The ancient kings of Mesopotamia ruled one of the two great literate civilizations that set the course of the earliest history of the ancient Near East. Their temples and tombs do not evoke vivid images in the minds of the modern reader or television viewer, as do those of the other great centre of early Near Eastern civilization, Egypt. But their cities, some with such familiar names as Babylon, Nineveh, and Ur, have been excavated over the past century and a half, according to the standards of the time, and have yielded an abundance of records of the boasted accomplishments...

The might of Assyria continues to be manifested in the texts of the first half of the period with which this volume is concerned.¹ The first king in this era, Shalmaneser III (858–24 BC), like his father, Ashurnasirpal II, continued to build and campaign so that the empire grew larger and wealthier. Intensive activity in the west brought all of Syria, eventually even Damascus in a later reign, under Assyrian control. This led the Assyrians into direct contact with places and figures known from the Bible. Jehu, king of Israel, paid homage and presented tribute to Shalmaneser III as...

The reign of Shalmaneser III (858–24 BC) was a fitting sequel to the reign of his father, Ashurnasirpal II. The son carried on with the momentum of his predecessor, sending the Assyrian army farther and farther afield, while at home continuing with old and initiating new building enterprises (see Grayson, CAH 3/1 pp. 259–69). The annual campaigns concentrated on the northern frontier, against Urartu, and the western front across the Euphrates. The building projects were largely centred at Aššur and Calah. This intensive activity inspired the writing of a large number of royal inscriptions with a wealth of...

The reign of Šamšī-Adad V (823–11 BC) began during a revolution against Shalmaneser III, his father, and Šamšī-Adad claims credit for putting down the revolt. Compared to the achievements of his two predecessors, those of this king are relatively modest, in part, no doubt, because he was on the throne for a much shorter period of time (see Grayson, CAH 3/1 pp. 269–71). The main thrust of his military campaigns was against Nairi and Babylonia. Indeed, the invasion of Babylonia is one of the most significant events of his career. The historical consciousness of this age, reflected in,...

Adad-nārārī (810–783 BC) inherited an empire that was already suffering serious problems and by the end of his reign the Assyrian state was on the decline. A number of military endeavours took place during his rule, notably the capture of Damascus, and several building projects were carried out (see Grayson, CAH 3/1 pp. 271–76). A salient feature of the reign is the prominence of some Assyrian officials whose influence was so great that their names and deeds were recorded in royal inscriptions (see A.0.104.2, 6–7, and 9). A special discussion of these officials follows this introduction. A...

The period ushered in by Shalmaneser IV (782–773) is obscure in Assyrian history, the obscurity continuing for the subsequent reigns of Aššur-dān III and Aššur-nārārī V (see Grayson, CAH 3/1 pp. 276–79). It is a time when a few prominent officials exercised considerable power in the state (see the introduction to Adad-nārārī III). This circumstance is reflected in that although very few royal inscriptions are preserved for the kings there are a number of inscriptions by their officials.

Despite the small number of texts for Shalmaneser IV, there are some unusual inscriptions among them. One is inscribed on...

Troubles continue for Assyria during the reign of Aššur-dān III (772–55 BC) (see Grayson, CAH 3/1 pp. 276–79). Only one small fragment of a royal inscription has been recovered for him and it concerns work on the Aššur temple at Aššur. He is listed in the Assyrian King List (see Grayson, RLA 6 pp. 86–135) and there is a complete list of eponymies for his reign (see Ungnad, RLA 2 pp. 422–25, and Millard, SAAS 2).

A private dedicatory inscription, on a bronze statue, which refers to a king Aššur-dān (cf. Schramm, EAK 2 p. 123)...

The reign of Aššur-nārārī V (754–45 BC) is as obscure as that of his predecessor. This king’s name appears in the Assyrian King List (see Grayson, RLA 6 pp. 86–135) and there is a complete list of the eponymies for his time (see Ungnad, RLA 2 pp. 424–25 and Millard, SAAS 2). In a royal inscription of Sardur II, this king of Urartu claims to have defeated Aššur-nārārī V. A fragmentary copy of a treaty between him and Mati’ilu of Arpad is known. See Grayson, CAH 3/1 pp. 276–79 for a brief history and references.

This...

There are numerous clay cone fragments from Aššur which cannot be identified with any particular king. Since the vast majority of clay cone fragments from Aššur which can be identified belong to Shalmaneser III (see the introduction to A.0.102.42), I have placed the unidentified fragments at the end of this volume as A.0.0.1027–1093. Most of these, viz. A.0.0.1031–1093, are too insignificant to warrant edition or special comment and therefore they have been presented in chart form. Note that Donbaz and Grayson, RICCA nos. 251 and 253–60 should have been listed at the end of RIMA 1.

The...