No title

The

BIBLICAL

ARCHAEOLOGIS 4

Publishedby THE

AMERICAN

SCHOOLS

OF ORIENTAL

RESEARCH

126 Inman Street, Cambridge, Mass. Vol. XXXIV

February, 1971

No. 1

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Fig. 1. Statue of Ur-Nina (Ur-Nanshe), mill. B.C.). (mid-3rd de Ninni-Zaza (1967),

the "great singer" at the court of king Iblul-Il of Mari

From Mission PI. XLVIa.

archeologique

de Mari,

III:

Les temples

d'Ishtarat

et

THE BIBLICALARCHAEOLOGIST (Vol. XXXIV,

2

is published quarterly (February, May, September, December) The Biblical Archaeologist by the American Schools of Oriental Research. Its purpose is to meet the need for a readable, non-technical, yet thoroughly reliable account of archaeological discoveries as they relate to the Bible. Editor: Edward F. Campbell, Jr., with the assistance of Floyd V. Filson in New Testament matters. Editorial correspondence should be sent to the editor at 800 West Belden Avenue, ChicaIllinois 60614. go, Editorial Board: W. F. Albright, Johns Hopkins University; G. Ernest Wright, Harvard University; Frank M. Cross, Jr., Harvard University; William G. Dever, Jerusalem. $5.00 per year, payable to the American Schools of Oriental Research, Subscriptions: 126 Inman Street, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139. Associate members of ASOR receive the BA automatically. Ten or more subscriptions for group use, mailed and billed to one address, $3.50 per year apiece. Subscriptions in England are available through B. H. Blackwell, Ltd., Broad Street, Oxford. Back Numbers: $1.50 per issue, 1960 to present: $1.75 per issue, 1950-59; $2.00 per issue before 1950. Please remit with order, to the ASOR office. The

journal

is indexed

in Art Index,

Index

end of every fifth volume of the journal itself.

to Religious

Periodical

Literature,

and at the

Second-class postage PAID at Cambridge, Massachusetts and additional offices. Copyright by American Schools of Oriental Research, 1971 PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, BY TRANSCRIPT PRINTING COMPANY PETERBOROUGH, N. H.

Contents ... .......2 Mari, by AbrahamMalamat............................................ .2... The "Ghassulian"Temple in Ein Gedi and the Origin of the 23 Hoard from Nahal Mishmar, by David Ussishkin ............................ .......... 39 N elson Glueck: In Memoriam ................................................................................

Mari ABRAHAM MALAMAT Hebrew

University,

Jerusalem

by the author to the (This article is a slightly modified version of the study "Mari" submitted to appear in late 1971 or early 1972); it is printed here by ENCYCLOPAEDIA JUDAICA (scheduled illustrations are svecifically Israel. The the kind permission of Kater Publishing Jerusalem, House, in our selected for RA readers. The article fully updates the early article of G. E. Mendenhall 1948 volume. Assyriologists will know that the letter h in all Akkadian words should be understood as the hard letter usually represented with a hook beneath it.)

Mari was one of the principal centers of Mesopotamia during the third and early second millennia B.C. The archaeological and epigraphical discoveries there are of prime significance for the history of Mesopotamia and upper Syria, and for biblical research, especially on Hebrew origins and the formative stages of Israelite history. Mari (sometimes Ma'eri in the cuneiform sources) was located at Tell Hariri, at present about a mile and onehalf west of the Euphrates near Abu Kemal, some fifteen miles north of the modern Syria-Iraqborder. It was in an optimal position for contacts with the west, and its location on the river artery, yet immediately adjacent to the desert, was continually decisive in the shaping of its fortune and character.

THE BIBLICALARCHAEOLOGIST

1971, 1)

Excavations

3

and Discoveries

The French excavations at Mari, instituted in 1933 under the direction of Andre Parrot, have continued (with a break during and after World War II) into their nineteenithseason in 1970. The archaeological evidence indicates that Mari was founded at the end of the 4th millennium B.C. (Jemdet Nasr period) and reached a cultural-artisticpeak during the first half of the 3rd millennium. Dating to this period ("Early Dynastic II-III,"or "pre-Sargonic")are a ziggurat and several *HATTUSHA

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.ISIN

4

A. M.

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00

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Fig. 2. Map of the Near East in the Mari period, prepared by the author.

sanctuaries: the temples of Dagan (where the earliest list of the Mari pantheon was discovered), Shamash, Ninhursag and Ishtar, together with the pair of temples of Ishtarat and Ninni-Zaza. In the three last-named, there came to light many inscribed statues of local kings (such as Lamgi-Mari, Iku-Shamaganand Iblul-I1), lesser royalty and courtiers (Fig. 1). Although Sumerian culture predominated, the characterof the cultic installations, the appearance of bearded figures in art, and especially the occurrence of particular divine and private names are all clearly indicative of a basic Semitic element from earliest times; Semites ruled Mari centuries before the rise of Akkad.

