing Marduk-apla-iddina's life. Marduk-apla-iddina, along with his family and supporters, were granted passage to Elam to live in exile. After he took Babylon in 710, Sargon was proclaimed king of Babylon by
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