Alfonso Archi - Hittes at Tell Afis (Syria)

Hittites at Tell Afis (Syria)
Author(s): Alfonso Archi and Fabrizio Venturi

Source: Orientalia , 2012, NOVA SERIES, Vol. 81, No. 1 (2012), pp. 1-55
Published by: GBPress- Gregorian Biblical Press
Stable URL: https://www.jstor.org/stable/43078115
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1
COMMENTATIONES
Hittites at Tell Afis (Syria)1
Alfonso Archi - Fabrizio Venturi
I. New Evidence of Cultural Links between Syria and Anatolia

through Analysis of Late Bronze Age II Tell Afis Material Culture
Fabrizio Venturi
Abstract. Northern Syria between 1350-1200 bc fell under Hittite control

after the successful campaigns of Šuppiluliuma I and Muršili II. Nevertheless, fol-
lowing the archaeological evidence, Hittite presence south to the Anatolian pla-
teau is elusive. Elements in material culture related to the Hittite homeland are
flimsy and textual sources coming from sites such as Ugarit and Emar show that
central power appeared uninterested in a direct annexation of the territories; polit-
ical control was exercised with the auxiliary use of officials, and from a certain
point in 13th bc, was basically delegated to the Viceroy of Karkamiš.
The site of Tell Afis, located on the Jazr plain, in the district of modern
Idlib (Syria), has recently given an important Late Bronze Age II sequence which
sheds new light on the political and cultural landscape of 13th bc northwest
Syria. Textual and archaeological evidence collected in phases VII-VI-Vb required
a reconsideration of the role played by the Hittites in inner-Syrian societies after
the conquest of the provinces.
1. The historical context
The political scenario of north-western Syria, characterized in the first

part of the Late Bronze Age by the Mitannian occupation, was affected in
the mid-l4th century bc by profound changes, when the Hittites reaffirmed
their interests in the region, with Šuppiluliuma I. Military campaigns and
1 For the publication of this material thanks go to Stefania Mazzoni, director of the
Archaeological Expedition at Tell Afis of the Università degli Studi di Firenze, and to Fajar
haj j i Mohammed, director of the Archaelogical Museum of Idlib (Syria).
Orientalia - 1

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2 Alfonso Archi - Fabrizio Venturi
political events referring to this king are known

umentation of Hittite, Ugaritic and Egyptian
After defeating the Mitannian central power, Šu
his sons rulers of the main centres: Telipinu
Piyašili (Šarri-Kušuh) over Karkamiš. Despite the m
luliuma I, the Syrian plateau states reluctantly ac
the situation remained unstable in the whole regio
century bc (Astour 1969; Klengel 1999: 196 ff.). M
Fig. 1 - Tell Afis and the excavated areas (elaborated b

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Hittites at Tell Afis (Syria) 3
two rebellions in his 7th and 9th years which caused Hit
vention (Del Monte 1983; Klengel 1992: 115-116; Bry
The new program of military expansion by the 19th dyn
culminating in the battle of Qadeš, was mainly con
southern provinces of Qadeš and Amurru (Klengel 1992
229). Therefore, throughout the 13th century bc, the n
benefited from relative stability under Hittite control. T
the Syrian political framework, which might have h
reign of Muwatalli or his successor Urhi-Teššup (D'A
led to Karkamiš emerging as the most important po
Viceroy of Karkamiš was in charge of administrative an
in the main northern Syrian capitals and was in direct c
the Egyptian Pharaoh. The affirmation of Karkamiš as p
the Syrian provinces corresponded to a progressive red
power: the centre of worship of the storm-god cult ma
spiritual and holy status (Klengel 2001: 265-267; Freu
The abundant documentation about Hittite politics in
13th century bc comes from Hattuša, Ugarit and Em
kingdom of Aštata. The textual evidence shows that
appeared uninterested in an effective annexation of the conq
limiting its control over them (apart from Aleppo and K
what G. M. Beckman called "a thin layer of imperi
(Beckman 1992: 49). The interests of the Great King or
Syrian capitals were looked after by officials such as "th
(dumu-lugal), the "Lord of the Country" (en kur77) o
the Land" (ugula-kalam-ma), but this was also done in
local rulers or a collegium of elders, as happened in Em
47-48; Lackenbacher-Malbran-Labat 2005: 229; Freu
This state of affairs makes it very difficult to identif
ence in Syrian conquered lands on an archaeological
effectively clear from the scanty evidence coming
Ugarit, Emar and Alalah is that the Hittites did not seem
ested either in diffusing their cultural traits outside the
the case of the Syrian provinces) in leaving evidence of
form of celebrative monuments (Freu 2006: 119; Gen
Furthermore, analysis of the phenomenon is complic
that between the coastal evidence of Ugarit and that of
Emar, there is a lacuna of textual and archaeological doc
cerning the whole north-western Syrian plateau. This lac
information has in the past created a sort of dichotom
and Inner Syria: the palace economy during the 13th

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wealthy centres of Ugarit, Ras Ibn Hani and Tell K

the states of Ugarit and Amurru, was contrasted in
political and demographic vacuum (McClellan 19
The site of Tell Afis, located on the Jazr pl
modern Idlib, has recently given an important La
raphy which sheds new light on the political a
north-western Syria. Two important building phas
and well-built residences, testify to the importanc
and administrative centre in the region. Moreover,
the Hittite language, found during the 2008-10 ca
the material culture which could be linked to the Anatolian tradition neces-
sitate a reconsideration of the role played by the Hittites in Inner-Syrian
societies after the conquest of the provinces.
2. The Late Bronze Age II stratigraphy at Tell Afis
Finds representing a long sequence overlapping Late Bronze Age and

Early Iron Age have been discovered in Area E4, situated on the western
slope of the acropolis (fig. 1). Of the seven phases detected, phases VII-
Vl-Vb concern the period in question. The most ancient phase VII has
been reached, starting in the 2006 campaign, in the south-east sector of the
area and is represented by the well-built residence F (fig. 2c). We have
identified2 13 rooms, 10 of which completely excavated, covering a partial
extension of 400 square meters. The southern block was devoted to domes-
tic activities; kitchen F3 was equipped with installations along its walls. A
tannur and a horseshoe-shaped oven were arranged near the south-east and
south-west walls respectively. In the vicinity of the latter, the two small
jars depicted in figs. 4.4-5 were found. The majority of the material was
concentrated on the north-east side of the room, near a shallow plaster vat:
a big storage jar (fig. 8.1), a smaller krater-jar (fig. 4.10), a jug (fig. 4.9)
and several domestic tools such as pestles and grinding stones. The north-
west sector had more sophisticated architecture, especially as concerns the
floor and wall finishing, all carefully plastered, which suggests a more
official function, as confirmed by nine cuneiform tablets found in this area.
The texts were located in the small rooms which surrounded room F 8
equipped with benches, at present the widest space discovered in the
building (8 x 4.5 m)3.
2 The excavations of area E4 have been carried out with Barbara Chiti, who is also re-
sponsible for the CAD rendering of the building F plan.
3 They were found in room F2 (TA.08.E.1), room F12 (TA.09.E.200-203) and room F13

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Fig. 2a Area E4 - Phase Vb buildings with the position of the phase VI structures (2b) and phase
VII building F (2c) (2a.b elaborated by F. Venturi; 2c elaborated by B. Chiti).

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The absence of destruction debris points to a vol

of residence F. A possible explanation for this actio
dition of the building structures as verified during
the walls and the floors of rooms F4-6 and Fll show
tion towards the east that the gap between the flo
cm. This suggests the progressive sinking of part o
the residence compromising the stability of the st
abandonment became necessary for static reasons; a
new terrace created by levelling the ancient walls br
surface onto a horizontal plane.
The area was then occupied by an open-air indust
structures are mainly preserved in the southeast se
is divided into two sub-phases. During phase VIb
was Structure 3, a wide pit surrounded by six wast
of ash. With phase Via, two new structures cove
Structure 1 was an articulated installation made
fireplaces. Structure 2 was an oval pit (4.30 x 2.30 m
with mud bricks, which also shows abundant signs
Even though particularly articulated, this open-ai
does not represent a real break in the urban develo
Rather, such structures were probably useful in th
tion of Phase Vb. It is therefore reasonable to assum
Vla-b did not cover a wide time-span.
The excavated area of phase Vb is now about 8
shows a coherent urban plan, composed of wide and
(fig. 3): A and E lie on the northern side of paved s
B opens onto its southern side. The importance of
area, about 300 square metres, by its 2-metre-thick
of large ashlar blocks for doorframes and staircase
a wide central room (Al) accessible from a bent-axis
group of secondary rooms surrounding the main cen
was gathered in two small storage rooms (A2, A7),
onto the western part of the central room, lost due
The limited excavated area of the adjacent buildi
sector (Venturi 2000b: 14-15; 2007: 129-133, 167-
57-58).
(TA.10.E. 186-189). In this small corpus, three cuneiform texts written in Hittite were found in
three different rooms: TA.08.E.1 in F2, TA.09.E.203 in F12 and TA.10.E.189 in F13. However,
the scattered arrangement of the tablets suggests that they belong to a more numerous corpus
located elsewhere in the building.