THE BIBLICALARCHAEOLOGIST (Vol. XXXIV,

4

Since 1964, the excavationshave revealedtwo superimposedpalaces from pre-Sargonictimes, most impressivein themselves,including a royal chapelwith an earthenaltar(cf. Exod.20:24); its sacredtraditionwas preservedeven in the Old Babylonianpalacebuilt there some 700 yearslater (see below). Within the palacecomplexa jar came to light containinga "treasure" includinga lapis lazuli beadwith a votiveinscriptionmentioning Mesannepada,founderof the First Dynasty of Ur. This indicatesa close contactbetweenMari and Ur at an earlydate,as do otherfnds fromMari such as shell inlays essentiallyidentical with those of the "Ur standard" (war panel). The pre-Sargonicpalace was destroyedeither by Eannatum of Lagash(mid-25thcenturyB.C.) or by Lugalzaggesiof Uruk (mid-24th century). r

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Fig. 3. Lapis lazuli bead with votive inscription of Mesannepada, king of Ur, found in the preSargonic palace (first half of 3rd mill. B.C.). From Mission archdologique de Mari. IV: Le 'trisor' d'Ur (1968), P1. XXII.

After Sargon's conquest in the second half of the 24th century, Mari became a vassal city within the empire of Akkad; among the epigraphic evidence from this period are the names of two daughters of Naram-Sin, king of Akkad. In the final two centuries of the 3rd millennium, Mari was a sort of loose dependency of 3rd-Dynasty Ur, flourishing anew under local governorswho bore the title Jakkanakku(eight are known by name). Indeed, a ruler of Mari is known to have given his daughter in marriage to a son of Ur-Nammu, king of Ur. The pre-eminence of Mari throughout the 3rd millennium is well reflected in epigraphic sources: in the Sumerian King List, it appears as the seat of the tenth post-diluvian dynasty; in the inscriptions of Eannatum

1971, 1)

THE BIBLICALARCHAEOLOGIST

5

mention is made of the penetration and repulse of forces from Mari as far south as Lagash; and Mari also appears in the inscriptions of Sargon and of Naram-Sin of Akkad. At the close of the 3rd millennium, Ishbi-Irra, "a man of Mari," founded the Isin dynasty and facilitated the collapse of the empire of 3rd-Dynasty Ur. After an obscure period of two centuries (from which several economic texts and 32 inscribed liver models are known), Mari reached its final period of glory, in the 18th century under West Semitic rule. Then Hammurapi, king of Babylon, quashed Mari, and it never regained its formerposition. In the 13th century, Tukulti-Ninurta I conquered the meager settlement there and stationed a garrison in the city for a short time. To round out the archaeologicalpicture, the uppermost layer on the site dates to the Seleucid-Roman period. In the second half of the 2nd millennium, Mari was still sufficiently important to be mentioned in the Nuzi documents (horses and chariots were sent there), -in recently found texts at Ugarit ("Ishtar of Mari" in an alphabetic text, and in an epithet of another deity in a Hurrian text), and in the Egyptian geographical lists of Thutmosis III and probably also of Ramses III (15th and 12th centuries, respectively). The land of Mari appears in the neo-Assyriangeographicaltreatise describing Sargon's Akkadian empire; it was on this basis that W. F. Albright identified Mari with Tell Hariri long before excavation began. Finally, Mari is mentioned in a Greek itinerary,in the (Aramaic) form Merrhan. The Old Babylonian

Palace and Royal Archives

The main discoveries at Mari are from the period of its domination by the West Semitic dynasties in the last quarter of the 19th century and the first half of the 18th century (reckoned on the "middle" chronology; if one uses the "low"chronology of Albright and others, the dates would be 64 years lower). Several temples of this period were built over corresponding sanctuaries of pre-Sargonic times, namely those of Ishtar, Ninhursag and Shamash; a second temple of Dagan, also known as the "lions temple" from bronze lions found flanking its entrance, was founded earlier, by the end of the 3rd millennium. Dagan, biblical Dagon, held a prime position in the West Semitic pantheon, and at Mari bore the titles "King of the Land" and "Lord of all the Great Gods." The outstanding architectural discovery from this period, however, is the royal palace, a structure of unparalleled magnificence and widespread fame in its time (Fig. 4). This residence, enlarged successively by each of the West Semitic rulers at Mari, reached its zenith under Zimri-Lim, attaining an area of about eight acres and including over 300 chambers, corridors and courts. Besides the private quarters for the royal family and en-

