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Ḫartapus

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(Redirected from Hartapu) 8th-century BCE Neo-Hittite king in Anatolia This article contains cuneiform script. Without proper rendering support, you may see question marks, boxes, or other symbols instead of cuneiform script.
Ḫartapus
  • Great King
  • Hero
  • The Sun
  • Beloved of Tarḫunzas
The Kızıldağ relief of Ḫartapus with his aedicula in front of him.The Kızıldağ relief of Ḫartapus with his aedicula in front of him.
Great king of ?
ReignEarly 8th century BCE
PredecessorMursilis (?)
Luwian𔓟𔖱𔐞𔕯𔗔‎
FatherMursilis

Ḫartapus or Kartapus was an Anatolian king who in the early 8th century BCE ruled a state in what is presently the region of Konya in modern Turkey.

Name

The name of this king was variously written as:

  • Ḫartapus:
    • 𔓟𔖱𔐞𔕯𔗔‎
    • 𔓟𔖱𔐞𔗣𔗔‎
    • 𔗖𔐞𔕯𔗔‎
  • and Kartapus: 𔗧𔖱𔐞𔕯𔗔‎

Etymology

The name Ḫartapus/Kartapus is not attested outside of this king's inscriptions and it does not correspond to Hittite or Luwian naming conventions, and was thus a non-Luwian name. It has therefore been interpreted as a Luwian pronunciation of a non-Luwian name.

Alternative reading

An alternative reading of this king's name could be Ḫarputas or Ḫarbudas, which might be composed of the Anatolian suffix -tta-, and whose root might also be found in the toponyms Ḫarbudā (𒌷𒄯𒁍𒋫𒀀𒀸) and Ḫarbudauna (𒌷𒄯𒁍𒋫𒌋𒈾𒀸).

Dating

The monuments of Ḫartapus show a discrepancy between their art style, which show Neo-Assyrian influence, and their palaeography, which reflects a style from the 13th century BCE. Additionally, Ḫartapus himself is not known outside of his own monuments and is not mentioned in Neo-Assyrian sources, which has led to significant debate regarding how to date Hartapus since the discovery of this king in the early 20th century AD.

Early dating

Due to the archaising features of the inscriptions of Ḫartapus which show significant similarities with the Hieroglyphic Luwian writing traditions of the Hittite Empire, as well as the typically Hittite name of his father Mursilis, his reign had previously been dated to the late 2nd millennium BCE:

  • according to Trevor Bryce, Ḫartapus lived in the 13th century BCE during the final years of the Hittite Empire;
  • according to Mark Weeden, Ḫartapus lived in the early 12th century BCE, in the period immediately following the collapse of the Hittite Empire.

According to proponents of an earlier dating of Ḫartapus, the designation Muska for a people defeated by him referred to a population with a specific lifestyle rather than to an ethnic group, and was identical with the Eastern Muški of the Assyrian records.

Several proposals for the identity of Ḫartapus were proposed within the earlier dating scheme:

  • Dietrich Sürenhagen [de] had identified him as the son of the Hittite king Muršili II, thus making Ḫartapus a brother of Muwatalli II and Ḫattušili III.
  • the earlier identification prevalent among Hittitologists considered him to be the son of the Hittite king Urḫi-Teššub, who had assumed the throne name of Mursili III before being dethroned by Ḫattušili III, after which his descendants formed their own rival kingdom in Tarḫuntašša; according to this proposal, the Kızıldağ relief was instead carved at least four centuries after Ḫartapus, by either Wasusarmas of Tabal or Ambaris of Bīt-Burutaš.
    • Bryce hypothesised that Ḫartapus had ruled from Tarḫuntašša and attempted to claim the Hittite throne following the ouster of his father, with his victories mentioned in his inscriptions referring to his wars against the authority in Ḫattusa, which were alluded to by the ruling Hittite king Tudḫaliya IV as rebellions that he had to deal with.
Reliefs of seated figures from the 8th to 7th centuries BCE.Stele of Katumuwa of Samʾal, late 8th century BCE.Seated figure from the South Gate of Karatepe-Aslantaş, late 8th century BCE.Relief of the Neo-Assyrian queen Libbāli-šarrat seated in the gardens of Nineveh, 7th century BCE.
  • Rostyslav Oreshko dated the inscriptions of Ḫartapus to the 12th or early 11th century BCE and identified him as a king of Maša in northwestern Anatolia, which he identified with Muska, that is early Phrygia.
    • Oreshko hypothesised that the inscriptions of Ḫartapus referred to an attempt by him to expand Masa up to the eastern and southeastern mountain boundaries of the Central Anatolian Plains after the collapse of the Hittite Empire.

Double Ḫartapus hypothesis

According to Weeden and John David Hawkins [de], most of the inscriptions by Ḫartapus, especially the 4th Kızıldağ and 1st Karadağ inscriptions, had been written in the 12th century BCE, while the 1st Kızıldağ, Burunkaya, 1st Türkmen-Karahöyük, and his relief were from the 8th century BCE. Their conclusion, which was also shared by Lorenzo D'Alfonso and Matteo Pedrinazzi, was therefore that two Ḫartapus had reigned:

  • a Ḫartapus I, son of Mursilis, who had reigned in the 12th century BCE, and who had defeated the Muska;
  • and a Ḫartapus II, who was not the son of Mursilis and who reigned in the early 8th century BCE.

Proponents of this double king hypothesis have identify Ḫartapus I as a descendant of the king Kuruntiya of Tarḫuntašša.