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Fig. 3 - Area E4. Sketch plan of the phase Vb residences (elaborate

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The structures of building B are less impressive. A

sive 3-metre-thick northern wall, all the inner walls
thick. The broad pillared room Bl, around which
were distributed, was the focus of this domestic unit
the pottery was stored mostly in small rooms clearly
cific function, in building B most of the material co
room, where many of the activities of the domestic
turi 2005: 69-70; 2007: 135-137, 170-177; 2008a).
The destruction of the phase Vb residences also re
stratigraphie break in our sequence. All the struct
buildings show evidence of a large fire. In some room
debris accumulated reached 2 m in height. After
during which the still-visible ruins of the Late Bronz
partly readapted for a short-lived occupation (phase
again rebuilt. With phase IV, the Iron Age I sequence
buildings were then replaced by domestic units surr
spaces interspersed with pits used for storage or
2007; 2008b).
3. Chronology
Phases VI and Vb have given rich repertories of m

they are scarcely relevant for chronological purpose
the Late Bronze Age sequence is represented by
TA.09.E.203 in Hittite, found in building F, which, b
reign of Hattušili III, date phase VII around the mid-
The lower limit comes from the post-destruction
presented by the first appearance on the site of Myce
In particular, a deep bowl with antithetic spiral deco
UIC early/Late Cypriote IIIA style places the end of
half of the 12th century bc (Bonatz 1998: 217-218, f
522, fig. 6.2; Venturi 2007: 269, fig. 56.1). Theref
three Late Bronze Age phases VII-VI-Vb a short ti
mately a century.
4 The reference in TA.08.E.1 to a queen associated with the tow

meaningful for the chronology. The fact that this toponym is quo
mentioning a vow carried out on the coast by a Hittite queen,
makes it likely that also the queen referred to in the letter of Te
tušili III (Archi, this fascicle).

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4. The standardized pottery production of phas
Following the above-mentioned proposed chronology,

dustry of the last Late Bronze Age phase Vb must be rep
very end of the 13th century bc and the beginning of t
Its features have been extensively analyzed and show so
acteristics. The most evident is a high standardization of
types. The mass-produced plain common ware makes up
selected diagnostic sherds. Imported pottery is complete
presence of local painted sherds is negligible. The most
in common ware (80% of the selected common ware she
lently reddish-yellow (5YR6/8) surface colour, but a
(10YR7/4) colour also occurs to a lesser extent. Cross
pale brown (10YR7/4) often with a grey core. The cla
high percentage of black and white mineral temper, but
is rarely used. Surface-finishing such as burnishing or
rare, as is any kind of painted or incised decoration.
Shallow and hemispherical bowls were basically ass
kind of fabric, but it was also commonly used for othe
kraters and to a lesser extent, for jars and jugs. From a
view, the production of shallow bowls is very distinctiv
could often be well-smoothed, but on the outer side
marks and scrapings are deep and clearly visible, esp
base which, when preserved, is rounded or small and fl
teristic of this assemblage is the high proportion of op
bowls and plates represent 30%, and together with sma
inated bowls and wide deep bowls make up 58% of th
The highest percentage of this ware comes from res
given the most complete range of shallow bowl rim
One of the elements in the material culture which has been taken as
proof of the administrative or political involvement of the New Hittite
kingdom in the conquered lands is the appearance in the sites of the so-
called drab ware. This term is used to define a particular pottery produc-
tion whose characteristics are immediately recognizable: mass-production
with a restricted number of shapes; a high percentage of open forms such
as shallow bowls with rounded base; a crude clay characterized by a high
percentage of mineral temper; surface colour which ranges from reddish-
brown to brownish to brown or red; lack of surface treatment or painted
decoration. Particularly distinctive in the shallow bowls with rounded base
is the uneven lower part of the external body which frequently shows
wheel-marks (Summers 1993: 47).

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Fig. 4 - Pottery in room F3 (phase VII) (drawn by S. Ma

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From the Hittite homeland in north-central Anatoli

spread to all corners of the empire in the 14-13th cent
attested from west to east in Gordion and Norçun Tepe, t
in the Cilician sites of Kilise Tepe, Tarsus and Kinet Hö
bank of the Euphrates at Tille Höyük. In sites characteriz
production, the typical 13th century bc imported Cypriot
tery is very rare (Kozal 2003: 68-69, 71-72). Even if th
strange for sites in Inner Anatolia such as Hattuša or Gord
larly significant in the Cilician coastal sites, being very c
terranean maritime commercial network.
The meaning of such a diffusion is still subject to debate. There is no
doubt that high standardisation in pottery horizons suggests large-scale pro-
duction carried out by specialist potters and that might reflect a sophisti-
cated productive chain or administrative system. Many scholars agree that
the diffusion of the drab ware is linked to Hittite political and military
expansion and consequently to the imposition of its centralized adminis-
trative model (Summers 1993: 47-48; Henrickson 1995: 86; Gates 2001:
137-138; Postgate 2007: 144). The drab ware identified in the provincial
sites, despite having morphological characteristics and fabrics similar to
that of the heart of the empire, was locally made. It is therefore plausible
that the Hittite control of the production happened in loco. M. H. Gates
suggests the presence in Kinet Höyük of potters working under direct gov-
ernment regulation in a centralized economic program (Gates 2001: 141).
J. N. Postgate, on the other hand, suggests that the drab ware in Kilise
Tepe was in use by an administrative and military establishment which was
closely dependent on the central authority (Postgate 2007: 145), thus im-
plying a very close relationship between drab ware and the Hittite political
presence in the empire's provinces.
The understanding of the correlation between cause (Hittite expansion)
and effect (drab ware diffusion) is complicated by the fact that the periph-
eral sites show "truncated assemblages" compared with those of the north-
central Anatolian plateau. In sites such as Gordion, Tarsus, Kinet Höyük,
Norçun Tepe and Tille Höyük, only a relatively limited number of Hittite
forms are known and they are different from site to site (Henrickson 1995:
87; Glatz 2009: 132). This leads to the conclusion that even if it were pos-
sible to prove this political and administrative expansion by the pottery
evidence, such an expansion cannot have followed uniform standards.
The high standardized common ware production and the wide pro-
portion of shallow bowls with rounded base give the Tell Afis assemblage
an overall similarity to this Anatolian tradition. As in the other peripheral
sites inside the empire border, Tell Afis has only a limited repertory of

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Fig. 5 - Phase Vb pottery: bowls and kraters (drawn by S

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north-central Anatolian forms. Our site lacks some of the

agnostic open shapes such as the plate with stepped rim o
thickened inward rim, but the bowls with bevelled or th
rims (figs. 5.4-8), the most prevalent shapes in Tell Afis,
in Hattuša, where it seems to be distinctive of the very las
tite period5, Tille Höyük (Summers 1993: 47-48, figs. 43.4
(Voigt-Henrickson 2000: 344, figs. 17.9.4-6, 10-13)6.
Two other Tell Afis shapes have counterparts in north
tolian production. Several examples of one-handled fus
narrow neck and pointed base were collected in phase
found in the open area just north of residence A (Ped
7-2-3, fig. 3.45. a). Two almost complete vessels (figs. 6.5-
in pit 9502, situated in the open space just west of the sou
wall of building B. Figs. 6.2-4 were found among other po
the pillared room Bl. Fig. 6.7 comes from area N1 (fig. 1),
excavated on the eastern slope of the acropolis. It belon
which corresponds stratigraphically to phase Vb of area E
good parallels from the Hittite capital Hattuša7 and is fou
tolian sites, such as Tarsus (Goldman 1956: fig. 322.11
(Summers 1993: fig. 54.2) and Gordion (Voigt-Henr
fig. 17.11). It is attested also in Alalah, level II (Woolley 1
39), and Emar (Caubet 1982: 73, fig. 31), i.e. in Mukiš a
were under Hittite control during the 13th century bc8. T
examples comes from Late Bronze Age levels in Tell
2007: 95-96, fig. 3.45b).
As well as the large pithoi which will be described i
paragraph (fig. 8), a smaller 60-80-centimetre-tall straigh
with a low carination was employed for storage purposes.
plete or almost complete vessels come from rooms A7 (fi
(fig. 7.5), but rim sherds related to this form (figs. 7.1-4
gular or outwardly-thickened with inner projection, a
floors and destruction layers of this phase, testifying
during this period. Good parallels come from the B^/earl
contexts in Tell Fray9, Malatya III10 and Tell Kazel (Ba
5 Müller-Karpe 1988: Taf. 33-34; Parzinger- Sanz 1992: Abb. 19 (type

58.2, 6, 10-13.
6 Even it the diiiiculty oí establishing reliable entena oí development
production has been more than once underlined (Schoop 2003: 171-1
7 Müller-Karpe 1988: 31, Taf. 3; Parzinger- Sanz 1992: Taf. 10.18,
8 H. Genz suggests a possible Hittite origin for these two sample
9 Cf. our fig. 7.5 with Pfalzner 1995: Taf. 183a.
10 Cf. our fig. 7.7 with Pecorella 1975: 100, tig. 10.3.

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Fig. 6 - Phase Vb pottery: fusiform jars (drawn by S. M

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Fig. 7 - Phase Vb pottery: krater-jars (drawn by S. Martelli).