THE BIBLICALARCHAEOLOGIST (Vol. XXXIV,

6

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forecourt of Zimri-Lim's at Mari. Legend: foreign (B), palace (A), Fig. 4. Plan gateway visitor's quarters (C), kitchen great court (E), old throne-room with murals (F), (D), sacred area (G), sanctuary with earthen altar (H), sanctuary with podium (J), "dining mural hall" with murals (K), store-rooms and workshops (L), court 106 with investiture with statue of goddess on podium (N), throne-room (P), kitchens and (M), entrance-hall bath (Q), palace administration (R), steward's and officials' quarters (S), scribal school (T), royal quarters (V), "king's chamber" (W). The numbered rooms refer to the places administrative (5), where archives have been found: archives, mainly palace provisions and other molds for fancy cakes (77), disc inscription economic Yahdun-Lim's (18), archives economic texts (108), (110), liver models and Hurrian including archives, archives (115), administrative (111), diplomatic palace provisions mainly archives, economic archives (134 & economic archives, including documents of Sumu-Yamam (119), (142). of Yahdun-Lim documents economic and administrative archives, including 135),

1971, 1)

THE BIBLICAL ARCHAEOLOGIST

7

tourage, there are administrativeoffices, a scribal school, quarters for visiting dignitaries, a royal chapel, a throne room and a reception chamber. Service areas included guard quarters, workshops and storerooms.A special elegance was provided in several halls and courts by multicolored frescoes depicting chiefly ritual and mythological scenes, including one depicting the investiture of a king (perhaps Zimri-Lim?) in the presence of several deities (Fig. 5). This ceremony occurs in an idealized garden, its trees guarded by "Cherubim"and symbolically watered by four streams flowing

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.

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Fig. 5. Multi-color wall-painting in the Old Babylonian palace, depicting the investiture of a Mari king. From A. Parrot, Sumer (1960), pp. 279-280.

from a single source - all reminiscent of the biblical paradise story. Many of the figures in these murals are depicted as typical West Semites. The discovery of greatest impact on historical and biblical research comprises the more than 20,000 cuneiform tablets from the several archives in the palace, written in the Babylonian language. So far, some 3000 documents have been published by the noted AssyriologistsG. Dossin (dean of the Mari epigraphers), M. Birot, J. Bott6ro, Mme. M. L. Burke, A. Finet, J. R. Kupper, and the late G. Boyer and Ch. F. Jean; they are published mostly in the series Archives royales de Mari (henceforth ARM), I-XIII (1946-67). Though only a small proportion of the total found, these

8

THE BIBLICALARCHAEOLOGIST (Vol. XXXIV,

texts have shed much light on the administrative,economic, cultural and political face~tsmainly of upper Mesopotamia and upper Syria in the 18th century B.C., regions previouslyknown only vaguely. The archives were found to be distinguished according to subject. The political-diplomaticarchives (ARM I-VI and XIII) include correspondence between the king of Mari and his agents, both at the palace and abroad, as well as with foreign potentates. The 1000 letters published so far (compare the mere 350 at el-Amarna!) provide the earliest insight into the complexities of suzerain-vassalrelationships, diplomatic protocol, and the fluctuating alliances and plots rampant in the ancient Near East. A noteworthy class of letters is the extensive women's correspondence(so far, only cuneiform copies of 179 documents have been published, in ARM X), revealing the prominent role of females in activities of the realm. The outstanding case is that of Shibtu, Zimri-Lim's"chief wife," who entertained the king's utter confidence, representing his interests during his absence from the city and exercising considerable influence in her own right (cf. Fig. 8). The majority of documents (ARM VII, IX, XI and XII) are economic or administrative in nature, dealing with the maintenance of the palace, official trade abroad, lists of goods, and rosters of persons in royal employ (such as a list of nearly 1000 male and female captives (?) from the Harran-Nahor region, engaged in manufacturing clothes for the palace). Of a unique character are the some 1300 tablets containing lists of daily provisions for the palace, often summarizedby month. Though dealing only with "vegetarian"foodstuffs and beverages, they shed light on Solomon's "provisions for one day" and possibly also his monthly quantities (cf. I Kings 4:22-23, 27 [Heb.: 5:2-3, 7]; cf. also Neh. 5:17-18). The royal table at Mari, known to have entertained hundreds of guests on occasion, was served from spacious kitchens; in one of these were found numerous molds for preparing fancy cakes, some bearing animal and goddess motifs (recall Jer. 44:19 and see Fig. 9). Dozens of legal tablets were also found, mostly contracts concerning transactions and loans of silver or grain (ARM VIII), revealing that the palace served as a sort of exchange. Of exceptional interest is an adoption contract which ensured the "primogeniture"of the "eldest" (that is, first adopted) son, stipulating that he receive a double portion of the inheritance; this is in full accordwith biblical law (cf. Deut. 21:15-17). The very few literary and religious compositions found at Mari include a lengthy Ishtar-ritualin Babylonian, as well as six texts in Hurrian. That Hurrian was used occasionally in diplomatic correspondenceis known from the only other tablet at Mari in that language, a letter written to Zimri-Lim.

