Ebla
Ebla was an ancient city located in northern Syria, about 55 km southwest of Aleppo. It was an important city-state in two periods, first in the late third millennium BC, then again between 1800 and 1650 BC.The site is known today as Tel Mardikh, and is famous mainly for an archive with more than 20,000 cuneiform tabletss, dated from around 2250 BC, in Sumerian and in Eblaite — a previously unknown Semitic language similar to Akkadian.
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2 Ebla in the third millennium BC 3 Ebla in the second millennium BC 4 See also 5 External links |
Discovery and excavation
In 1964, Italian archaeologists from the University of Rome La Sapienza directed by Paolo Matthiae began excavating at Tel Mardikh. In 1968 they recovered a statue dedicated to the goddess Ishtar bearing the name of Ibbit-Lim, a king of Ebla. That identified the city, long known from Egyptian and Akkadian inscriptions. In the next decade the team discovered a palace dating approximately from 2500–2000 BC. About 20,000 well-preserved cuneiform tablets were discovered in the ruins. The tablets are written in a Semitic dialect that is being called 'Eblaite', as well as in Sumerian, demonstrating Ebla's close links to southern Mesopotamia, where the script had developed. Vocabulary lists were found with the tablets, allowing them to be translated.
It now appears that this was not the palace library, which may yet be uncovered, but an archive of provisions and tribute, law cases and diplomatic and trade contacts, and a scriptorium where apprentices copied texts. The larger tablets had originally been stored on shelves, but had fallen onto the floor when the palace was destroyed. The find spots of the tablets allowed the excavators to reconstruct their original position: it soon appeared that they were originally shelved according to subject.
Ebla in the third millennium BC
The name "Ebla" means "White Rock", and refers to the calcareous stone outcrop on which the city was built. Although the site shows signs of continuous occupation since before 3000 BC, its power grew and reached its apogee in the second half of the next millennium. Ebla's first apogee was between 2400 and 2240 BC; its name is mentioned in texts from Akkad around 2300 BC.
Most of the Ebla palace tablets, which date from that period, are about economic matters; they provide a good look into the everyday life of the inhabitants, as well as many important insights into the cultural, economic, and political life of northern Syria and Near East around the middle of the third millennium B.C. They mention cities and peoples that appear later in the Old Testament, including the earliest mention of Jerusalem.
Economy
At that time, Ebla was a major commercial center. The tablets reveal that the city's inhabitants owned about 200,000 heads of mixed cattle (sheep, goats, and cows). The city's main articles of trade were probably timber from the nearby mountains (and perhaps from Lebanon), and textiles (mentioned in Sumerian texts from the city-state of Lagash). Most of its trade seems to have been directed towards Mesopotamia (chiefly Kish), and contacts with Egypt are attested by gifts from pharaos Kefren and Pepi I. Handicafts may also have been a major export: exquisite artifacts have been recovered from the ruins, including ebony furniture inlaid with mother-of-pearl and composite statues created from different colored stones. The artistic style at Ebla may have influenced the quality work of the following Akkadian empire (ca. 2350–2150 BC).
Ebla is mentioned in texts from Alalakh around 1750 BC. The city was destroyed again in the turbulent period of 1650–1600 BC, by an Hittite king (Mursillis I or Hattusilis I).
Ebla never recovered from its second destruction. The city thrived as a small village until the 7th century AD, and remained deserted and forgotten until its archaeological rediscovery.
Government
The form of government is not well known, but the city appears to have been ruled by a merchant aristocracy who elected a king and entrusted the city's defense to paid soldiers. Through the tablets we have learned the names of five "kings" or similarly high-ranked people: Igrish-Halam, Irkab-Damu, Ar-Ennum, Ibrium et Ibbi-Sipish. Monarchy may have became hereditary after king Ibrium, since his sons are said to rule over nearby villages.Religion
The religion of Ebla at the time included the worship of some well-known Semitic deities (Dagan, Ishtar, Resheph, Kanish, Hadad) and some unknown ones (Kura, Nidakul), plus a few Sumerian gods (Enki and Ninki) and Hurrian gods (Ashtapi, Hapat, Ishara).The destruction of Ebla
Sargon of Akkad and his grandson Naram-Sin, the conquerors of much of Mesopotamia, each claim to have destroyed Ebla; the exact date of destruction is the subject of continuing debate, but 2240 BC is a probable candidate. For the next three centuries, Ebla remained a small settlement, dominated by the nearby city of Urshu.Ebla in the second millennium BC
Several centuries after its destruction by the Akkadians, Ebla managed to recover some of its importance, and had a second apogee lasting from about 1850 to 1600 BC. Its people were then known as Amorites; Ibbit-Lim was the first king.See also
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