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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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