1971, 1)

THE BIBLICALARCHAEOLOGIST

9

Mari under West Semitic Rule

The origins of the West Semitic, or "Amorite,"dynasties is shrouded in darkness, though there are pointers to north Syria for the local line at Mari. Thus the theophoric name element -Lim, perhaps derived from "folk," "people"(see Ugaritic l'im and Hebrew le'om); is found at both Aleppo (in the dynastic name Yarim-Lim) and Mari (in the royal names Yagid-Lim, Yahdun-Lim and Zimri-Lim). It is also present in the name of Yashi-Lim, ruler of Tuttul (probably the one at the mouth of the Balikh river), several generations earlier th'an ithe time of the above-named. Furthermore, the title "king of Mari, Tuttul and land of Hana" was borne by both .the Zimri-Lim and Yahdun-Lim (Disc Inscription) (on a fragmentary inscription from Terqa, located between Tuttul and Mari). And, indeed, the site of ancestor worship for both the local and the "Assyrian"dynasties at Mari lay at Terqa, about 44 miles to the northwest at the mouth of the Khabur river. Hence, the immediate origin of the West Semitic rulers at Mari would appearto be in the Terqa region. The Reign of Yahdun-Lim. The historical figure of Yagid-Lim,founder of the local dynasty at Mari, is vague and none of his records have been found. Nor have many tablets from the reign of his son, Yahdun-Lim,been published, though in 1965 an archive of some 300 of his economic texts came to light. It is known, however, that Yahdun-Lim was able to stabilize his kingdom, establishing his dominance over the entire middle Euphrates region, as is evident from the dozen known year-formulasand especially the two extant royal inscriptionsfrom his reign. The shorter inscription, the "Disc Inscription," relates that YahdunLim fortified Mari and Terqa, founded a fortresson the desert fringe (naming it after himself: Dur-Yahdun-Lim), and laid out an extensive irrigation system, boasting that "I did away with the water bucket in my land." The other text, the Foundation Inscription of the Shamash Temple, is a splendid literary composition relating his campaign to the Mediterranean coast and to the "cedar and boxwood mountain," where he obtained several types of choice wood "and made known his might." However, this was probablyonly a passing episode and not a lasting conquest. Thirty-five economic texts published in 1970 mention two year-formulas for one Sumu-Yamam, an obscure character who ruled at Mari either before or after Yahdun-Lim. Also elusive is his kinship - whether to the local dynasty or otherwise - because the few other references to him, such as in a "letter to a god" (ARM I, 3), are inconclusive. This same letter also reveals the assassinationof Yahdun-Lim in a court conspiracy, much to the benefit of Shamshi-Adad, scion of a rival West Semitic dynasty, who established himself in Assyria, swiftly gaining control over large portions of Mesopotamia.