Later dating

Based on the shape of the hieroglyphs in the inscriptions of Hartapus, Petra Goedegebuure and Theo van den Hout dated them to the 8th century BCE. Therefore, John Osborne and Michele Massa have contested the interpretations of Weeden and Hawkins because the various monuments of the alleged Ḫartapus II portrayed him in ways that did not distinguish him from the purported Ḫartapus II|: this practice did not follow the known reuse of the monuments of earlier similarly named rulers, and instead conflated the two Ḫartapus while diminishing the achievents of Ḫartapus II in his own inscriptions by contrasting him unfavourably with the Ḫartapus I despite reusing his monuments, wordings and titles.

Furthermore, the relief of Ḫartapus at Kızıldağ depicted him in an Assyrianising artistic style, such as his body's proportions, his beard and hairstyle as well as his dress, his hat with folded earmuffs, his upwards pointed shoes, the shape of the bowl and the way he holds it, while the imagery of the enthroned king used in the relief was common throughout the Iron Age Syro-Anatolian region, including the Katumuwa stele of Zincirli Höyük and a relief from the South Gate of Karatepe-Aslantaş; this imagery was related to the depictions of seated royalty from the Neo-Assyrian Empire, which include the image of the queen Libbāli-šarrat in the gardens of Nineveh.

Relief of Kilamuwa of Samʾal, 9th century BCE.

The art style of the relief, such as Ḫartapus's tripartite beard, him holding the bowl with the tips of this fingers, and his hairstyle, reflected influence from Neo-Assyrian royal depictions from the reigns of Ashurnasirpal II and Shalmaneser III, which was also visible in the reliefs of the king Kilamuwa of Samʾal.

Moreover, Ḫartapus is not mentioned in any of the records of the Neo-Assyrian Empire which started mentioning the Tabalian region during the reign of its king Tiglath-pileser III. Meanwhile, Ḫartapus claimed to have conquered Phrygia, which would have been impossible during the time of its expansion under its king Midas during late the 8th century BCE.

Therefore, Osborne and Massa have concluded that the various inscriptions refer to a single Ḫartapus, son of Mursilis, who reigned during the early 8th century BCE, before Midas had become the king of Phrygia.

Life

Ḫartapus was the son of one Mursilis.

Reign

The inscriptions of Ḫartapus were largely concentrated in the Konya-Karaman Plain, suggesting that this area was the core territory of his kingdom, which appears to have been centred around the site corresponding to present-day Türkmen-Karahöyük, where was located Ḫartapus's royal residence.

The Konya-Karaman Plain within which the kingdom of Ḫartapus was located formed the western part of the group of kingdoms referred by the Neo-Assyrian Empire as the Tabalian region, although it was unlikely but not impossible that the Neo-Assyrians had any specific knowledge of the region of Ḫartapus's kingdom.

Unlike the later part of his reign, the earliest monuments of Ḫartapus did not contain the titles of "Great King" and "Hero."

Monuments

Several Hieroglyphic Luwian inscriptions by Ḫartapus are recorded:

  • five are recorded from Mount Kızıldağ;
  • two are recorded from Mount Karadağ;
  • one is recorded from Türkmen-Karahöyük;
  • one is recorded from Burunkaya.

The inscriptions of Ḫartapus are characterised by archaic orthography and palaeography and the use of aediculae similar to imperial Hittite ones from the 13th century BCE, which is a feature that they shared with the Topada inscription of Wasusarmas of Tabal.

Ḫartapus had built a step monument at Kızıldağ, where inscriptions celebrate his foundation of a settlement at that site. Ḫartapus had also built a monument on mount Karadağ, which might have been meant to parallel the one at Kızıldağ, and where his inscriptions were dedicated to the storm-god Tarḫunzas of Heaven and to the Divine Great Mountain, which was likely Mount Karadağ itself.

The capital city of Ḫartapus, corresponding to present-day Türkmen-Karahöyük, was located close to the mounts Karadağ and Kızıldağ, which were likely peak sanctuaries where Ḫartapus conducted rituals, that is sacred sites connected to that capital city, and these three sites were mutually visible with each other.

The building of monuments on the mounts might therefore have been part of a policy by Ḫartapus to monumentalise these ritual landscapes within and around his capital, similarly to similar arrangements during the Hittite Empire at Hattuša, Zippalanda and Mount Daha, and Šarišša and Lake Šupitaššu.

Thus, the monuments at Mount Kızıldağ and Karadağ fitted the common Bronze and Iron Age Anatolian tradition of connecting capital cities to landscape monuments through ritual processions led by the kings and religious officials. The site of Mount Kızıldağ also provided attendees with a spectacular view, which made it an ideal site for ritual ceremonies.

The Kızıldağ monuments of Ḫartapus also include a rock relief representing him seated on a high-backed throne with a footstool under his feet, bearded and long-haired, wearing a peaked cap and a long robe, and holding a bowl in his right hand and a stick in his left hand. This relief was unusual with respect to traditional Hittite imagery since normally only gods were represented as seated figures while kings were never depicted as such; it was instead modelled on a Neo-Assyrian model, and represented him celebrating a military victory so as to confirm the legitimation of Hartapus's status as Great King.

War against Phrygia

In his 1st Türkmen-Karahöyük inscription, Ḫartapus claimed to have conquered the 𔐓𔗬𔗜𔗔‎ (𔑾𔑶𔗧𔔆‎), that is the Muški, with this inscription being the first attestation of the Muški outside of Syro-Mesopotamian sources from the 12th and 7th century BCE. These Muska referred to the kingdom of Phrygia prior to its period of expansionism under the reign of Midas, and this conflict between the kingdom of Ḫartapus and Phrygia appears to have resulted from a rivalry between these two polities which preceded by several decades the reign of Ḫartapus.

The kingdom of Ḫartapus was however not powerful enough to have conquered early Phrygia, that is the territory of the Sakarya-Porsuk basin, and the 1st Türkmen-Karahöyük inscription instead recorded Hartapus's defeat of a raid from the region of the Phrygian city of Gordion.

