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. Aleppo is also the name of two townships in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. ... (4th millennium BC – 3rd millennium BC – 2nd millennium BC – other millennia) Events Syria: Foundation of the city of Mari (29th century BC ) Iraq: Creation of the Kingdom of Elam Germination of the Bristlecone pine tree Methuselah about 2700 BC, the oldest known tree still living now Dynasty of Lagash in... (Redirected from 1800 BC) (19th century BC - 18th century BC - 17th century BC - other centuries) (3rd millennium BC - 2nd millennium BC - 1st millennium BC) Events 1787 - 1784 BC -- Amorite conquests of Uruk and Isin 1786 BC -- Egypt: End of Twelfth Dynasty, start of Thirteenth Dynasty, start of Fourteenth Dynasty 1766... (Redirected from 1650 BC) Centuries: 18th century BC - 17th century BC - 15th century BC Decades: 1690s BC 1680s BC 1670s BC 1660s BC - 1650s BC - 1640s BC 1630s BC 1620s BC 1610s BC 1600s BC Events and trends Egypt: Start of Seventeenth Dynasty Significant people Categories: 1650s BC ...

The site is known today as Tell Mardikh, and is famous mainly for archives with more than 20,000 cuneiform tablets, dated from around 2250 BC, in Sumerian and in Eblaite — a previously unknown Semitic language similar to Akkadian. Cuneiform script The Cuneiform script is one of the earliest known forms of written expression. ... (Redirected from 2250 BC) (24th century BC - 23rd century BC - 22nd century BC - other centuries) (4th millennium BC - 3rd millennium BC - 2nd millennium BC) Events 2334 - 2279 BC (short chronology) Sargon of Akkads conquest of Mesopotamia 2217 - 2193 BC - Nomadic invasions of Akkad 2205 BC - Foundation of the Xia... Eblaite is an extinct East Semitic language which was spoken in the 3rd millenium BC in the ancient city Ebla, now in modern Syria. ... The Semitic languages are the northeastern subfamily of the Afro-Asiatic languages, and the only family of this group spoken in Asia. ... Akkadian was a language of the Semitic family spoken in ancient Mesopotamia, particularly by the Assyrians and Babylonians. ...

Discovery and excavation

In 1964, Italian archaeologists from the University of Rome La Sapienza directed by Paolo Matthiae began excavating at Tell 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. 1964 was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will take you to calendar). ... University of Rome La Sapienza is the most ancient university of Rome, Italy. ... Paolo Matthiae is Professor of Archaeology and History of Art of the Ancient Near East in the University La Sapienza of Rome; he has been Director of the Ebla Expedition since 1963, and has published many articles and books about Ebla, and about the History of Art of Mesopotamia and... 1968 was a leap year starting on Monday (the link is to a full 1968 calendar). ... Ishtar is the Akkadian counterpart to the Sumerian Inanna and to the cognate northwest Semitic goddess `Ashtart. ... The king Ibbit-Lim (ca 2000 B.C.) of Ebla in Syria is represented in a fragmentary basalt bust found in 1968 now at the Museum in Aleppo, where most of the findings from Ebla are kept. ... Akkad (or Agade) was a city and its region of northern Iraq) between Assyria to the northwest and Sumer to the south. ... (Redirected from 2500 BC) (26th century BC - 25th century BC - 24th century BC - other centuries) (4th millennium BC - 3rd millennium BC - 2nd millennium BC) Events 2900 - 2334 BC -- Mesopotamian wars of the Early Dynastic period 2494 BC -- End of Fourth Dynasty, start of Fifth Dynasty in Egypt. ... (Redirected from 2000 BC) (21st century BC - 20th century BC - 19th century BC - other centuries) (3rd millennium BC - 2nd millennium BC - 1st millennium BC) Events 2064 - 1986 BC -- Twin Dynasty wars in Egypt 2000 BC -- Farmers and herders travel south from Ethiopia and settle in Kenya. ... Cuneiform script The Cuneiform script is one of the earliest known forms of written expression. ... Semitic is an adjective referring to the peoples who have traditionally spoken Semitic languages or to things pertaining to them. ... Eblaite is an extinct East Semitic language which was spoken in the 3rd millenium BC in the ancient city Ebla, now in modern Syria. ... Sumer (or Shumer, Sumeria, Shinar, native ki-en-gir) formed the southern part of Mesopotamia from the time of settlement by the Sumerians until the time of Babylonia. ...