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2000: 183, fig. 37k; Capet 2003: 113, fig. 48a). Th

typical in the final Hittite period, and the same shap
in the Oberstadt sequence of Hattuša11 and in Kuça
329, Abb. 12.2-3).
Regarding the appearance of such a pottery horizo
tistical study of the phase- VII- VI production has n
yet. However, in a preliminary way I have obser
with outwardly thickened rim (figs. 4.1-2) and krate
flaring rim (figs. 4.6, 10; 8.2) are already present
With the destruction of the phase Vb residences,
which I suggest could have a Hittite/Anatolian o
standardized production of common ware came to a
the same time, the fusiform jars and krater-jars w
The reddish-yellow shallow bowls are still presen
phases, but are now partly replaced by new types o
Mycenaean UIC : 1 and the local painted ware, conse
drops from 30% to 10% (Venturi 2000a; 2007; 20
5. Potmarks on storage jars (phases VII-VIa
The presence of potmarks on big storage jars c

Late Bronze Age phases. On the contrary, they disa
the destruction of the phase Vb residences. The ma
firing and were generally placed on the shoulder of
the jar of fig. 8.1 which has this sign below
(TA.07.E.543/1) is also the most ancient sample ex
floor of kitchen F3 in the phase VII residence. The
shield with two perpendicular lines forming a cross
from phase VI: TA.08.E.435/9 (fig. 8.2) belongs
(phase VIb); the sign is an upward-pointing triangle
by a vertical line; TA.05.E. 559/13 (fig. 8.3) was part
in situ inside the kiln 7965 (phase Via). The same
incised on its shoulder is also present on two compl
jars placed in two small storage rooms: TA.91.E.27
in room A2; TA.02.E.255/2 (fig. 8.5) in room E3
fig. 45.8). The body sherd TA.05.E.536/4 (fig. 8.4
Vb, and was found in the south-western corner of room B4 in the fill
11 Müller-Karpe 1988: Taf. 15 (Tlr)-16-17(T2k); Parzinger- Sanz 1992: Taf. 3.6-9, 19.17,
24.21-23, 28.1.

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which sealed the locus. The mark is composed of a cross

it is included in an oval sign.
The range of mark-types identified in Tell Afis finds
several Anatolian sites. The mark in fig. 8.1 is known
where about 20 different signs were identified, in p
shapes such as shallow bowls and kraters. It seems to be
of KH type nr. 34 used in phase 15 (1550-1350 bc; see Gates 2001:
fig. 6). It is also well-known in north-central Anatolia during the Hittite
imperial period. In Alaca Höyük, as in Kinet Höyük, it is used on bowls
(Koçay 1951: figs. 1-20), while in Ku§akli it appears on vessels mor-
phologically similar to the krater-jars of Tell Afis (Müller-Karpe 1998:
114, fig. 15.8; 159, fig. 39; 2001: 332, figs. 12.2-3). Some scholars suggest
that this mark has a relationship with the hieroglyph "king" (Müller-
Karpe 2001: 332).
The mark in fig. 8.2 finds its best comparison in Hattuša (Seidl 1972:
76, Abb 23, B36), Alaca Höyük (Koçay 1944: 54, pl. 39), and Tarsus
(Goldman 1956: fig. 318.1136). It is the only sign in Tell Afis associated
with a krater-jar vessel and in this case, the relationship between vessel
form and sign is particularly useful in defining a possible link between the
Tell Afis production and that of Anatolia.
The trident-shaped mark used in phases Vla-Vb (figs. 8.3, 5-6) was
incised in Hattuša on jars or below vertical handles (Seidl 1972: 76, Abb.
23, B30-33). It is also well-known in Cilicia; it appears in Kinet Höyük
phase 15 but is more common in phase 14 (types 21-23, 14th-13th centuries
bc; see Gates 2001: fig. 6, nr. 21-23), which testifies to an increase in drab
ware production (Gates 2006: 306). In Tarsus we find both the sharp
(figs. 8.3, 6) and the rounded version (fig. 8.5) (Goldman 1956: 204,
figs. 318.1132, 319.1150).
The use of marks on commodities was common to other Eastern Med-
iterranean regions, such as Cyprus or coastal Syria and concerned not only
pottery but also the ox-hide ingots found in the Uluburun shipwreck. How-
ever, it is necessary to point out that none of the Tell Afis graffiti are
present in the rich repertoire documented in Ugarit (Hirschfeld 2000:
190-192, tab. 1), while on the Uluburun ingots we only find the trident-
shaped type (Pulak 1998: 196, fig. 10). In Enkomi, we find both the trident
and the shield with inner cross (in only one case), but in the Cypriot site,
the incised signs are mostly executed after firing (Hirschfeld 2002: 95, tab.
I, nr. 23, 77).
The role and the meaning of these graffiti in the production chain of
pottery is a debated subject which has led to different theories. In Cilicia,
at Kinet Höyük and Tarsus they were prevalently carried out on shallow
Orientalia - 2

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Fig. 8 - Potmarks on storage jars: phase VII (1), VI (2-3), Vb (4-6)

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bowls and kraters. Therefore M. H. Gates suggests that th

ated with drab ware production could be indicative of the
tive strategies exported to the conquered provinces at
imperial expansion (Gates 2001: 141). In the context of th
terranean commercial network, as we know from import
Enkomi and Ugarit, the signs could be related to the tran
the wares and to entrepreneurial necessity, in particul
marks incised after the firing of the vase (Hirschfeld 20
As the Tell Afis marks were incised before firing and
sized storage vessels, neither hypothesis matches our evid
storage jars found in situ were placed in storage rooms
and in a kitchen (fig. 2c, F3) near the room F2 wher
TA.08.E.1 was found. Therefore it is possible that the mar
to the content or to its ownership. Even if used for differ
marks in Tell Afis could also reflect the existence of a centralized and
complex system, linked in this case to storage and distribution of primary
goods and foodstuffs inside the excavated residences. It is in this sense
significant that in Tell Afis, as in Kinet Höyük (Gates 2006: 304), these
marks disappeared completely at the end of the Late Bronze Age sequence
with the destruction of the last wealthy buildings of that period.
6. Two Metal objects (phase VI)
Two bronze objects were excavated during the 2007 campaign below
the stone-paved portion of the pillared room B1 floor (fig. 3): the lugged
axe TA.07.E.530/A and the decorated butt TA.07.E.511/D. They were sit-
uated on the top of the fill which sealed phase VII kitchen F3. The terrace
created by filling the phase VII rooms served to prepare the area for the
phase Vb reconstruction, but here the structures of the intermediate indus-
trial phase VI which preceded this rebuilding are negligible and the fill is
directly in contact with the B1 floor. In order to create the new terrace, a
depurated fill, extremely poor in materials, was used. It is therefore un-
likely that the position of the two objects was casual. They lay directly
below the slab which paved the eastern part of room Bl; TA.07.E.511/D
was situated a few centimetres from the north-eastern wall of the locus.
Therefore a possible explanation is that these two luxury items were a
ritual deposit immediately before the construction of residence B, and thus
we could ascribe them to the end of phase VI.
The lugged axe TA.07.E.530/A (fig. 9.1a-b) is 18.2 cm long and
7.2 cm large. It has a concave blade with a splayed cutting edge, pro-

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Fig. 9 - Bronze objects of phase VI (1-2) and lentoid s

(drawn by S. Martelli; photos by M. Necci).

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nounced right-angled lugs and a rounded butt. Morpholog

can be included in Maxwell-Hyslop type I (Maxwell-H
fig. 4) and in Erkanal types I and III (Erkanal 1977: 3-6). T
types I and III according to the Erkanal typologies is restr
Anatolia except for a few examples coming from Tille
1977: Taf. 8). The only Syrian specimen of this type of ax
the destruction level of Hama phase E. Even if it comes
context, a Late Bronze Age Anatolian provenance is sug
1990: 114, nr. 319, fig. 53).
The morphological characteristic of the Tell Afis ax
comparison in Alaca Höyük, Kayseri and Bogazköy (type I
Taf. 1.11, 2.13-14), but the size, the marked concave sides
the proportion between blade and butt make it very simi
axe of unknown central-Anatolian provenance (Erkanal
The lugged axes, type I of Alaca Höyük and Bogazköy c
are genetically put in the Late Bronze Age. Two examples
coming from the Unterstadt 3-4 of Bogazköy (Boehmer 19
2486) and from Malatya IV (Pecorella 1975: 54, fig. 13.31)
14th-13th centuries bc. Even if the chronological and geo
its diffusion is the central Anatolian plateau in the Hittite
ancient samples were found in the Amuq and Cilicia
Early Bronze Age or the Karum lb period (Erkanal 1977: 9
320). However, as the one found in Hama E is considere
Tell Afis lugged axe is the southernmost evidence of this
found in a reliable stratigraphie context.
The bronze butt TA.07.E.511/D (fig. 9.2a-b) is a hol
cone with a 3 -cm-diameter rounded mouth for emb
handle. The wooden element, partly preserved inside the
it by two nails inserted in two opposite holes. The relief
ranged in two superimposed registers divided by a h
(fig. 9.2c). The lower register is decorated with three vege
antithetic downward-swirled spirals, above which ther
wavy line. In the larger upper register, a second horizonta
nating with dots is the base from which a row of vegetal
the same type as below, placed alternately in the lower and
the undulation. The largest vegetal elements are those wh
the higher points and consist of two distinct stems.
This type of sacred tree developed in Syria starting
Bronze Age, but became particularly popular in the Near
ginning of the 15th century bc with the Mitannian expan
1982: 96). The tree with antithetic downward-swirled spir