The 1st Türkmen-Karahöyük inscription, which records a victory by him against thirteen kings and the building or capture of ten fortress, is similar in content, as well as in its writing style and shape of its hieroglyphs to the Topada inscription of the king Wasusarmas of Tabal, which describes Wasusarmas's war against eleven kings, with the inscriptions of both Ḫartapus and Wasusarmas possibly depicting different conflicts within the same war opposing an eastern Syro-Hittite coalition to a western Phrygian coalition.

Ḫartapus's and Wasusarmas's descriptions of their own respective wars against the Phrygians suggest that there might also have been a direct connection between these two kings.

The 1st Karadağ and 4th Kızıldağ inscriptions of Ḫartapus include the boast that he had "conquered every country" (𔔆𔗣𔔴𔑾𔐞𔕰‎, wattaniya punada muwatta kwis at Kızıldağ, and 𔔆𔗣𔕰𔗔𔔴𔐝𔐞‎, wattaniya punada kwis muwatta at Karadağ) which was a rare claim in Anatolian inscriptions from both the Bronze and Early Iron Ages. The repetition of this claim in these two inscriptions suggests that they both described the same conflict.

Some regions to the east of the Sultan Daği corresponding to the Lake Eber and the lower Kaystros river up to the area of Burunkaya might have been part of the kingdom of Ḫartapus.

New titulature

In his inscriptions following his victory on Muska, Ḫartapus referred himself as the "Great King" and used a royal cartouche topped by a winged disc, which were derived from the royal tradition of the Hittite Empire. After the end of the Hittite Empire, these titles are only attested to have been used by the kings of Karkamiš, the king Wasusarmas of Tabal and his father Tuwaddis, and Ḫartapus and his father Mursilis.

Thus, Ḫartapus was attempting to connect himself to the Hittite royal dynasty. Moreover, the kingdom of Ḫartapus appears to have been a direct successor state of the kingdom of Tarḫuntašša, and Ḫartapus might therefore also have tried to symbolically link himself to the king Kuruntiya of Tarḫuntašša.

Therefore, like the king Wasusarmas of Tabal, Ḫartapus also used traditional Hittite name and titles, showing that, despite Tabal and the kingdom of Ḫartapus being located in the western peripheries of the post-Hittite world, they were still fully culturally part of the heritage of the Hittite Empire.

War against Tabal (?)

The Burunkaya inscription of Ḫartapus was unusual in that, unlike his other inscriptions which were located within a 30 kilometre diameter territory in the Konya Plain, it was located 130 kilometres away from the capital of Ḫartapus, and 30 kilometres away from the Suvasa, Göstesin and Topada inscriptions of Wasusarmas of Tabal, 9 kilometres to the east of the Aksaray inscription of Kiyakiyas of Šinuḫtu, and 70 kilometres to the north-west of the Bor and Niğde inscriptions of Warpalawas II of Tuwana, with Kiyakiyas and Warpalawas II having both been allies of Wasusarmas in his war against the country of Prizuwanda.

The Burunkaya inscription was thus within the Tabalian territory, and its contents refer to a military victory; meanwhile, Wasusarmas's Topada inscription mentions the king of Prizuwanda placing his border on a mountain which might have been the Hasandağ volcano, and it also describes the cavalry of Wasusarmas crossing a river which might have been the Melendiz River.

This has led to the suggestion of a tentative identification between Ḫartapus and the king of Prizuwanda mentioned in Wasusarmas's Topada inscription. According to this proposal, the Türkmen-Karahöyük inscription might have been Ḫartapus's description of the same war that is the subject of the Topada inscription, and therefore painted Ḫartapus as the victor of this war while Wasusarmas claimed the victory in his Topada inscription. According to this tentative identification, the 13 kings mentioned in the 1st Türkmen-Karahöyük inscription of Ḫartapus might have been a coalition of Tabalian rulers.

If Ḫartapus was identical with the king of Prizuwanda, he would have ruled some time between c. 750 and c. 725 BCE, thus making him a contemporary of Wasusarmas of Tabal, in which case the peak of his power would have occurred immediately before the Phrygian king Midas's attempts to expand into Ḫiyawa after c. 720 BCE.

Archaeology

Due to the large number of archaeological sites in the Konya Plain which had remained unexcavated, in 2017 the archaeologists Michele Massa, Christoph Bachhuber and Fatma Şahin set up the Konya Regional Archaeological Survey Project to study the settlement history of this region.

Massa, Bacchuber and Şahin visited the large höyük at the site of Türkmen-Karahöyük when the Konya Regional Archaeological Survey Project survey started in 2017 and 2018, and recognised it as the largest site in the Konya Plain and its main urban centre in the Bronze and Iron Ages, after which the Türkmen-Karahöyük Intensive Survey Project was started by the archaeologist James Osborne as a sub-project of the Konya Regional Archaeological Survey Project.

In 2018, a local former discovered a royal stele commissioned by Ḫartapus and inscribed in Hieroglyphic Luwian near the site of Turkmen-Karahoyuk, and he informed the researchers of the Türkmen-Karahöyük Intensive Survey Project in the summer of 2019.

