The Amarna letters
An ancient inscription identified some of the ruins at el Amarna as "The Place of the Letters of the Pharaoh." Discovered there, circa 1887, were nearly four hundred cuneiform tablets containing correspondence of the Egyptian court with rulers of neighboring states in the mid-fourteenth century B.C. Previous translations of these letters were both incomplete and reflected an imperfect understanding of the Babylonian dialects in which they were written. William Moran devoted a lifetime of study …
Read More ↓Title Statements
- Full title :The Amarna letters / edited and translated by William L. Moran.
Summary
An ancient inscription identified some of the ruins at el Amarna as "The Place of the Letters of the Pharaoh." Discovered there, circa 1887, were nearly four hundred cuneiform tablets containing correspondence of the Egyptian court with rulers of neighboring states in the mid-fourteenth century B.C. Previous translations of these letters were both incomplete and reflected an imperfect understanding of the Babylonian dialects in which they were written. William Moran devoted a lifetime of study to the Amarna letters to prepare this authoritative English translation. The letters provide a vivid record of high-level diplomatic exchanges that, by modern standards, are often less than diplomatic. An Assyrian ruler complains that the Egyptian king's latest gift of gold was not even sufficient to pay the cost of the messengers who brought it. The king of Babylon refuses to give his daughter in marriage to the pharaoh without first having proof that the king's sister -- already one of the pharaoh's many wives -- is still alive and well. The king of Karaduniyash complains that the Egyptian court has "detained" his messenger -- for the past six years. And Egyptian vassal Rib-Hadda, writing from the besieged port of Byblos, repeatedly demands military assistance for his city or, failing that, an Egyptian ship to permit his own escape.
Read More ↓Edition Statements
- Publication Date:©1992.
- Edition:English-language ed
Publication Statements
- Publisher(s):Johns Hopkins University Press
- Place of Publication:Baltimore
- Language:eng
- Publication Date:©1992.
Notes
Translation of: Tell el-Amarna tablets.
The Physical Object
- Description:xlvii, 393 pages : : illustrations, maps ; : 25 cm
Edition Identifiers
- ISBN:0801842514, 9780801842511, 9780801867156, 0801867150
- oclc:ocm23901793
- LC Classification:PJ3886.E5
- Dewey Decimal:492/.1
Table of Contents
The Amarna letters -- Index of words discussed -- Index of proper names -- Map of the Near East in the Amarna period -- Map of vassal cities and Egyptian administrative centers.
Read More ↓Subjects
Writers
No reviews yet. Be the first to rate this work.
Related Works
more →
De oude culturen
The Phoenicians and the West: politics, colonies and trade
Aubet Semmler, Maria Eugenia
Aspects of Hellenistic kingship
Coins, bodies, games, and gold: the politics of meaning in archaic Gree…
Kurke, Leslie
Rape in antiquity
Amel-Marduk: 562-560 B.C: a study based on cuneiform, Old Testame…
Sack, Ronald H., (Ronald Herbert)
Rate & Review