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 limestone 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. (31st century BC - 30th century BC - 29th century BC - other centuries) (4th millennium BC - 3rd millennium BC - 2nd millennium BC) Events 2925 - 2776 BC - First Dynasty wars in Egypt 2900 BC - Beginning of the Early Dynastic Period I in Mesopotamia. ... (4th millennium BC – 3rd millennium BC – 2nd millennium BC – other millennia) Events Syria: Foundation of the city of Mari (29th century BC ) Iraq: Creation of the Kingdom of Elam Germination of the Bristlecone pine tree Methuselah about 2700 BC, the oldest known tree still living now Dynasty of Lagash in... (Redirected from 2400 BC) (25th century BC - 24th century BC - 23rd century BC - other centuries) (4th millennium BC - 3rd millennium BC - 2nd millennium BC) Events 2900 - 2334 BC -- Mesopotamian wars of the Early Dynastic period 2350 BC - End of the Early Dynastic IIIb Period in Mesopotamia 2334 - 2279 BC -- Sargon... Akkad (or Agade) was a city and its region of northern Iraq) between Assyria to the northwest and Sumer to the south. ... (Redirected from 2300 BC) (24th century BC - 23rd century BC - 22nd century BC - other centuries) (4th millennium BC - 3rd millennium BC - 2nd millennium BC) Events 2334 - 2279 BC (short chronology) Sargon of Akkads conquest of Mesopotamia 2217 - 2193 BC - Nomadic invasions of Akkad 2205 BC - Foundation of the Xia...

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. The texts are accounts of the state revenues, but they also include royal letters, Sumerian-Eblaite dictionaries, school texts and diplomatic documents, like treaties between Ebla and other towns of the region. A map showing countries commonly considered to be part of the Middle East The Middle East is a region comprising the lands around the southern and eastern parts of the Mediterranean Sea, a territory that extends from the eastern Mediterranean Sea to the Persian Gulf. ...

Economy

At that time, Ebla was a major commercial center. Its major commercial rival was Mari, and Ebla is suspected in having a hand in Mari's first destruction. The tablets reveal that the city's inhabitants owned about 200,000 head 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 pharaohs Khafra and Pepi I. Handicrafts may also have been a major export: exquisite artifacts have been recovered from the ruins, including wood 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). Mari was an ancient city in Syria situated at the modern locality of Tell Hariri, on the western bank of Euphrates river. ... Lagash or Sirpurla was one of the oldest cities of Sumer and later Babylonia. ... Mesopotamia ( Greek: Μεσοποταμία, translated from Old Persian Miyanrudan the Land between the Rivers or the Aramaic name Beth-Nahrin two rivers) is a region of Southwest Asia. ... Kish (Tall al-Uhaymir) was an ancient city of Sumer, now in central Iraq. ... Khafra (Greek Chephren) was an Egyptian pharaoh of the Fourth dynasty, with his capital at Memphis. ... Pepi I Meryre (reigned 2332 - 2283 BC) was the third king of the Sixth dynasty of Egypt. ...

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 several "kings" among whom Igrish-Halam, Irkab-Damu, Ar-Ennum, and of two important viziers, Ibrium and Ibbi-Sipish. Apparently the role of vizier was hereditary as Ibrium was followed by his son.

Religion

Some well-known Semitic deities appear at Ebla (Dagan, Ishtar, Resheph, Kanish, Hadad), and some otherwise unknown ones (Kura, Nidakul), plus a few Sumerian gods (Enki and Ninki) and Hurrian gods (Ashtapi, Hapat, Ishara). The ancient god Dagon Dagon was a major northwest Semitic god, the god of grain and agriculture according the few sources to speak of the matter, worshipped by the early Amorites, by the people of Ebla, by the people of Ugarit and a chief god (perhaps the chief god) of... Ishtar is the Akkadian counterpart to the Sumerian Inanna and to the cognate northwest Semitic goddess `Ashtart. ... In north Semitic mythology, Resheph was a god of plague and war. ... Kültepe is the modern Turkish name for an ancient city in central eastern Anatolia, which was also called Kârum Kanesh merchant-colony city of Kanes in Assyrian (rendered Karum Kaniş in Turkish). ... Hadad (in Ugaritic Haddu) was a very important northwest Semitic storm god and rain god, cognate in name and origin with the Akkadian god Adad. ... Kura (Georgian Mtkvari, Azerbaijani Kür) is a river in the Caucasus Mountains. ... Enki was a deity in Sumerian mythology, later known as Ea. ... The Hurrians were a people of the Ancient Near East, who apparently entered Mesopotamia from the north before 2500 BC and established themselves as rulers of small kingdoms in northern Mesopotamia and Syria. ...