References

  1. Hawkins 2000b, p. 437-438.
  2. Hawkins 2000c, p. 433-437.
  3. Massa & Osborne 2022, p. 86-88.
  4. ^ Payne 2023, p. 870.
  5. Massa & Osborne 2022, p. 87.
  6. ^ Summers 2023, p. 111.
  7. ^ Hawkins 2000b, p. 438.
  8. ^ Hawkins 2000c, p. 433.
  9. ^ Oreshko 2017, p. 62.
  10. Massa et al. 2019, 01:16:09-01:17:06.
  11. Oreshko 2021, p. 89-90.
  12. Kryszeń 2023a.
  13. Kryszeń 2023b.
  14. Massa et al. 2019, 00:18:01-00:19:04.
  15. ^ Oreshko 2017, p. 48.
  16. ^ D'Alfonso & Pedrinazzi 2021, p. 131.
  17. ^ Weeden 2023, p. 929-930.
  18. Bryce 2012, p. 313.
  19. Oreshko 2017, p. 49.
  20. ^ Bryce 2009, p. 391.
  21. ^ Bryce 2012, p. 22.
  22. D'Alfonso & Pedrinazzi 2021, p. 136.
  23. Bryce 2012, p. 145.
  24. Oreshko 2017, p. 48-49.
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  26. Oreshko 2021, p. 85.
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  28. Oreshko 2017, p. 57-58.
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  42. D'Alfonso & Pedrinazzi 2021, p. 146-148.
  43. Goedegebuure et al. 2020, p. 41.
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  45. Summers 2023, p. 111-112.
  46. Bryce 2012, p. 21.
  47. ^ Weeden 2023, p. 929.
  48. Oreshko 2021, p. 90.
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  50. ^ Massa & Osborne 2022, p. 91.
  51. ^ Massa & Osborne 2022, p. 101.
  52. ^ Osborne et al. 2020, p. 20.
  53. Massa et al. 2019, 00:13:51-00:.
  54. Osborne et al. 2020, p. 2.
  55. Weeden 2023, p. 921-922.
  56. Weeden 2023, p. 928-929.
  57. ^ Weeden 2023, p. 996.
  58. Weeden 2010, p. 46-47.
  59. Massa & Osborne 2022, p. 94-95.
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  61. Massa et al. 2019, 00:20:35-00:20:45.
  62. Massa et al. 2019, 00:19:31-00:19:43.
  63. Massa et al. 2019, 00:20:45-00:21:16.
  64. Massa et al. 2019, 00:31:37-00:31:50.
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  69. D'Alfonso & Pedrinazzi 2021, p. 144.
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  71. Massa et al. 2019, 00:35:38-00:35:54.
  72. Massa et al. 2019, 00:35:59-00:37:14.
  73. Goedegebuure et al. 2020, p. 30.
  74. Massa & Osborne 2022, p. 96-97.
  75. Payne 2023, p. 879.
  76. Osborne et al. 2020, p. 22.
  77. Summers 2023, p. 112.
  78. Summers 2023, p. 122.
  79. ^ D'Alfonso & Pedrinazzi 2021, p. 150.
  80. Hawkins 2000c, p. 435.
  81. ^ Yakubovich, Ilya; Arkhangelskiy, Timofey. "KIZILDAĞ 4". Annotated Corpus of Luwian Texts. Retrieved 25 March 2023.
  82. Hawkins 2000c, p. 436.
  83. ^ Yakubovich, Ilya; Arkhangelskiy, Timofey. "KARADAĞ 1". Annotated Corpus of Luwian Texts. Retrieved 25 March 2023.
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  85. Oreshko 2017, p. 50.
  86. Oreshko 2021, p. 90-91.
  87. ^ Massa et al. 2019, 00:58:22-00:59:22.
  88. Weeden 2023, p. 998.
  89. Massa & Osborne 2022, p. 98-98.
  90. Massa & Osborne 2022, p. 98-99.
  91. Summers 2023, p. 114.
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Sources

Ḫartapus
Regnal titles
Preceded byMursilis? King of ?
Early 8th century BCE
Succeeded byUnknown
Rulers of the ancient Near East
Territories/
dates
Egypt Canaan Ebla Mari Kish/
Assur
Akshak/
Akkad
Uruk Adab Umma
Lagash Ur Elam
4000–3200 BCE Naqada I
Naqada II
Gebel el-Arak Knife
Egypt-Mesopotamia relations Pre-Dynastic period (4000–2900 BCE) Susa I

Uruk period
(4000–3100 BCE)


(Anu Ziggurat, 4000 BCE)

(Anonymous "King-priests")
Susa II
Susa II Priest-King with bow and arrows
(Uruk influence or control)
3200–3100 BCE Proto-Dynastic period
(Naqada III)
Early or legendary kings:
Upper Egypt
Finger Snail Fish Pen-Abu Animal Stork Canide Bull Scorpion I Shendjw Iry-Hor Ka Scorpion II Narmer / Menes
Lower Egypt
Hedju Hor Ny-Hor Hsekiu Khayu Tiu Thesh Neheb Wazner Nat-Hor Mekh Double Falcon Wash
3100–2900 BCE Early Dynastic Period
First Dynasty of Egypt
Narmer Palette
Narmer Palette

Narmer Menes Neithhotep (regent) Hor-Aha Djer Djet Merneith (regent) Den Anedjib Semerkhet Qa'a Sneferka Horus Bird
Canaanites Jemdet Nasr period
(3100–2900 BCE)
Proto-Elamite
period
(Susa III)
(3100–2700 BCE)
2900 BCE Second Dynasty of Egypt

Hotepsekhemwy Nebra/Raneb Nynetjer Ba Nubnefer Horus Sa Weneg-Nebty Wadjenes Senedj Seth-Peribsen Sekhemib-Perenmaat Neferkara I Neferkasokar Hudjefa I Khasekhemwy
Khasekhemwy
Early Dynastic Period I (2900–2700 BCE)
First Eblaite
Kingdom

First kingdom of Mari
Kish I dynasty
Jushur, Kullassina-bel
Nangishlishma,
En-tarah-ana
Babum, Puannum, Kalibum
2800 BCE


