Amarna letter EA 158

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EA 161, Obverse
(slightly out-of-focus) Amarna Akkadian letter.png
EA 161, Obverse
(slightly out-of-focus)

Amarna letter EA 158, titled: "Father and Son", [1] is a moderate length letter from Aziru, the leader of the region of Amurru. The letter is written to the Egyptian official, Tutu/ (Dudu). EA 158 is the third letter in a series of 16 letters regarding Aziru.

Contents

In synopsis, the 16 letters talk of servitude to the Pharaoh:

The Amarna letters, about 300, numbered up to EA 382, are a mid 14th century BC, about 1360 BC and 20–25 years later, correspondence. The initial corpus of letters were found at Akhenaten's city Akhetaten, in the floor of the Bureau of Correspondence of Pharaoh; others were later found, adding to the body of letters.

Letter EA 158 (also see here-(Obverse): ), is numbered C 4758 (12205), from the Cairo Museum.

Summary of the Aziru letters sub-corpus

The letter

EA 158: "Father and Son"

EA 158, letter number three of a series of 16 (2 from the Pharaoh), from Aziru of the Amurru kingdom. (Not a linear, line-by-line translation.) [2]

Obverse (See here: )

(Lines 1-4)T[o] Tutu, my lord, [my] father: Message of Aziru, your son, our servant.1I fall at the feet of my father. For my father may all go well.
(5-9) Tutu, I herewi[th gr]ant2the re[ques]t of the ki[ng. m]y l[or]d, [and] whatever may be the request [o]f the king, my lord, he should write and I w[ill g]rant it.
(10-13)Moreover, a[s] you in that place are my father, whatever may be the request of Tutu, my f[at]her, just write andIwill grant it.3
(14-19)[A]s you are my father and my lord, [and] I am your son, the land of Amurru is your [lan]d, and my house is your house. [Wr]ite me any request at all of yours, and I will grant your[eve]ry4request.
(20-26)[And] you are in the personal service [of the king, m]y [lord. Hea]ven forbid5that treacherous men have spoken maliciously [again]st me6in the presence of the king, my lord. And you should not permit them.

Reverse (See here: )

(27-31)[And a]syou are7in the personal service [of the king, m]y lord,representing me,8you should not permit malicious talk [ag]ainst me.
(32-35)I am the servant of the king, my lord, and I will [n]ot deviate from the orders of the king, my lord, or from the orders of Tutu, my father, forever.
(36-38)[But i]fthe king, my lord, does not love me and rejects me, then what a[m] I to s[a]y?(complete EA 158, with major & minor lacunae restored, lines 1-38)


See also

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Amarna letter EA 9

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Amarna letter EA 35 Clay tablet letter from the King of Alashiya to the King (Pharaoh) of Egypt

Amarna letter EA 35, titled The Hand of Nergal, is a moderate length clay tablet letter from the king of Alashiya to the king (pharaoh) of Egypt. The letter has multiple short paragraphs, with scribed, single-lines showing the paragraphing. Paragraphs I-VII are on the letter's obverse; paragraph VIII starts at the bottom edge and continues, ending at Paragraph XIII on the clay tablet's reverse.

Amarna letter EA 86 Clay tablet

Amarna letter EA 86, titled: Complaint to an Official, is a somewhat moderate length clay tablet letter from Rib-Hadda of city-state Byblos to Amanappa, an official at the court of the Pharaoh.

Amarna letter EA 323

Amarna letter EA 323, titled: A Royal Order for Glass, is a smaller, square, mostly flat clay tablet letter written on both sides, but only half of the reverse; it is also written on the bottom, and is a letter from 'governor' Yidya, and is a short letter like many of his other Amarna letters, numbered EA 320 to EA 326.

Amarna letter EA 149

Amarna letter EA 149, titled: "Neither Water nor Wood" is a moderate- to extended-length clay tablet Amarna letter from Abimilku of Tyre-(called Ṣurru in the letters), written to the Pharaoh of Egypt.

Amarna letter EA 23

Amarna letter EA 23, titled: "A Goddess Travels to Egypt", is a short letter to Pharaoh from Tushratta. Due to the ill health of Pharaoh, a statue of Goddess Šauška is being sent to Egypt, to aid in the health of Pharaoh.

Amarna letter EA 38

Amarna letter EA 38, titled A Brotherly Quarrel, is a letter from the King of Alashiya. One identifier of many of the Amarna letters, is the use of paragraphing. Six paragraphs are in this letter, with much of the letter's reverse – uninscribed.

Amarna letter EA 39

Amarna letter EA 39, titled: "Duty-Free", is a fairly short letter from the King of Alashiya. Almost half the letter, Para I, is a shortened greeting formula. The letter is requesting the Pharaoh to let messengers pass freely, as they are also being represented as merchants; this also applies to their shipping.

Amarna letter EA 59

Amarna letter EA 59, titled: "From the Citizens of Tunip", is a short- to moderate-length clay tablet Amarna letter from the city-state of Tunip, written to the Pharaoh of Egypt. Only one other city sent a clay tablet Amarna letter to the Pharaoh, namely Irqata, letter EA 100, titled: "The City of Irqata to the King".

Amarna letter EA 156

Amarna letter EA 156, titled: "Aziru of Amurru", is a very short letter from Aziru, the leader of the region of Amurru. EA 156 is the first letter in a series of 16 letters regarding Aziru.

Amarna letter EA 170

Amarna letter EA 170, titled: "To Aziru in Egypt", is a moderate length letter, from Aziru, the leader of the region of Amurru. EA 170 is the fifteenth letter in a series of 16 letters regarding Aziru.

Amarna letter EA 147

Amarna letter EA 147, titled A Hymn to the Pharaoh, is a moderate length clay tablet Amarna letter from Abimilku of Tyre-(called Ṣurru in the Abimilku letters, and an island, until the time of Alexander the Great, 330 BC). The letter is a twin letter to EA 149, which is identical in length, and complexity, and EA 147 appears to precede EA 149.

References

  1. Moran, William L. 1987, 1992. The Amarna Letters. EA 158, "Father and Son", pp. 244-245.
  2. Moran, William L. 1987, 1992. The Amarna Letters. EA 158, "Father and Son", pp. 244-245.