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parts in the Alalah IV and Nuzi glyptic (Collon 1975

Kepinski 1982: cat. 24, 304) and was used as a dec
complex compositions in Nuzi pottery (Hrouda 1957
a long stem and multiple pairs of spirals in Alalah a
later local version of the traditional Mitannian s
14th-13th centuries bc (Hrouda 1957: 16, Taf. 4.5
figs. 86-87, 267). In Northern Syria, the elaboration
of Mitannian origin continued after the fall of the
glyptic production, and gave birth to hybrid works
were fused with those coming from Anatolia, absor
takeover of the Syrian provinces. A clear example of
represented by the seal of the King of Karkamiš, Š
Emar and dated in the first half of the 13th centur
four pairs of spirals (Beyer 2001: Al, 45-46). On
depicting trees with two, three or more pairs of spir
(1450-1200 bc, Amiet 1992: figs. 11.48, 46.256, 72
(1400-1300 bc, Badre-Gubel 1999-2000: 199, fig.
fig. 10), but at the end of the Late Bronze Age, t
estine, in sites such as Beth Shan and Gezer (Ke
713-714, 743).
As regards the upper register of the Tell Afis butt, both the composi-
tion and the shape of the tree make this figurative representation particu-
larly original. Nevertheless, the arrangement of the vegetal elements,
placed alternately on the high and low points of the undulation give the
impression that the higher trees had a double series of spirals, an optical
effect which was probably not casual, and might recall the later Syro-
Palestinian production.
The use on the Tell Afis butt of the Mitannian tree, together with
other more local decorative motifs such as the horizontal wavy line, are a
good representation of the hybrid style of 13th-century bc Northern Syria.
The subject of the decoration, composed of trees developing directly from
wavy lines (usually linked to water representation), quite apart from the
decorative aim, certainly refers to nature and fertility themes. It is there-
fore not unlikely that the object to which the butt belonged had a ceremo-
nial or cult function.
Both objects found below the floor of room Bl, deposited before the
building of the phase Vb residences, were probably in use during phase
VII, as phase VI cannot be considered a real occupational period. The date
of the Hattušili III kingdom in the mid-13th century bc given to phase VII
by the clay tablets is compatible with that proposed for the two bronze ob-
jects.

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7. Two biconvex seals from Early Iron Age conte
To this list of elements leading to the Anatolian cultura

add two published biconvex seals found in later phases.
(fig. 9.4) comes from a domestic context in area G, dat
half of the 10th century bc (Cecchini 1998: 278). On both
name in hieroglyphic Hittite writing is engraved: Sa-na-s
responds to the Hurrian female name Šiniš-šal(l)i, well att
documentation (Archi 1998: 367-368).
Seal TA.01.N.153 (fig. 9.3) comes from a floor related
the Early Iron Age fortification in area N. Stratigraphicall
at the very beginning of the period or in a transitional p
Age/Iron Age. It features an unusual stylized human figu
roughly-executed signs of difficult interpretation (Ce
fig. 33.1).
Even if the biconvex seals were strictly linked to the Hittite cultural
and political milieu, many of them were found in later Iron Age contexts.
Nevertheless, through stylistic analysis of seals coming from reliable Late
Bronze Age contexts (for example, Hattuša, Tarsus, Emar, Alalah and
Ugarit), R. L. Gorny has convincingly demonstrated that the majority of
those found in Iron Age levels, including the group coming from Alitar
which he studied, must be considered residual and dated to the 14th-13th
centuries bc. He underlines the fact that their presence in the southeast
provinces is perfectly justified by the Hittite political and military involve-
ment in those regions from Šuppiluliuma I onwards (Gorny 1993: 181).
D. Symington suggests that biconvex seals found in Kilise Tepe building
level lib (13th century bc) belonged to resident officials responsible for the
so-called "seal houses": royal storehouses central to the Hittite adminis-
trative and economic strategies, used for collecting commodities (Sym-
ington 2001: 173-174, fig. 14). However we cannot completely discard the
hypothesis, as suggested by S. Mazzoni (forthcoming), that this production
in inner Syria extended beyond the fall of the Hittite power. In Tell Afis,
TA.92.G.346 is dated to the 13th century bc (Archi 1998: 368). By contrast,
TA.01.N.153, with its stylized roughly-executed signs could represent this
post-Hittite production (Cecchini 2002: 50-51). In Hama, biconvex seals
were found in the necropolis (Riis 1948: 159, fig. 201) and bullae bearing
Luwian and Aramaic names, impressed with this type of seal, are known
from the citadel phase E (Riis-Buhl 1990: 90, 96, nr. 154-167). The tend-
ency to treasure this kind of object and the cultural continuity evident in
both cities could explain the survival in these sites of a limited production
in the Iron Age.

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8. Conclusion
Texts TA.08.E.1 and TA.09.E.203 found in building F show without a

doubt that the region of Tell Afis in the mid- 13 th century bc was under
Hittite political influence. The Hittite language used in correspondence, the
specific mention of a queen, the fact that the dispatch city of the letters
was held by a "Lord of the Country", and the reference to a journey to
Kizzuwatna, a region under stable Hittite control all show that this corre-
spondence took place inside the empire's borders. The receiver in Tell
Afis, like the sender, was a high official and even if he bears a Semitic
name, he had a good knowledge of the Hittite language (Archi this fas-
cicle).
Tell Afis is situated a mere 50 km south-west of Aleppo, and the
mid-13th century bc coincides with the powerful reign of Ini-Tešup, under
whom Karkamiš reached its greatest expansion. However, the lack of any
mention of a viceroy seems to exclude Afis belonging to the political
sphere of these two important Syrian capitals. The most important gover-
nor's seat, situated midway between Tell Afis and Cilicia, was Alalah;
therefore the centre in the Amuq was the most probable place of dispatch
of the two letters, as A. Archi convincingly suggests. The diplomatic rela-
tionship with provinces such as Mukiš and Kizzuwatna depicted in the
texts shows that the political orientation of the Jazr region was toward the
north-west; moreover, the direct involvement of the correspondents in the
movements of the Great King's wife does not at first glance suggest a de-
pendence on the two Syrian Viceroys, but rather on central, direct Hittite
control.
Tell Afis was located along one of the communication routes linking
the Hittite homeland in Hatti to the Syrian plateau. Moreover, Tell Afis
was situated on the margins of the Jazr plain which was (and still is) a fer-
tile land (Klengel 1990: 93); the agricultural productivity of the territory
could have been transformed into the supply of grain and other foodstuffs
to the core of the empire, which may have become particularly urgent
from the reign of Hattušili III onwards, when, according to textual evi-
dence, the Anatolian plateau began to suffer recurrent famines (Hoffner
1992: 49). Therefore it is not surprising that this region was strategically
important and required closer control from the central power. The political
and diplomatic relationship between the Jazr region and the provinces of
the north-east Mediterranean corner could have been intensified from the
reign of Muwatalli onwards, when the Hittite capital was moved southward
to Tarhuntašša, and then strengthened when Kizzuwatna became an im-
portant Hittite province as the homeland of Hattušili Ill's wife, Puduhepa.

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The political scenario depicted by tablets TA.08.E.1 a

encourage me to explain the analogies between the Tell Af
ture of phase VII-Vb and the Anatolian milieu as further
political relationships. However, I am perfectly aware of th
matching historical events (discerned from textual source
processes (testified by archaeological evidence).
Even if there is consensus about the Hittite power invol
fusing patterns in material culture into provincial sites (S
Gates 2006; Gunter 2006; Postgate 2007), the phenomenon
pletely understood, and there is scepticism about attribut
cultural labels of Hittite origin to these elements (Jean
evidence is complicated by the fact that even suggesting
mediation for the transmission of this cultural informatio
into account the different ways in which the periphery
sponded to these influxes - different ways which were p
sible for the many local variants of the north-central Ana
istics (Glatz 2009: 132). Beyond the Hittite paradigm,
between the pottery production of Tell Afis and that in
could be understood as part of a long tradition of cultura
these regions to the north-west Syrian plateau, starting f
Bronze Age. Even taking into account all these topics, it s
fectly plausible that the regions in the north-eastern corne
ranean under the Hittite hegemony could have shared
traits and production strategies.
I suggest that the highly standardized ware of Tell Afis
forms could be representative of a particular period, basi
the 13th century bc12. Just as in the case of the Balih Va
where standardized production with related diagnostic sh
Middle Assyrian area of influence, west to the Euphrates t
ence of common ware with reddish yellow surface, form
bowls with rounded profile, krater jars or fusiform jars
could be interpreted as the expression of Hittite influenc
southern provinces seems particularly evident along the C
12 The presence of "Anatolian features" in the site disappeared when,

date in the first half of the 12th century bc, the Vb residences were de
time, the data emerging from the recent sounding conducted in 2009 in
of building F, show the use in phase VIII of different fabrics and shape
Syrian tradition of Middle Bronze and Late Bronze Age I.
13 Regarding the similarities between the potmarks or Tell Afis an
Höyük, it is worth remembering that the Cilician site is identified b
Izziya, the town cited in the Tell Afis TA.08.E.1 tablet (Forlanini 1988: 1
cicle).