Kalumum Zuqaqip Atab
Mashda Arwium Etana
Balih En-me-nuna
Melem-Kish Barsal-nuna
Uruk I dynasty
Mesh-ki-ang-gasher
Enmerkar ("conqueror of Aratta")
2700 BCE Early Dynastic Period II (2700–2600 BCE)
Zamug, Tizqar, Ilku
Iltasadum
Lugalbanda
Dumuzid, the Fisherman
Enmebaragesi ("made the land of Elam submit")
Aga of Kish Aga of Kish Gilgamesh Old Elamite period
(2700–1500 BCE)

Indus-Mesopotamia relations
2600 BCE Third Dynasty of Egypt

Djoser
Saqqarah Djeser pyramid
(First Egyptian pyramids)
Sekhemkhet Sanakht Nebka Khaba Qahedjet Huni
Early Dynastic Period III (2600–2340 BCE)
Sagisu
Abur-lim
Agur-lim
Ibbi-Damu
Baba-Damu
Kish II dynasty
(5 kings)
Uhub
Mesilim
Ur-Nungal
Udulkalama
Labashum
Lagash
En-hegal
Lugal-
shaengur
Ur
A-Imdugud
Ur-Pabilsag
Meskalamdug
(Queen Puabi)
Akalamdug
Enun-dara-anna
Mes-he
Melamanna
Lugal-kitun
Adab
Nin-kisalsi
Me-durba
Lugal-dalu
2575 BCE Old Kingdom of Egypt
Fourth Dynasty of Egypt
Snefru Khufu

Djedefre Khafre Bikheris Menkaure Shepseskaf Thamphthis
Ur I dynasty
Mesannepada
"King of Ur and Kish", victorious over Uruk
2500 BCE Phoenicia (2500-539 BCE) Second kingdom of Mari

Ikun-Shamash
Iku-Shamagan
Iku-Shamagan


Ansud
Sa'umu
Ishtup-Ishar
Ikun-Mari
Iblul-Il
Nizi
Kish III dynasty
Ku-Baba
Akshak dynasty
Unzi
Undalulu
Uruk II dynasty
Ensha-
kushanna
Mug-si Umma I dynasty

Pabilgagaltuku
Lagash I dynasty

Ur-Nanshe


Akurgal
A'annepada
Meskiagnun
Elulu
Balulu
Awan dynasty
Peli
Tata
Ukkutahesh
Hishur
2450 BCE Fifth Dynasty of Egypt

Userkaf Sahure Neferirkare Kakai Neferefre Shepseskare Nyuserre Ini Menkauhor Kaiu Djedkare Isesi Unas
Enar-Damu
Ishar-Malik
Ush
Enakalle
Elamite invasions
(3 kings)
Shushun-
tarana

Napilhush
2425 BCE Kun-Damu Eannatum
(King of Lagash, Sumer, Akkad, conqueror of Elam)
2400 BCE Adub-Damu
Igrish-Halam
Irkab-Damu
Kish IV dynasty
Puzur-Suen
Ur-Zababa
Urur Lugal-kinishe-dudu
Lugal-kisalsi
E-iginimpa'e
Meskigal
Ur-Lumma
Il
Gishakidu
(Queen Bara-irnun)
Enannatum
Entemena
Enannatum II
Enentarzi
Ur II dynasty
Nanni
Mesh-ki-ang-Nanna II
Kiku-siwe-tempti
2380 BCE Sixth Dynasty of Egypt
Teti Userkare Pepi I Merenre Nemtyemsaf I Pepi II Merenre Nemtyemsaf II Netjerkare Siptah
Kneeling statuette of Pepy I
Adab dynasty
Lugalannemundu
"King of the four quarters of the world"
2370 BCE Isar-Damu Enna-Dagan
Ikun-Ishar
Ishqi-Mari
Invasion by Mari
Anbu, Anba, Bazi, Zizi of Mari, Limer, Sharrum-iter
Ukush Lugalanda
Urukagina
Luh-ishan
2350 BCE Puzur-Nirah
Ishu-Il
Shu-Sin
Uruk III dynasty
Lugalzagesi
(Governor of Umma, King of all Sumer)
2340 BCE Akkadian Period (2340–2150 BCE)
Akkadian Empire

Sargon of Akkad Rimush Manishtushu
Akkadian Governors:
Eshpum
Ilshu-rabi
Epirmupi
Ili-ishmani
2250 BCE Naram-Sin Lugal-ushumgal
(vassal of the Akkadians)
2200 BCE First Intermediate Period
Seventh Dynasty of Egypt
Eighth Dynasty of Egypt
Menkare Neferkare II Neferkare Neby Djedkare Shemai Neferkare Khendu Merenhor Neferkamin Nikare Neferkare Tereru Neferkahor Neferkare Pepiseneb Neferkamin Anu Qakare Ibi Neferkaure Neferkauhor Neferirkare
Second Eblaite
Kingdom
Third kingdom of Mari
(Shakkanakku
dynasty)

Ididish
Shu-Dagan
Ishma-Dagan
(Vassals of the Akkadians)

Shar-Kali-Sharri
Igigi, Imi, Nanum, Ilulu (3 years)
Dudu
Shu-turul
Uruk IV dynasty
Ur-nigin
Ur-gigir
Lagash II dynasty
Puzer-Mama
Ur-Ningirsu I
Pirig-me
Lu-Baba
Lu-gula
Ka-ku
Hishep-Ratep
Helu
Khita
Puzur-Inshushinak
2150 BCE Ninth Dynasty of Egypt
Meryibre Khety Neferkare VII Nebkaure Khety Setut
Ur III period (2150–2000 BCE)
Nûr-Mêr
Ishtup-Ilum

Ishgum-Addu
Apil-kin
Gutian dynasty
(21 kings)

La-erabum
Si'um
Kuda (Uruk)
Puzur-ili
Ur-Utu
Umma II dynasty
Lugalannatum
(vassal of the Gutians)
Ur-Baba
Gudea

