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Although archaeological excavations
reveal that
the land of the Assyrians had been
inhabited as
early as 5000 B.C., it was not until the
reign of
King Sargon of Akkad in 2371 B.C. that
the
Assyrians first rose to glory. Under
Sargon, the
kingdom rapidly expanded north to the
city of
Ashur and as far west as the
Mediterranean,
controlled by a central government
based in
Akkad. By 1813 B.C., King Shamshi-
Adad I
united the cities of Ashur, Nineveh, and
Arbel
into one cohesive administrative unit.
These three
cities, as well as Arrapkha and Kalhu
(later known
as Nimrud), form the historical core of the
Assyrian Kingdom which would remain a
credible
force throughout the Mediterranean
world for the
next millennium. While various parts of
Assyrian
territory were annexed for brief periods of
time
by neighboring civilizations, this core
remained
firmly intact. The Assyrians experienced
another
Golden Age, lasting from the 9th until the
7th
Century B.C. (this period is referred to as
“Neo-
Assyrian”). During this period, the
kingdom grew
to its largest extent, encompassing the
lands
from parts of modern Iran to the
Mediterranean,
from Anatolia to Egypt. However, it
proved
difficult even for the powerful Assyrian
monarchs
to maintain control over this vast territory
for
very long. By the end of the 7th Century,
the
Assyrian Kingdom began to collapse
under the
weight of assaults from the Babylonians
to the
south and the newly founded Medes
Kingdom to
the east. In 612 B.C., Nimrud burned for
the
second time in three years, followed by
the
sacking of Ashur and Nineveh, effectively
ending
Assyrian control of the ancient Near East.
This is a plain angular slab with six-line
cuneiform inscription on one side. The
inscription reads: " Palace of Ashur-nasir-
apli, great king, mighty king, king of the
world, king of Assyria, son of Tukulti-
Ninurta, great king, mighty king, king of
the
world, king of Assyria, son of Adad-nirari,
king of the world, king of Assyria. Paving
slab
of the palace courtyard".
The king named here is Ashur-nasir-apli
II,
who ruled 884-859 BC. By Assyrian
standards, he was a very successful
king,
extensively campaigning, bringing back
much booty and building up his country.
In
particular, he moved the royal capital
from
Nineveh to Calh, modern Nimrud and
filled it
with imposing buildings. His own palace
of
course, was the most magnificent, and
this
slab comes from the pavement of the
courtyard of that palace. Similar slabs are
already known from the temple of the
Sibitti
gods, the temple of the goddess Kidmuri,
and from the "second house" , but this
is, so
far as is known, the only one to come
from
his palace courtyard. [Translation and
interpretation by Prof W.G. Lambert].
- (LO.636)
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