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axis (see also Postgate 2007: 145), i.e. two different

tions reflecting the particular political landscap
Northern Syria under the domination of the Hittit
doms.
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1955 Alalakh. An Account of the Excavations at Tell Atchana in the Hatay,
1937-49. London.
Via Zamboni, 12
1-40129 Bologna

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32
II. The Cuneiform Tablets
(Tab. I-X)
Alfonso Archi
Abstract. Two letters (and a small fragment) in Hittite found on the acro-
polis of Tell Afis, to be attributed to the reign of Hattušili III according to internal
evidence, date six other fragmentary tablets (all probably in Akkadian) and the
building where they have been found. The personal names are mostly Hurrians,
while the overseer of Afis (whose ancient name remains unknown) had the Semitic
name Ašmahya. At that time, Afis was controlled by a "Lord of the country", en
kur77, who resided very probably at Alalah; the region depended therefore directly
on the Hittite imperial administration and not on Karkamiš.
Nine tablets in cuneiform writing were found in building F, located on

the acropolis of Tell Afis, shown by these documents to have been the
central archive of the city, at least towards the middle of the 13th century
b.c.1. The tablets, found on the floors of a number of rooms, were pro-
bably thrown to the ground when the building was emptied before its re-
construction2. They consist of three letters in the Hittite language and six
administrative documents3. The same two people are mentioned in both the
two best-preserved letters, proving that they are of the same period (if not
of the same year). It seems, therefore, highly probable that at least the
three Hittite letters were originally kept in the same room4.
1 1 have to thank Jared L. Miller for his comments and suggestions on this paper, and
Gemot Wilhelm for his advise, without making them responsible for readings and opinions
expressed here.
2 See Fig. 1 for the places where they were found.
3 The tablets have been found in the excavation under the supervision of Fabrizio Venturi
and Barbara Chiti; they were restored by Anna Maria Graziani. The photos are by Maurizio
Necci.
4 Two other letters in Hittite have been found in Alalah, AIT 124, 125, see A. Hagen-
buchner, Die Korrespondenz der Hethiter , 2 (TH 16) 440 no. 330, 387-388 no. 298. Three let-
ters come from Meskene/Emar: Msk. 73.1907, 74.734 and BLMJ-C 37 (from illegal excava-
tions). For Msk. 73.1097, see E. Laroche, in: D. Beyer (ed.), Meskéné-Emar. Dix ans de
travaux 1972-1982 (Paris 1982) 54; Hagenbuchner, Korrespondenz , 2, 40-44 no. 23; M. Sal-
vini - M. -Cl. Trémouille, SMEA 45/2 (2003) 226-230, 251-252, 262-263. For BLMJ-C 37:
I. Singer - M. Yamada, in: J. Goodnick Westenholz (et alii), Cuneiform Inscriptions in the
Collection of the Bible Lands Museum Jerusalem (CM 13; Groningen 2000) 78-80. The
addressee is the same Alziyamuwa of the preceding letter, whose sender was His Majesty, the
king of Hatti. The sender of the second letter was the King, i.e. the Hittite viceroy of
Karkamiš. The two letters have been presented in juxtaposition by I. Singer, in: L. Milano -

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Fig. 1 - Tell Afis. Area E4 on the acropolis: places where the tablets
Orientalia - 3

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1) TA.08.E.1
(Fig. 2, and Photo 1)
129 X 85 X 29 mm. Greyish clay. Obverse: 37

served; left edge: 5 lines badly preserved; reverse
Letter in Hittite.
obv. 1. ]-ma Giš-rxn

2. J-V-V- wa-ši
3.-9. (traces)
10. [x-x-x-]A/ [ (traces)

11. k[a-]ru-ú [ (traces)
12. [(traces) ] ku-iš [ (traces)
13. xnü^ (traces)
14. r/1-rA^1 URU [Ka r1 - [ga 1 - rm /i1 ( ?
15. W-W-W-te hu-u-W-UP-tki1 nu [ (traces)
16. vpa1-rah1-Tša1-nu-wa-an-te-eš ^cO^scD-an^du*
17. vma1'-raP-lu-wa-an-zi-[ma1 [ (traces)
18. V -e nu-īun^-tar-{ya-1-{aP1'i-xkP-ši'i [(..)]
19. rfez1-ra1-rai1-rwa1(?) ku-it inim is-ta-an-[d]a-a-nu-un
20. V-V pár-hi-aš pí-ra-an ki-ša-at rxn-[x-]ûw rxn[-
21. ba.úš MUNUS.LUGAL-â-mw iš-tar-ak-zi
22. na-aš-mu pí-ra-an kat-ta a-ri nu Tan^-da
23 . is-ta-an-da-a-nu-un
24. ki-nu-un-ma ka-a-ša ka-ru-ú rxn[ ]

25. ki-i tup-pa ku-e-da-ni ud -ti pa^ra1-^1
26. ne-eh-hu-un am-mu-uk-ma i-na ud.iii.kam"i[a]
27. i-na URU I-iz-zi-ya še-eš-mi
28. a- na lPí-ri-ya-an-ni EN-y^ qí-bi-ma

29. UM-MA lTi-i[n-n]f-i[nY-n[iY ka-a-ša a-na [e]n-}1^]
30. tu-u-wa-za hi-i[n-Yki1?-TiP?-[ki-]mi
S. de Martino - F. M. Fales - G. B. Lanfranchi (eds.), Landscapes. Territories, Frontiers and

Horizons in the Ancient Near East. Geography and Cultural Landscapes , 2. Papers presented
to the XLIV Rencontre Assyriologique Internationale. Venezia, 7-11 July 1997 (Padova 2000)
65 m.
The third (fragmentary) letter, Msk. 74.734, has been published by Salvini and Tré-
mouille, SMEA 45/2 (2003) 230-232, 253, 264.

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Fig. 2 - Tablet TA.08.E.1.

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31. ka-a-ša ma- h ar en kur77 hu-u-ma-an sig5-

32. ka-a-aš-ša lE-wď-ra-ni-e-eš ku-xé*-{dď-[ri'i
33. a-ar-aš lul-uk-kat-ti-[m]a KASKAL-íiX-JV-V-V-pá/
34. nu-ut-ta ka-a-aš-ma en rKUR177 Liš?.rx1MEŠ?
35. iš?.e ku-uš-ša-na-aš ar-ha Tů}-iz-vzi1[-pá]t
36. ^x^-sú-ma ku-wa-pí me-ma-[ah-]hi [ ]VP[ ]
37. W-W-šu W-W-W [
I.e. 1
2 .... dingirmeš [
3 .... gim -an
4 .... (-)ti-an[
Translation
obv. 14. in Karkamiš he will come, and g[o

16. let them be alert!
17. To mill [
18. ... you(?) hasten.
19. So, this is why I delayed the affair!
20. An emergency happened at first. [PN]
21. died, and the queen is ill by me.
22. She comes down by me. And
23. I lingered here.
24. Well, now already ..[..]
25. the day in which I have dispatched
26. this tablet, in three days (from it)
27. I will sleep in Izziya.
28. Say to Piriyanne, my Lord:

29. thus (speaks) Tinnitine: Lo, to my Lord
30. I prostrate from afar!
31. Here by the Lord of the province all (is) well.
32. This Ewarane the day in which
33. he arrived, the day after [he] set off'
34. And there, by you, the Lord of the province...
35. will come out ... of the wage.
36. Where his ... I will tell. ...
37

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20 pár-hi-aš : the reading seems sure; a noun deriv

(parhai -, parhiya-) "to hasten"?; cfr. parheššar "haste
I43/147.
22 "down in front of' is attested to only in connection
with ar- mid. "to stay, stand", CHD P 309b, which would give a better
meaning: "she is staying by me".
24, 29, 31 (and text 2 1. 21): ka-a-ša ; 19, 34 (and text 2 11. 9, 26):
ka-a-aš-ma. These interjections match Lat. ecce "lo, hereby; here, there",
deriving from a demonstrative (Hitt. kā- "this", adverb kã "here"), kāša
introduces the message, as Akk. anumma , translated in French "voici que",
Italian "ecco"; see, e.g., J. Nougayrol, Ugaritica V (Paris 1968) 81 1. 9; 88
1. 12; 92 1. 5; CAD: "now".
E. Rieken has noted how kāša is used in relation to the people
speaking: "(here) by me", kāšma to the addressee: "(there) by you" (in:
E. Rieken und R Widmer [eds], Pragmatische Kategorien. Form , Funktion
und Diachronie (Akten der Arbeitstagung der Indogermanischen Gesell-
schaft vom 24. bis 26. September 2007 in Marburg [Wiesbaden 2009] 265-
273). This distinction applies to most of the passages in these two letters,
but not to kāšma in text 1 1. 19 (if correctly restored), where it expresses
the second moment of a situation: "So, this is why ...". In text 2 1. 21, we
would expect kāšma instead of kāša : the enclitic -ma (if correctly re-
stored) follows, instead, the pers. pronoun: kāša ammuk-ma karü unnahhi
"I myself am already driving thither".
Some rare formulas of paying homage with prostration, of Syrian ori-
gins are introduced by kāša: a) kāša ana (gam) gírmeš en-k4/gašan-K4
3-šu 9-šu AMQUT ; b) kāša ana (gam) gìr běliya ušteh{hin' , "Lo, I fall
down/prostrate myself three times nine times at the feet of my Lord/Lady"
(see Hagenbuchner, Korrespondenz , 1, 59-60), to which one has to add:
kāša ana EN-r^ tüwaza henk -, in text 1, 11. 29-30. It is true that it refers to
the people speaking; the interjection "lo" seems, however, in these cases
more suitable.
Rieken is surely right noting that kāša expresses a nexus focusing on

the person speaking or acting; kāšma on another person. This shift to the
addressee, marked by -ma, is a nuance which cannot always be expressed
properly by: "here by me - there by you/him". For this reason, also other
translations are adopted here, although losing in this way the dimensional
nexus.
24 The restoration of a verb at the end of the line is uncertain.