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. During the next three centuries, Ebla reached again a relevant economic position, possibly with the nearby city of Urshu, as is documented by economic texts from Nippur/Drehem (a suburb of Nippur), and from findings in Kultepe/Kanesh. Sargon (2334 BC - 2279 BC short chronology) was the first person in recorded history to create an empire, or multi-ethnic state. ... ... The city of Nippur (Sumerian Nibru, Akkadian Nibbur) was one of the most ancient of all the Babylonian cities of which we have any knowledge, the special seat of the worship of the Sumerian god, Enlil, ruler of the cosmos subject to An alone. ... Kültepe is the modern Turkish name for an ancient city in central eastern Anatolia, which was also called Kârum Kanesh merchant-colony city of Kanes in Assyrian (rendered Karum Kaniş in Turkish). ...

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. (Redirected from 1600 BC) Centuries: 18th century BC - 17th century BC - 16th century BC Decades: 1650s BC 1640s BC 1630s BC 1620s BC 1610s BC - 1600s BC - 1590s BC 1580s BC 1570s BC 1560s BC 1550s BC Events and trends Egypt: End of Fourteenth Dynasty The creation of one of... Amorite (Hebrew ’emōrî, Egyptian Amar, Akkadian Amurrū (corresponding to Sumerian MAR.TU or Martu) refers to a Semitic people who occupied the middle Euphrates area from the second half of the third millennium BC and also appear in the Tanakh. ... The king Ibbit-Lim (ca 2000 B.C.) of Ebla in Syria is represented in a fragmentary basalt bust found in 1968 now at the Museum in Aleppo, where most of the findings from Ebla are kept. ...

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 (Mursili I or Hattusili I). Alalakh is the name of an ancient city and its associated city-state of the Amuq River valley, located in the Hatay region of southern Turkey near the city of Antakya (ancient Antioch), and now represented by an extensive city-mound known as Tell Atchana. ... (Redirected from 1750 BC) (19th century BC - 18th century BC - 17th century BC - other centuries) (3rd millennium BC - 2nd millennium BC - 1st millennium BC) Events 1787 - 1784 BC -- Amorite conquests of Uruk and Isin 1786 BC -- Egypt: End of Twelfth Dynasty, start of Thirteenth Dynasty, start of Fourteenth Dynasty 1766... (Redirected from 1650 BC) Centuries: 18th century BC - 17th century BC - 15th century BC Decades: 1690s BC 1680s BC 1670s BC 1660s BC - 1650s BC - 1640s BC 1630s BC 1620s BC 1610s BC 1600s BC Events and trends Egypt: Start of Seventeenth Dynasty Significant people Categories: 1650s BC ... (Redirected from 1600 BC) Centuries: 18th century BC - 17th century BC - 16th century BC Decades: 1650s BC 1640s BC 1630s BC 1620s BC 1610s BC - 1600s BC - 1590s BC 1580s BC 1570s BC 1560s BC 1550s BC Events and trends Egypt: End of Fourteenth Dynasty The creation of one of... Hittite can refer to either: The ancient Anatolian people called the Hittites; or The Hittite language, an ancient Indo-European language they spoke. ... Mursili I (also spelled Murshili) was a king of the Hittites (c. ... Labarna II was the first king of the Hittite empire, reigning in Hattusa (while the earlier kings had been at Nesa), and taking the throne name of Hattusili I on that occasion. ...

Ebla never recovered from its second destruction. The city continued as a small village until the 7th century AD, then was deserted and forgotten until its archaeological rediscovery. (6th century - 7th century - 8th century - other centuries) Events Islam starts in Arabia, the Quran is written, and Arabs subjugate Syria, Iraq, Persia, Egypt, North Africa and Central Asia to Islam. ...

See also

• Biblical archaeology
• Ugarit

Biblical archaeology comprises excavations and chance discoveries of artifacts representing people, places, and things mentioned in the Bible. ... Ugarit (modern site Ras Shamra 35°35´ N; 35°45´E) was an ancient cosmopolitan port city, sited on the Mediterranean coast of northern Syria a few kilometers north of the modern city of Latakia. ...

External links

• Capsule history. (http://ragz-international.com/ebla.htm)
• Carol Miller, capsule history of Ebla. (http://www.syriagate.com/Syria/about/cities/Idlib/ebla-cm.htm)
• Ebla page by the Palestine Exploration Fund. (http://www.pef.org.uk/EarlySyriaPages/Ebla.htm)
• Ebla - Tell Mardikh (http://digilander.libero.it/jimdigriz/jor_syr/ebla.html) with photos and plans of the digs (in Italian).
• Ebla (http://perso.wanadoo.fr/spqr/ebla.htm) (in French).
• Contents of the Ebla tablets described, from a biblical scholar's perspective. (http://www.icr.org/pubs/imp/imp-046.htm)