Ur-Ningirsu
Ur-gar
Nam-mahani

Tirigan
2125 BCE Tenth Dynasty of Egypt
Meryhathor Neferkare VIII Wahkare Khety Merykare


Uruk V dynasty
Utu-hengal
2100 BCE (Vassals of UR III) Iddi-ilum
Ili-Ishar
Tura-Dagan
Puzur-Ishtar
(Vassals of Ur III)
Ur III dynasty
"Kings of Ur, Sumer and Akkad"
Ur-Nammu Shulgi Amar-Sin Shu-Sin
2025-1763 BCE Amorite invasions Ibbi-Sin Elamite invasions
Kindattu (Shimashki Dynasty)
Middle Kingdom of Egypt
Eleventh Dynasty of Egypt
Mentuhotep I Intef I Intef II Intef III Mentuhotep II Mentuhotep III Mentuhotep IV
Third Eblaite
Kingdom

(Amorites)
Ibbit-Lim

Immeya Indilimma
(Amorite Shakkanakkus)
Hitial-Erra
Hanun-Dagan
(...)


Lim Dynasty
of Mari
(Amorites)
Yaggid-Lim Yahdun-Lim Yasmah-Adad Zimri-Lim (Queen Shibtu)
Old Assyria
Puzur-Ashur I
Shalim-ahum
Ilu-shuma
Erishum I
Ikunum
Sargon I
Puzur-Ashur II
Naram-Sin
Erishum II
Isin-Larsa period
(Amorites)
Dynasty of Isin: Ishbi-Erra Shu-Ilishu Iddin-Dagan Ishme-Dagan Lipit-Eshtar Ur-Ninurta Bur-Suen Lipit-Enlil Erra-imitti Enlil-bani Zambiya Iter-pisha Ur-du-kuga Suen-magir Damiq-ilishu
Dynasty of Larsa: Naplanum Emisum Samium Zabaia Gungunum Abisare Sumuel Nur-Adad Sin-Iddinam Sin-Eribam Sin-Iqisham Silli-Adad Warad-Sin Rim-Sin I (...) Rim-Sin II
Uruk VI dynasty: Alila-hadum Sumu-binasa Naram-Sin of Uruk Sîn-kāšid Sîn-iribam Sîn-gāmil Ilum-gamil An-am Irdanene Rîm-Anum Nabi-ilišu
Sukkalmah dynasty

Siwe-Palar-Khuppak
Twelfth Dynasty of Egypt
Amenemhat I Senusret I Amenemhat II Senusret II Senusret III Amenemhat III Amenemhat IV Sobekneferu
1800–1595 BCE Thirteenth Dynasty of Egypt
Fourteenth Dynasty of Egypt
Abraham
(Biblical)
Kings of Byblos
Kings of Tyre
Kings of Sidon
Yamhad
(Yamhad dynasty)
(Amorites)
Old Assyria

(Shamshi-Adad dynasty
1808–1736 BCE)
(Amorites)
Shamshi-Adad I Ishme-Dagan I Mut-Ashkur Rimush Asinum Ashur-dugul Ashur-apla-idi Nasir-Sin Sin-namir Ipqi-Ishtar Adad-salulu Adasi

(Non-dynastic usurpers
1735–1701 BCE)
Puzur-Sin Ashur-dugul Ashur-apla-idi Nasir-Sin Sin-namir Ipqi-Ishtar Adad-salulu Adasi

(Adaside dynasty
1700–722 BCE)
Bel-bani Libaya Sharma-Adad I Iptar-Sin Bazaya Lullaya Shu-Ninua Sharma-Adad II Erishum III Shamshi-Adad II Ishme-Dagan II Shamshi-Adad III Ashur-nirari I Puzur-Ashur III Enlil-nasir I Nur-ili Ashur-shaduni Ashur-rabi I Ashur-nadin-ahhe I Enlil-Nasir II Ashur-nirari II Ashur-bel-nisheshu Ashur-rim-nisheshu Ashur-nadin-ahhe II

First Babylonian dynasty
("Old Babylonian Period")
(Amorites)

Sumu-abum Sumu-la-El Sin-muballitSabium Apil-Sin Sin-muballit Hammurabi Samsu-iluna Abi-eshuh Ammi-ditana Ammi-saduqa Samsu-Ditana

Early Kassite rulers


Second Babylonian dynasty
("Sealand Dynasty")

Ilum-ma-ili Itti-ili-nibi Damqi-ilishu
Ishkibal Shushushi Gulkishar
DIŠ+U-EN Peshgaldaramesh Ayadaragalama
Akurduana Melamkurkurra Ea-gamil

Second Intermediate Period
Sixteenth
Dynasty
Abydos
Dynasty
Seventeenth
Dynasty

Fifteenth Dynasty of Egypt
("Hyksos")
Pharaoh Ahmose I slaying a Hyksos
Pharaoh Ahmose I slaying a Hyksos

Semqen 'Aper-'Anati Sakir-Har Khyan Apepi Khamudi
Mitanni
(1600–1260 BCE)
Kirta Shuttarna I Parshatatar
1531–1155 BCE
Tutankhamun
Tutankhamun
New Kingdom of Egypt
Eighteenth Dynasty of Egypt
Ahmose I Amenhotep I
Third Babylonian dynasty (Kassites)
Agum-Kakrime Burnaburiash I Kashtiliash III Ulamburiash Agum III Karaindash Kadashman-harbe I Kurigalzu I Kadashman-Enlil I Burnaburiash II Kara-hardash Nazi-Bugash Kurigalzu II Nazi-Maruttash Kadashman-Turgu Kadashman-Enlil II Kudur-Enlil Shagarakti-Shuriash Kashtiliashu IV Enlil-nadin-shumi Kadashman-Harbe II Adad-shuma-iddina Adad-shuma-usur Meli-Shipak II Marduk-apla-iddina I Zababa-shuma-iddin Enlil-nadin-ahi
Middle Elamite period