26 Better (ud.)iii(.kam) than iv.
27 For the sign ( VRVI-iz-zi-)ya , as it appears in the photo, cfr.
MUNUS.LUGAL)ytf(-A72W) in 1. 21.

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30 hi-in-ik-mi : this is the usual spelling. T

traces of an additional sign after -ik-' the rest
anomalous.
tuwaz henk- "to prostrate oneself from afar", not attested in other let-
ters, is a rendering of Akkadian šukénu "to prostrate oneself', used also in
several letters in Hittite; see Hagenbuchner, Korrespondenz , 1, 55-63. See
also Ug. mrhqtm ql "to fall from a distance".
33 pa-iz-zi(? ): the traces are not clear. See AM 130 (KBo 4.4 III 58):
... da-a-an kaskal-íz nam-ma pa-a-un ; KBo 16.97 Vs. 28: ki-e -da-
ni -pát KASKAL -ši pa-i-mi.
2) TA.09.E.203
(Fig. 3a, 3b, and Photos 2, 3)
81 X 59 X 29 mm. Brownish clay. Left and right lower corner

destroyed.
Letter in Hittite.
obv. 1. UM- MA EN KUR77

2. a-ña lTi-in-ni-in-ni
3. DUMU -YA QÍ-BI-MA
4. DiNGiRMEŠ-/í-ta aš-šu-li PAP-an-da-ru
5. am-mu-uk-ta ku-it me-mi-iš-kť-nu-un

6. MmvsŠi-du-ri-en-na i-na uru Ya-ar-pí-ig-ga
7. rMUNUS1KI.SIKILo) I-NA URU- 7/4 Ú~e~te a) written on erasure
8. nu-wa-ra-aš a-pí-ya e-eš-du
9. ka-a-aš-ma-ma-mu lPí-ri-ya-an-ni-eš
10. ku-ut-ru-wa-aš me-mi-iš-ki-mi-it-ta
11. ku-wa-pí nu-mu ú-ul ilš-ta-Yma^-laš-î
12. ki-nu-un-ma li-e nam-m[a -]rxn
13. a-pí-e-da-ni ša[- -JV
14. e-ep-pir na-at [
15. {šar*-ni-ik-ta [
16. [ ] ú-rkO-[la
edge 17. [x-JV-zjX-)/,?-.? [a
18. [(x-^W-u-Uď-u-wa-alz
rev. 19. ku-iš-k[i] pu-nu-uš-z[i]
20. li-e-za ku-it-ki na-a[-úl ]
21. ka-a-ša am-mu-uk-xma 1

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22. ka-ru-ú u-un-na-a[h-]hi
23. UM-MA EN KUR77

24. a-ña lAš-ma-ah-ya qí-bi-ma
25. DiNGiRMEŠ-/í-ta ti -an har-kán-du
26. ka-a-aš-ma lTi-in-ni-in-ni-eš

27. ú-iz-zi nu-uš-ši dam/nim rsu]-
28. pa-ra-a pa-a-i
29. na-an zi-ik ha-an-za
Fig. 3a - Tablet TA.09.E.203, obv.

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Fig. 3b - Tablet TA.09.E.203, rev.
30. e-ep lTi-in-ni-in-ni-eš-yď

31. tu-uk ha-an-za e-ep-du
32. na-an-ši pa-ra-a pa-a-i
33. na-an li-e nam-ma har-kàn-zi
34. du-wa-a-ad-du
35. ú-wa-a-ad-du

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Translation
1. Thus (speaks) the Lord of the province:

2. Say to Tinnirne,
3. my son.
4. Let the gods protect you in well-being!

5. Because I said to you:
6. "Bring Šidurenna to the town of Yarpigga,
7. the maiden, to my town,
8. and let her be there!"
9. There Piriyanni (is)
10. the witness for me: I will tell you
11. when. Will you not lifsten to] me?
12. Now, do not [ linger ] any more!
13. In that ..[ ]
14. they took, and [ ]
15. he restored it.
16. [ ] myse[lf ]
17
18. from(?) ...uluw

19. Whoever (may
20. let him not tu
21. Lo, I myself a
22. already drivin
23. Thus speaks t

24. Say to Ašmah
25. May the gods
26. Lo, Tinnitine
27. comes (to you); hand over his wife/sister
28. to him!
29. And, you, welcome him!
30. Let also Tinninne
31. welcome you!
32. Hand her over to him!
33. Do not hold her any more!
34. Please,
35. I remind you!

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Commentary
3 dumu. Both the messages in this letter (11. 1-22

"Lord of the country". The recipient of the first m
nitine, qualified as dumu "son", undoubtedly an offic
Lord of the country. In general, the term dumu in
cates a dependent relationship or a difference in ran
This is certainly the case in the Afis letter. Letters sent
dumu by a person of higher rank are: HBM 56,
Hagenbuchner, Korrespondenz , 2, no. 129-131. Lett
(dumu) to a superior official are: HBM 29, 11-12 and
ments the recipient is qualified as "my lord", be-li-y
9-11; Hagenbuchner, Korrespondenz , 2, no. 132-135
good father", a-bi-t>'jg.ga-ya). A letter from a son t
The person to whom the second message is sent,
his name: Ašmahya. The context shows that he was
of Afis.
4, 25 Both greeting formulas aššuli pahš(anu)~
common (Hagenbuchner, Korrespondenz , 1, 67-71).
6-7 Yarpigga was a small town belonging to Muk
Hittite conquest, attested in AIT 284 (Al. IV), 1: ^Ya
fore not possible to understand: "Bring Šidurenna,
Yarpigga, to my town!" Other GNs of the Mukiš ar
from the Alalah documents are: Abratik, Adabik (a
Amarik, Ishanik, Munnik; see J. A. Belmonte M
Gewässernamen der Texte aus Syrien im 2. Jt. v. C
baden 2001), s. vv. These names have to belong to th
millennium, because the Ebla texts (ca 2380-2340
sent many GNs in -ik; see A. Archi - P. Piacentini -
di luogo dei testi di Ebla (ARES 2; Roma 1993) 3
18 [(x-)]rx1-M-r/a1-w-wû-a[z could be a GN.
20 After na-a- (which is sure) there is room o
ginning high in the line (e.g. -aš, -ú' hardly -Î). T
associated with the imperative, although rarely5. Th
only rarely connected with -za ( CHD L-N 347-36
21 It is not possible to read: am-mu-uk-Tka 41, c
taken from the frontal point; the copy is confirme
upper angle.
5 H. A. Hoffner Jr. - H. C. Melchert, A Grammar of the Hitt

Indiana, 2008) 344.

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24 The sign ah looks here like ah in the Hittite du

two elements are connected, and represent a single sign.
close to ah in the ductus in use in Emar and Ugarit, w
two more Senkrechte. The sign ya (cfr. ya in 1. 3) presen
ginning Waagerechte, while the two inner ones are not c
27 The term dam should imply that Šidurenna (the
had to become Tinninne's wife, which is in contrast, how
tone of the first message, 11. 10-12. It is also possible to r
The sign is clearly (according also to photos from dif
MUNUS.KU.
29-30 For hanza(n ) ep(p)~ see F. Sommer, AU 140-141; J

HED H 92. The Akkadian translation is: ittiya lu tãbãta u a
muhhika tãbãku , see RS 20.03 8-9, Nougayrol, Ugaritica V 92 (
the Hittite governor Šukur-Teššub to Ammistamru II).
34-35 This is the reversed word order of the usual expre
duwaddu , translated by S. Alp as: "(Gottes) Gnade soll (üb
kommen", e.g., Hethitische Briefe aus Masat-Höyük (Ankar
1. 24. The form uwaddu of the Afis letter confirms Alp's
(p. 305) that uwad is Imp. 3 Sg.: "Die Unterlassung des u am
uwad könnte von der Anfangssilbe des folgenden duwaddu
Wunschformel beeinflusst sein." The formulaic use of this
(which justifies the free translation adopted here) has influenc
nunciation of the two terms. On this expression, see, furth
buchner, Korrespondenz , 1, 103-105.
3) TA.10.E.189
(Photo 4)
87 X 47 X 22 mm. Greyish clay. Side A: traces of 19 lines of writing;

side B: lost. Small writing. Clay and writing similar to tablet no. 1.
Letter in Hittite.
Side A
7. ]V 3 V[
8. Yx1 hu-ma-an[(-)
14. ]riia1?-ra-û [
15. ] im-ma ŠÁ kur ur[u
16. ] xx^-kán rxn[

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Fig. 4 - Northern Syria and the Amuq in the Late Bro
Translation
15. "...] really inside the country of the city [of..."
Commentary on the letters
The ductus of the three Hittite letters is the same in use at Hattuša
and Karkamiš. Sign ah, in no. 2, 24, presents however, a form similar to
that in use in Siria (Emar; Ugarit)6. The scribe of text 1 has the habit of
writing the sign mu with a small first Winkelhaken (1. 26), or apparently
without it (11. 21, 22). Notice that lu in lu-uk-kat-ti , no. 1, 33, is imper-
fect.
6 The Hittite form for ah is attested to also in Msk. 74.734 obv. 3, 8; see note 4.