10

THE BIBLICAL ARCHAEOLOGIST

(Vol. XXXIV,

The Assyrian Interregnum. Yahdun-Lim's removal facilitated a takeover by Shamshi-Adad, who installed his son, Yasmah-Adad,as viceroy at Mari. Under his father's tutelage, Yasmah-Adadreorganized the local administration, cultivated ties with neighboring lands, and secured his flank against marauding nomads. Though his brother Ishme-Dagan, upon succeeding to the throne of Assyria, promised to maintain the proitectivepolicy of their father, Yasmah-Adadwas left adrift only three or four ecarslater when he was defeated by Lshnunna, a West Semitic kingdom beyond the Tigris. Altogether, Assyrian control of Mari lasted less then twenty years. The Kingdom of Zimri-Lim. Thus the stage was set for the advent of Zimri-Lim,son of Yahdun-Lim,who in the interim had lived in exile under the wing of Yarim-Lim,king of Yamhad (with his capital at Aleppo). YarimLim, who had become Zimri-Lim'sfather-in-law, was most instrumental in restoring him to the throne of Mari. Thirty-two year-formulasarc known for Zimri-Lim'sreign, though many of them are probably alternates for he cannot have ruled for so long a period. Zimri-Lim'sreign, during the tumultuous interval between Assyria'sdecline and the rise of the empire of Hammurapi, marks Mari at its apogee. It is this period which is best represented by the archives found at Mlari which provide thorough insight into organization of the kingdom. Interestingly, several of Zimri-Lim'sletters have recently been found in the royal archives at Tell er-Rimah (between the upper Khabur and the Tigris), probably to be identified with the city of Karana mentioned in the MTaricorrespondence. Mari had become a principal political force in 1Mesopotamia, alongside Babylon, Larsa, Eshnunna, Qatna, and Yamhad (as is known from a contemporarypolitical report). Relying heavily on his diplomatic cunning, Zimri-Lim developed an elaborate intelligence system, within his sphere of influence and beyond it. Frequent alliances, as with Yamhad and Babylon, were designed to meet the danger of the moment - for example, now against Eshnunna, then against Elam. His military endeavors were directed mainly against the hostile tribal federation of the Yaminites (the previously subdued Hanean tribes were alreadyin his service;for both, see furtherbelow). This political situation crystallized hand in hand with the development of economic ties branching out as far as the island of Dilmun (in the Persian gulf), Elam on the east, Arrapha and Shusharrain southern Kurdistan, Cappadocia in the north, Phoenicia and Palestine in the west, and even Kaptara/Crete in the Mediterranean. Indeed, tolls from caravan and riverine trade were one of Zimri-Lim'sprincipal sourcesof income. This golden age at Mlaricame to an abrupt end, however, when Hammurapi turned on his former ally and conquered the city in his 32nd year, during the consolidation of his empire - the year was 1759 B.C. by the

Summary (dates are "middle chronology" with "low chronology" in parentheses)

B.C.

Rule at Mari

Mari Dynasty

Yagid-Lim

(Sumu-Yamam ?)

1820 (1755)

Yahdun-Lim

(Sumu-Yamam ?) 1800

-

(1735) 1780 (1715)

1760 (1695)

Zimri-Lim

I-ammurapi

of Babylon

12

THE BIBLICAL ARCHAEOLOGIST

(Vol. XXXIV,

middle chronology, 1695 B.C. by the low chronology. Two years later he orderedthe city razed to the ground. Mari and the West

Mari was bound closely with the lands to the west - Syria and even northern Palestine - in economy, politics, culture, religion and ethnic background. We have noted above the ties between the local dynasty at Mari and that of the kingdom of Yamhad; Zimri-Lim'squeen, Shibtu, was from Aleppo and he appears to have held land there which was either a patrimony or received as a dowry. Similarly, the rival Assyrian dynasty at Mlari secured political ties in the west through the marriage of Yasmah-Adadto a princess from Qatna, Yamhad's southern adversary.Another form of contact with the west is the already-mentionedcampaign by Yahdun-Lim and the later expedition by Shamshi-Adadto the Levant. Zimri-Limis also known to have visited various places in the west: Yamhad, where he had presented a statue to "Adad the great god of Aleppo," and Ugarit, where he was accompanied by a select bodyguard (sabumnbehru; see below). The region father southwest is only sparingly mentioned in the Mari archives, but references are found to Byblos on the Phoenician coast and to the land of Amurru in southern Syria (the Apum of the Mari texts is most probably the one in the Khabur region and not the one near Damascus known from the contemporaryEgyptian Execration Texts and various later sources). In northern Palestine, Hazor and Laish (Dan) are noted in the Mlari archives as the destination of diplomatic and economic emissaries, as well as of shipments of tin (for making bronze), a commodity of importance among the exports to the west. In one instance,.emissarics passing through Mari are on their way to Yamhad, Qatna, Hazor and a fourth place whose name is broken (the traces in ARM VI, 23:23 may be restored to read "Megiddo,"rather than "Egypt,"which is sometimes proposed; Egypt, surprisinglydoes not appearin the Mari archives). On the other side of the ledger, Mari imported from the west horses and fine woods (from the Qatna region), various precious vessels of Syrian and "Cretan"style, Cypriot copper, fabrics and garments (especially from Aleppo and Byblos), and large quantities of foodstuffs such as honey, wine and olive oil. Mari and the Bible

