Kārus on the Frontiers of the Neo-Assyrian Empire

Abstract

The paper discusses the evidence for the harbors, trading posts, and/or administrative centers called karu in Neo-Assyrian documentary sources, especially those constructed on the frontiers of the Assyrian empire during the ninth to seventh centuries Be.New Assyrian cities on the frontiers were often given names that stress the glory and strength of Assyrian kings and gods. Kar-X, i.e., "Quay of X" (X = a royal/divine name), is one of the main types. Names of this sort, given to cities of administrative significance, were probably chosen to show that the Assyrians were ready to enhance the local economy.An exhaustive examination of the evidence relating to cities named Kar-X and those called karu or bit-kar; on the western frontiers illustrates the advance of Assyrian colonization and trade control, which eventually spread over the entire region of the eastern Mediterranean. The Assyrian kiirus on the frontiers served to secure local trading activities according to agreements between the Assyrian king and local rulers and traders, while representing first and foremost the interest of the former party.The official in charge of the kiiru(s), the rab-kari, appears to have worked as a royal deputy, directly responsible for the revenue of the royal house from two main sources: (1) taxes imposed on merchandise and merchants passing through the trade center(s) under his control, and (2) tribute exacted from countries of vassal status. He thus played a significant role in Assyrian exploitation of economic resources from areas beyond the jurisdiction of the Assyrian provincial government.

The settlement of Yauna, ‘Ionian’ identity and the Greek presence on the Syrian coast in the second half of the eighth century BC: a reassessment of two letters from the Nimrud correspondence

“…19 As discussed in detail by Bagg (2011) 194-205. For an assessment of Shalmaneser III's campaigns in the west, see Yamada (2000).…”

“…For a brief description of the archive, see Radner (2014b) 82. 35 On Qurdi-Aššur-lamur's dossiers of letters, see Yamada (2008); on Qurdi-Aššur-lamur in the royal correspondence and the royal inscriptions of Tiglath-pileser III (here anonymously as the governor of Ṣimirra), see Luukko (2012) xvii, xlviii-xlix. Note the convincing suggestion of Na'aman (2018) 44 that after the annexation of the kingdom of Damascus in 732 BC, Qurdi-Aššur-lamur left his position at Ṣimirra to take up the appointment as the inaugural governor of the newly created province of Damascus.…”

“…In some of his letters, the name Qurdi-Aššur-lamur is abbreviated to Qurdi-Aššur: SAA 19 29-32. 37 For the arguments, see Yamada (2008) accepts the argument for placing Samsimurruna, and therefore also the other sites, in El-Mina and the islands around it, then one could argue that it was this cluster of three settlements that gave Tripolis its later Greek name, meaning 'three cities'.…”

“…46 For the sources, see Bagg (2007) 123-24 s.v. Jaman;Yamada (2019) 229 table 4. The topic had a first blossoming in the 1980s, see especially Helm (1980); Braun (1982); Brown (1984); Brinkman (1989).…”

“…But, such pottery on its own has been sensibly considered an insufficient indicator for a 5 For the supposed reference to [ina] ka-a-ri ša KUR.ia- [ú-na] in SAA 19 25 rev. 2', translated by Luukko as '[at the p]ort of Io [nia]' and accepted by Yamada (2019) 229 table 4, see below section IV, n.44. 6 Pioneering work that opened up the rich and varied discourse on the subject includes, for example, Boardman (1980); Buchner (1966) 12;Burkert (1992) 14-25;Morris (1992); West (1997).…”