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The greyish or brownish clay of the letters is differen

dish and less pure clay of the other tablets. This confirms
they came from a different scriptorium and not that of
Text no. 1 had at least two messages: the first is in obv
are lost); the second (11. 28-35) probably continued on the
The preserved lines of the first message (although no
have been preserved) enable us to place the tablets fro
chronological and historical terms and, thus, also the b
they were found (at least for this particular phase). The au
sage was obliged to remain in the place from which the let
cause a certain individual (whose name is missing) ha
Moreover, the queen (munus.lugal) had fallen sick and was
writer. The latter, however, decided to leave and three da
the letter he expected to be in the city of Izziya.
This Hittite queen could not be the wife of the king o
she is never mentioned in a document. The highest autho
was a "Lord of the country" (en kur77), 1. 31 (see also tex
who also controlled Afis, a city for which no document a
provides the ancient name7. The letter cannot have been
from Karkamiš (this city is quite probably mentioned in
Puduhepa, the wife of Hattušili III originally from Kiz
the only Hittite queen to travel to the south-eastern regio
even without her king. A document from the archives
56.15, shows that she also visited Izziya. This is a fragment
by a queen who can only be Puduhepa; see J. de Roos, Hit
(Leiden 2007) 240-243. The first vow is in favour of "His
that is Hattusili III. The third and fourth runs as it follows:
15. [When the quejen in Izziya to the Sea [

16. [ ] to the Sea the queen [made] the following [vow:]
17. [ ] if you, o Sea, my lord, for the gods [
18. [ ]...; if you will [ ] Piyamaradu (acc.) for me,
19. (so that) he does not escape me [
25. [nin.gal of] Kummanni: if [you ] Piyamaradu (acc.)

26. [ ] you seize (him) from the area [
7 Apsuna belonged to the kingdom of Ugarit, which never extended as far as Tell Afis;
see W. H. van Soldt, The Topography of the City-State of Ugarit (AO AT 324; Münster 2005)
10, 74 no. 18; 104.

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These two passages strongly suggest that Piyam

obliged to move from the Aegean, the scene of h
Kizzuwatnean coast. This adventurous personage
Muwattalli, Urhi-Teššup and Hattušili III8.
The mention of a deity of Kummanni indicates
Kizzuwatna when she took her vow; Izziya was n
there that the queen made her promise to the Sea
origin, KUB 44.47 5 (= ChS 1,9 42, 89-90; cfr. M
Une divinité syro-anatolienne [Firenze 1997] 17
tioned before the mountain Zara. In these two texts the name is written:
Iz-zi-ya. This city is mentioned also in a document which confirms privi-
leges for the cult of the goddess Išhara in several localities of Kizzuwatna,
established by two former kings of that country (obv. 27: I-iz-zi-y[a]).
M. Forlanini has suggested the identification of Izziya with Issos, about 50
km north of the Syrian Gates (VO 1 [1988] 147 n. 86; id., in: É. Jean -
A. M. Dinçol - S. Durugönül [éds.], La Cilicie : espaces et pouvoirs locaux
[Paris 2001] 553-554). The document from Afis supports this identification.
The distance between Antakya and the plain of Issos is about 110 km by
the old road. Issos has to be placed at Kinet Höyük (see Fig. 4). According
to the letter RS 94.2406, an Ugaritic queen (perhaps of Hittite origin) took
two days to reach by ship the Cilician coast near Adaniya (Adana), about
115 km from Ugarit as the crow flies, see P. Bordreuil - D. Pardee, in:
W. H. van Soldt (ed.), Society and Administration in Ancient Ugarit
(Leiden 2010) 4-6.
Queen Puduhepa knew about the good wine from Mukiš, since the
goddess Hebat of Uda asked her for some in a dream, KUB 15.1 II 15-18
(de Roos, Hittite Votive Texts 89):
15. Dream (?). "Through a dream the king spoke [to me]: 'Hebat
(of Uda)
16. says: In the country of Hatti for me they [must]
17. make a zzzzaA/-object; in Mukiš for me they must
18. make wine.'" [They shall] make an oracular inquiry.
The residence of the Lord of the country who had authority over Afis,
and where the author of the first message in letter 1 temporarily resided,
8 See I. Singer, AnSt 33 (1983) 208-213; S. Heinhold-Krahmer, in: Y. Cohen - A. Gilan -

J. L. Miller (eds.), Pax Hethitica. Studies on the Hittites and their Neighbours in Honour of
Itamar Singer (StBoT 51; Wiesbaden 2010) 191-213; and in general, S. Heinhold-Krahmer,
RIA 10 [2003-2005] 561-562).

194.95.59.195 on Thu, 25 Mar 2021 16:31:00 UTC
must be Alalah, whence Izziya could be reached on the

three days by land or by sea. Following the conquest of A
liuma I in his 1st Syrian war, the Hittites applied the nam
the city and the region. However, the Hittite governor Šu
to Ammistamru II, that he will reside in Alalah.
Two seals of Palluwa, "King's son, Lord of the cou
REX.FILIUS REGIO.DUMINUS)" have been found in Al
(Level I-II); AT 39/38, L. Woolley, Alalakh (Oxford 19
Pl. LXVII9. This official was active at Alalah during the la
Hittite domination, according to the archaeological eviden
It is possible, however, to establish a synchronism for
who was appointed governor of the land of Mukiš perhap
and wrote the letter RS 20.03 to Ammistamru II on that
sion: "Thus (says) Šukur-Teššub, the king's son: say to Am
of Ugarit! May it be well with you! Now, from His Majes
and I reside in Alalah, so you are my neighbour ( ina uruA
u atta bēl tahümiya )" (11. 1-7, see Nougayrol, Ugarit
Ammistamru II was first a contemporary of Hattusili
(about 1266-1240), in whose period the letter from Afis w
later of Tudhaliya IV
The title en kur77 of the Afis tablets is the one which we read in the
Hieroglyphic writing as REGIO.DOMINUS11. The functions of this official
were to administer a province of the Hittite kingdom "centered on a major
city"12. Notice that the official at the head of the province of Aštata, under
the kingdom of Karkamiš, was designated instead as the "Overseer of the
Land", ugula.kalam.ma13.
Letter 2 contains two messages. The first is addressed to Tinninne: he
was to travel to the city located at Afis, and ask Ašmahya, the local over-
seer, to deliver Šidurenna, a "maiden", munuski.sikil, and then accompany
9 Singer, in: Landscapes 69-70, has suggested identifying this Palluwa with the bene-
factor of the illegal confiscation of Zu-Ba'la's property at Emar. It seems to me unlikely that
an official of the status of a Lord of the country in Mukiš could have been interested in a
property at Emar.
10 À.S. Fink, Late Bronze Age Tell Atchana {Alalakh). Stratigraphy, chronology, history
(BAR International Series 2120; Oxford 2010) 50, 52-55.
11 See S. Herbordt, Die Prinzen- und Beamtensiegel der hethitischen Grossreichszeit auf
Tonbullen aus dem Ni§antepe-Archiv in Hattusa (Mainz am Rhein 2005) 99 and 306.
12 This is the definition given by R. H. Beai, The Organisation of the Hittite Military (TH
20; Heidelberg 1992) 437-442. On the sequence in KUB 26.50 obv. 13: en kur" en mat-
kal-ti [ma]škim URUki, see F. Imparati, RHA 32 (1974) 56-71.
13 See D.Arnaud, AuOr 2 (1984) 182-183; G. M. Beckman, in: M. W. Chavalas -
J. L. Hayes (eds.), New Horizons in the Study of Ancient Syria (Bibliotheca Mesopotamica
25; Malibu 1992) 47-48. For two seals of this official, see D. Beyer, Emar IV Les sceaux
(OBO Series Archaeologica 20; Fribourg/Göttingen 2001) 136 (B46), 138-139 (B52), 442-443.

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her to the town of Yarpigga, in the region of Mukiš

ness (the delivery of the maiden?) on behalf of the
The second message was for Ašmahya: he was t
without any problems to Tinninne as she was his f
Letter 1 does not appear to support the informa
other letter. The second message is, however, sent b
to whom the mission outlined in letter 2 was entrus
in the other letter, must be the witness in Yarpigg
Ewarane, appears in an unclear context.
While the officials depending directly from the
(Ewarane, Piriyanni, Tinninne) and the girl (Šid
names14, that of the overseer of Afis, Ašmahya, is
4) TA.09.E.202
81 X 74 X 29 mm. Reddish-brownish clay.