(1500–1100 BCE)
Kidinuid dynasty
Igehalkid dynasty
Untash-Napirisha

Thutmose I Thutmose II Hatshepsut Thutmose III
Amenhotep II Thutmose IV Amenhotep III Akhenaten Smenkhkare Neferneferuaten Tutankhamun Ay Horemheb Hittite Empire

Ugarit
Nineteenth Dynasty of Egypt
Ramesses I Seti I Ramesses II Merneptah Amenmesses Seti II Siptah Twosret
Elamite Empire
Shutrukid dynasty
Shutruk-Nakhunte
1155–1025 BCE Twentieth Dynasty of Egypt

Setnakhte Ramesses III Ramesses IV Ramesses V Ramesses VI Ramesses VII Ramesses VIII Ramesses IX Ramesses X Ramesses XI

Third Intermediate Period

Twenty-first Dynasty of Egypt
Smendes Amenemnisu Psusennes I Amenemope Osorkon the Elder Siamun Psusennes II

Phoenicia
Kings of Byblos
Kings of Tyre
Kings of Sidon

Kingdom of Israel
Saul
Ish-bosheth
David
Solomon
Syro-Hittite states Middle Assyria
Eriba-Adad I Ashur-uballit I Enlil-nirari Arik-den-ili Adad-nirari I Shalmaneser I Tukulti-Ninurta I Ashur-nadin-apli Ashur-nirari III Enlil-kudurri-usur Ninurta-apal-Ekur Ashur-dan I Ninurta-tukulti-Ashur Mutakkil-Nusku Ashur-resh-ishi I Tiglath-Pileser I Asharid-apal-Ekur Ashur-bel-kala Eriba-Adad II Shamshi-Adad IV Ashurnasirpal I Shalmaneser II Ashur-nirari IV Ashur-rabi II Ashur-resh-ishi II Tiglath-Pileser II Ashur-dan II
Fourth Babylonian dynasty ("Second Dynasty of Isin")
Marduk-kabit-ahheshu Itti-Marduk-balatu Ninurta-nadin-shumi Nebuchadnezzar I Enlil-nadin-apli Marduk-nadin-ahhe Marduk-shapik-zeri Adad-apla-iddina Marduk-ahhe-eriba Marduk-zer-X Nabu-shum-libur
Neo-Elamite period (1100–540 BCE)
1025–934 BCE Fifth, Sixth, Seventh, Babylonian dynasties ("Period of Chaos")
Simbar-shipak Ea-mukin-zeri Kashshu-nadin-ahi Eulmash-shakin-shumi Ninurta-kudurri-usur I Shirikti-shuqamuna Mar-biti-apla-usur Nabû-mukin-apli
911–745 BCE Twenty-second Dynasty of Egypt
Shoshenq I Osorkon I Shoshenq II Takelot I Osorkon II Shoshenq III Shoshenq IV Pami Shoshenq V Pedubast II Osorkon IV

Twenty-third Dynasty of Egypt
Harsiese A Takelot II Pedubast I Shoshenq VI Osorkon III Takelot III Rudamun Menkheperre Ini

Twenty-fourth Dynasty of Egypt
Tefnakht Bakenranef

Kingdom of Samaria

Kingdom of Judah
Neo-Assyrian Empire
Adad-nirari II Tukulti-Ninurta II Ashurnasirpal II Shalmaneser III Shamshi-Adad V Shammuramat (regent) Adad-nirari III Shalmaneser IV Ashur-Dan III Ashur-nirari V
Eight Babylonian Dynasty
Ninurta-kudurri-usur II Mar-biti-ahhe-iddina Shamash-mudammiq Nabu-shuma-ukin I Nabu-apla-iddina Marduk-zakir-shumi I Marduk-balassu-iqbi Baba-aha-iddina (five kings) Ninurta-apla-X Marduk-bel-zeri Marduk-apla-usur Eriba-Marduk Nabu-shuma-ishkun Nabonassar Nabu-nadin-zeri Nabu-shuma-ukin II Nabu-mukin-zeri
Humban-Tahrid dynasty

Urtak
Teumman
Ummanigash
Tammaritu I
Indabibi
Humban-haltash III
745–609 BCE Twenty-fifth Dynasty of Egypt
Taharqa
Taharqa
("Black Pharaohs")
Piye Shebitku Shabaka Taharqa Tanutamun
Neo-Assyrian Empire

(Sargonid dynasty)
Tiglath-Pileser Shalmaneser Marduk-apla-iddina II Sargon Sennacherib Marduk-zakir-shumi II Marduk-apla-iddina II Bel-ibni Ashur-nadin-shumi Nergal-ushezib Mushezib-Marduk Esarhaddon Ashurbanipal Ashur-etil-ilani Sinsharishkun Sin-shumu-lishir Ashur-uballit II