The Mari documents have a manifold bearing upon early Israelite history: chronological,if the so-called patriarchalage is placed in the first third of the 2nd millennium (Middle Bronze II), keeping in mind of course that even the oldest portions of the Bible are of much later date; geographical, for the patriarchalhomeland, Aram-Naharaim,lay within Mari's horizons; ethnic-linguistic, the Hebrews being of the same West Semitic (or Amorite)

1971, 1)

THE BIBLICALARCHAEOLOGIST

13

stock as that so very much manifest at Mari; and sociological, for the descriptions of tribalism comprise the most extensive insight into the nomadic and settled phases of the Israelitetribes. Patriarchal Homeland. The cities of Harran and Nahor in the upper Balikh valley, which figure in the Bible as ancestral habitats of the patriarchs, are well documented as important dependencies controlled by governors from Mari (one of whom, Itur-asdu at Nahor, will be the subject of the forthcoming ARM XIV). Both cities were foci of tribal foment; at the temple of Sin at Harran a treaty between the "kings"of Zalmaqum and the Yaminites was sworn against Mari, while at Nahor reinforcementshad often to be called in to quell local uprisings inflamed by the Habiru. Alongside the West Semitic peoples in this region was a considerable Hurrian element (note the typically Hurrian name of king Adalshenni, who at one time gained control over Nahor), which may well have left an imprint upon the initial ethnic and cultural compositionof the Hebrews. The picture revealed in the Mari archives of far-reachingtribal migrations such as those of the Yamin-itegroups, and of caravan conditions between the Euphrates region and Syria-northPalestine, is a realistic backdrop for the biblical narratives of the patriarchalwanderings between Aram-Naharaim and Canaan. Ethno-linguistic Affinities:the West Semitic Idiom. Evidence for the West Semitic origin of the majority of the people figuring in the Nlari documents is revealed in the onomasticon and in specific linguistic features of the Mari dialect. Many of the hundreds of propernames known from the Mari texts are paralleled in the Bible, especially in the patriarchalnarratives and the Exodus-Conquest cycle, but at Mari the names often have theophoric components. For example, Jacob compares to Haqba-Ilammu, I laqbaahim, etc., while Ishmael compares to Yasmah-El, Yasmahb-Adad and Yasmah-Ba'al. Parallels even for the divine names YHWH and Shaddai, and for the epithet Sur, the "Rock,"are possible; for example, Yawi-ila and YawiAdad, and the Shadu/i- and Sura/i- names. The names of the Israelitetribes of Levi and Benjamin also seem to have their parallels. Thus the Nlari tribal 'Yaminites' bears the same connotadesignation DUMU.MES-yaamin(a) tion as Benjamin, namely "sons of the south," though it is preferable not to render the logogram for "sons" as West Semitic balinim, which would yield Ba/inu-yamina, conveniently homophonic with Hebrew Bin),amlin. The West Semitic imprint on the standardBabylonian language in use at Mari is evident to a certain extent in phonology, morphology, syntax and especially vocabulary. The lexical inadequacy of this standard Babylonian in specific spheres brought about at Mari the frequent adaptation of West Semitic expressions,of Babylonian words in new West Semitic connotations,

14

THE BIBLICALARCHAEOLOGIST (Vol. XXXIV,

and of out-and-out loanwords from the West Semitic - words well represented in biblical Hebrew (often in "exalted"language, as also at Mari). Besides the linguistic yield a comparative study of the West Semitic loanwords at Marl and their Hebrew cognates may broadly illuminate the nature of the societies involved. A list of such lexical items would include the following. Geographical terms: ha;zqumiz Hebrew 'emeq 'valley;'k/qasum = Hebrew qaseh '(desert) frontier;'hen (as a place name) - Hebrew 'ayin 'spring.'Points of the compass: aqdanmatum= Hebrew qedeimi'east;'ahartuii t = Hebrew 'ahar, 'ahor 'west;' north and south are attested in the tribal names DUAIU.AIE? sim'al = Hebrew seilol and DUMU.A ES-yanjin(a) I-eIbrew xvyan1in. ,,- .. . •:.. j iiT::* ...!i.•