Assyrian conquest of Egypt Assyrian conquest of Elam
626–539 BCE Late Period
Twenty-sixth Dynasty of Egypt
Necho I Psamtik I Necho II Psamtik II Wahibre Ahmose II Psamtik III
Neo-Babylonian Empire
Nabopolassar Nebuchadnezzar II Amel-Marduk Neriglissar Labashi-Marduk Nabonidus
Median Empire
Deioces Phraortes Madyes Cyaxares Astyages
539–331 BCE Twenty-seventh Dynasty of Egypt
(First Achaemenid conquest of Egypt)
Kings of Byblos
Kings of Tyre
Kings of Sidon
Achaemenid Empire
Cyrus Cambyses Darius I Xerxes Artaxerxes I Darius II Artaxerxes II Artaxerxes III Artaxerxes IV Darius III
Twenty-eighth Dynasty of Egypt
Twenty-ninth Dynasty of Egypt
Thirtieth Dynasty of Egypt
Thirty-first Dynasty of Egypt
331–141 BCE Argead dynasty and Ptolemaic Egypt
Ptolemy I Soter Ptolemy Keraunos Ptolemy II Philadelphus Arsinoe II Ptolemy III Euergetes Berenice II Euergetis Ptolemy IV Philopator Arsinoe III Philopator Ptolemy V Epiphanes Cleopatra I Syra Ptolemy VI Philometor Ptolemy VII Neos Philopator Cleopatra II Philometor Soter Ptolemy VIII Physcon Cleopatra III Ptolemy IX Lathyros Cleopatra IV Ptolemy X Alexander Berenice III Ptolemy XI Alexander Ptolemy XII Auletes Cleopatra V Cleopatra VI Tryphaena Berenice IV Epiphanea Ptolemy XIII Ptolemy XIV Cleopatra VII Philopator Ptolemy XV Caesarion Arsinoe IV
Hellenistic Period
Seleukos I Nikator Tetradrachm from Babylon
Seleukos I Nikator Tetradrachm from Babylon
Argead dynasty: Alexander III Philip III Alexander IV
Antigonid dynasty: Antigonus I
Seleucid Empire: Seleucus I Antiochus I Antiochus II Seleucus II Seleucus III Antiochus III Seleucus IV Antiochus IV Antiochus V Demetrius I Alexander III Demetrius II Antiochus VI Dionysus Diodotus Tryphon Antiochus VII Sidetes
141–30 BCE Kingdom of Judea
Simon Thassi John Hyrcanus Aristobulus I Alexander Jannaeus Salome Alexandra Hyrcanus II Aristobulus II Antigonus II Mattathias
Alexander II Zabinas Seleucus V Philometor Antiochus VIII Grypus Antiochus IX Cyzicenus Seleucus VI Epiphanes Antiochus X Eusebes Antiochus XI Epiphanes Demetrius III Eucaerus Philip I Philadelphus Antiochus XII Dionysus Antiochus XIII Asiaticus Philip II Philoromaeus Parthian Empire
Mithridates I Phraates Hyspaosines Artabanus Mithridates II Gotarzes Mithridates III Orodes I Sinatruces Phraates III Mithridates IV Orodes II Phraates IV Tiridates II Musa Phraates V Orodes III Vonones I Artabanus II Tiridates III Artabanus II Vardanes I Gotarzes II Meherdates Vonones II Vologases I Vardanes II Pacorus II Vologases II Artabanus III Osroes I
30 BCE–116 CE Roman Empire
(Roman conquest of Egypt)
Province of Egypt
Judea Syria
116–117 CE Province of Mesopotamia under Trajan Parthamaspates of Parthia
117–224 CE Syria Palaestina Province of Mesopotamia Sinatruces II Mithridates V Vologases IV Osroes II Vologases V Vologases VI Artabanus IV
224–270 CE Sasanian Empire
Province of Asoristan
Coin of Ardashir I, Hamadan mint.
Coin of Ardashir I, Hamadan mint.
Ardashir I Shapur I Hormizd I Bahram I Bahram II Bahram III Narseh Hormizd II Adur Narseh Shapur II Ardashir II Shapur III Bahram IV Yazdegerd I Shapur IV Khosrow Bahram V Yazdegerd II Hormizd III Peroz I Balash Kavad I Jamasp Kavad I Khosrow I Hormizd IV Khosrow II Bahram VI Chobin Vistahm
270–273 CE Palmyrene Empire
Vaballathus Zenobia Antiochus
273–395 CE Roman Empire
Province of Egypt Syria Palaestina Syria Province of Mesopotamia
395–618 CE Byzantine Empire
Byzantine Egypt Palaestina Prima, Palaestina Secunda Byzantine Syria Byzantine Mesopotamia
618–628 CE (Sasanian conquest of Egypt)
Province of Egypt
Shahrbaraz Sahralanyozan Shahrbaraz
Sasanian Empire
Province of Asoristan
Khosrow II Kavad II
628–641 CE Byzantine Empire Ardashir III Shahrbaraz Khosrow III Boran Shapur-i Shahrvaraz Azarmidokht Farrukh Hormizd Hormizd VI Khosrow IV Boran Yazdegerd III Peroz III Narsieh
Byzantine Egypt Palaestina Prima, Palaestina Secunda Byzantine Syria Byzantine Mesopotamia
639–651 CE Muslim conquest of Egypt Muslim conquest of the Levant Muslim conquest of Mesopotamia and Persia
Chronology of the Neolithic period Rulers of Ancient Central Asia
  1. Rulers with names in italics are considered fictional.
  2. Hallo, W.; Simpson, W. (1971). The Ancient Near East. New York: Harcourt, Brace, Jovanovich. pp. 48–49.
  3. "Rulers of Mesopotamia". cdli.ox.ac.uk. University of Oxford, CNRS.
  4. Thomas, Ariane; Potts, Timothy (2020). Mesopotamia: Civilization Begins. Getty Publications. p. 14. ISBN 978-1-60606-649-2.
  5. Roux, Georges (1992). Ancient Iraq. Penguin Books Limited. pp. 532–534 (Chronological Tables). ISBN 978-0-14-193825-7.
  6. ^ Per Sumerian King List
  7. Unger, Merrill F. (2014). Israel and the Aramaeans of Damascus: A Study in Archaeological Illumination of Bible History. Wipf and Stock Publishers. p. 5. ISBN 978-1-62564-606-4.
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