Deliveries of barley, measured in imãru , to seve
The tablet had two columns, the first one being p
on the reverse. It presents numerals which refer to
served in the second column, 11. 2-3, 19-22, 24 and
chariot, [gi]šGiGiR, is mentioned15.
On the obverse, three framentary personal name
du (Addu or Teššub): 11. 11, 12, 14. The other name
Arma-ziti?) (1. 2); Bi-šú-ú (1. 3); Yx^-du-wa (1. 7)
(1. 13).
The reverse is better preserved:
16. [lD]A-a-na-ri
17. ] Hdingir^-sum
18. ] lTa-i-ku-pár-ra
14 For Ewarane see NPN 49: Ewara-kali, Ewara-tupi, Ewari

Birienni, NPN 115; a certain Pirwannu is mentioned in the H
suffix -enni, see NPN 210. For šiduri "girl", see Laroche,
(Paris 1977) = RHA 34-35 (1976-77) 229.
15 People provided with a chariot are often mentioned in t
IV, e.g. the tablets AIT 131, 132, 138, 143, 144, 149, 150, 153
and O. Loretz, "Die soziale Struktur von Alalah und Ugarit
See, further, E. von Dassow, State and Society in the Lat
Mitanni Empire (SCCNH 17; Bethesda, Maryland 2008) 3

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Fig. 5 - TA.09.E.202, obv. and rev.
Orientalia - 4

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19. ] 4 anše <!> Du-eš-šu-la-an-ta

20. ] 16 '"anše1 ldsîN-el-lu-ti
21. ] 1 'anše1 'Ãi-W-W
22. ] an[še] lMa-zi-W-W[ ]
23. x+yv gišGIGIR [IN]E-AN-rX1-rX1-rX1
24. x+]rln "anše1 1an-txí-lú
25. [šu.nígin] V+M ""anše1
18 The PN Ta-i-kulkalqa is attested at Nuzi, A7W 144; 136.

22 Ma-zi-ya is a PN well attested at Alalah; see AIT 142.
5) TA.09.E.201
64 X 44 X 24 mm. Reddish-brownish clay.

The tablet could have had two columns. Several lines are erased; the
text could be an exercise. LI. 1-13 present few clear Akkadian words: ša
šarrūti "of kingship" (1. 2); palhãtum "fearsome; fearful (fem. pl.)" (1. 8).
Al-di-in-ni has probably nothing to do with Hitt. altanni.
The last paragraph, after two parallel lines (perhaps the colophon),
badly preserved, has some Hurrian words: du-u-wi^' a-mar-na , found
also in CTA 166, 11. 44 and 45: amrn.
obv.? 1. -Yx1 an-gi-šu

2. -]ru sa lugal -ru-ti
3. -]pa-af-LAM
4. -]ma al-di-in-ni
5. -] al-li
6. -]rx1-rw? e-ra-pa-at
7. -i]t i-ri(-)la-ba-V
8. -]rxM pal-ha-tum
9. -š]a-ap ú-ša-pa
10. -d]u-i
edge 11. -g]a-H
12. -]ri
13. -Yx1 za-pa-ri gùb??
16 See E. Laroche, Glossaire 275: tuwe "attribut de divinité", tuwi-. Add ChS 1
Vs. 24 (KBo 33.4+33.49+): du ]-up-pu du-ú-íw-waa-a , 25: ] du-ú-íw-waa-a.

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Fig. 6 - TA.09.E.201, obv. and rev.

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rev.? 14. ]rx1

15. ] V W-W-W
16. -]rxT
17. ] UR
18. -]V
19. -]rxn a-ma-ar-na rxi-x-an-ši

20. -&]/?(-)5W(-)rX1 rKA1? MUŠ-ÍM
21. -i]k
edge 22. -]V-i-tum
23. -]rXn GAM du-u-wif
6) TA.09.E.200
64 X 73 X 27 mm. Reddish-brownish clay. Obv.: 3+6 lines of writing;

rev. uninscribed. Cursive writing; some signs not deeply impressed.
Hurrian?
Line 1: im-ma ú-du-rna^-rav. Other lines illegible.
Fig. 7. TA.09.E.200, obv.

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7) TA.10.E.186
(Photo 8)
Fragment a (68 x 67 x 24 mm); fragment b (30 x 17 x 8 mm). 7+2

broken lines. Reddish-brownish clay.
Administrative document: list of personal names determined by a pro-
fession. Language?
obv. b 1' îgi/x^

2'
a 1" ]-tÍ L[Ú/M[UNUS

2" ]W-dHé-pát MUNUS[
3" KP-r]a-ři lú giš[
4" -]rx1-í/ lú GIsba[nšur?
1. edge 5" ]rx1 ku-it W-ra-an
rev. 6" ]rxn ina up-[pp
1" Ytf-za HAR?-M-n/
(uninscribed)
3" Ki-ra-ri is a name attested also at Alalah; see D. J. Wiseman, The

Alalakh Tablets (London 1953) 140.
8) TA.10.E.187
(Photo 9)
62 x 56 x 26 mm. Lower part of a tablet: 6 lines of writing. Reddish-

brownish clay.
Administrative documents: registration of goods. Akkadian?
obv. 1' 10 [gín(?)] rP[

2' 30 [gín(?) ] 1 [
1. edge 3' 20 ma-na 10 [
rev. 4' 10 ma.na šá dug?[
5' 2 ma-na u/-rx1[-
6' šu-nígin 32 ma-n[a
[(uninscribed?)]

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9) TA.10.E.188
(Photo 10)
88 X 72 X 24 mm. Tablet; surface damaged. Reddish-brownish clay.

Obverse: 6 illegible lines, lower part unwritten. Reverse: uninscribed.
The document, written along the longer dimension, presents the
format generally defined "Syro-Hittite". It was written, therefore, in Akka-
dian.
General considerations
During the 13th century, at least from the time of Muwattalli II, Afis
was under the direct control of a Hittite authority, the Lord of the country,
en kur77, who resided in Alalah.
The overseer of Afis was not a Hittite official sent from abroad, be-
cause he had a West-Semitic name: Ašmahya. Afis was an administrative
center which used writing, sharing the Syrian tradition. Some documents
written at Afis (no. 4-9) were probably in Akkadian. Document no 5 has
some Hurrian words; some personal names are Hurrian, or in any case not
Semitic. Document 6 was perhaps in Hurrian. The region was strongly
Humanized, as can be seen from the Alalah documents and the personal
names in letters 1 and 2 found at Afis. At Afis the Hittite language was
understood and the Hittite material culture appreciated, as is proven by
some finds, especially an Anatolian axe. It cannot be excluded that some
Hittites resided in the city.
A similar (perhaps smaller) center had to be the Ebla of that time, 11
km to the south, where a bulla with a seal impression of a kartappu, an
official charged with diplomatic missions, has been found (A. Archi, Or 11
[2008] 397-400).
It is now sure that the territory of Niya and at least part of Nuhašše
after the revolt of Tette, was administered directly from Alalah. The easiest
access from the Antioch plain to the Orontes valley and the fertile plain of
Idlib (with Afis on its eastern side) must have been along the present road
which goes through Harim and Salqin.
Some years ago, H. Klengel stated: "Hattušili III exiled Muršili III/
Urhi-Teššup to Nuhašše where he was given fortified towns, a fact which
could indicate that Nuhašše was considered as a loyal part of the Hittite
empire. There is no proof of a principality of Nuhašše after the rule of

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Tette; it seems that 'Nuhašše' was now used as the name o

The Afis tablets nos 1 and 2 prove now that the role of th
miš in Western Syria was exclusively political, as regards
tries.
Via Montevideo 2A
1-00198 Roma
17 H. Klengel, Syria 3000 to 300 B.C. (Berlin 1992) 156; see, further, id., Geschichte
Syriens im 2. Jahrtausend v. u. Z., 2 (Berlin 1969) 50-57.

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A. Archi - F. Venturi, Hittites at Tell Afis Tab. I
Photo 1 - Tablet TA.08.E.1.

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Tab. II A. Archi - F. Venturi, Hittites at Tell Afìs
Photo 2 - Tablet TA.09.E.203, obv.

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A. Archi - F. Venturi, Hittites at Tell Afis Tab. Ill
Photo 3 - Tablet TA .09 .E .203, rev.

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Tab. IV A. Archi - F. Venturi, Hittites at Tell Afís
Photo 4 - Tablet TA.10.E.189.

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A. Archi - F. Venturi, Hittites at Tell Afís Tab. V
Photo 5 - Tablet TA .09 .E .202, obv. and rev.

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Tab. VI A. Archi - F. Venturi, Hittites at Tell Afis
Photo 6 - Tablet TA .09 .E .201, obv. and rev.

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A. Archi - F. Venturi, Hittites at Tell Afis Tab. VII

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TAB. VIII A. Archi - F. Venturi, Hittites at Tell Afis
Photo 8 - Tablet TA .09 .E. 186, obv., lower edge, rev.

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A. Archi - F. Venturi, Hittites at Tell Afis Tab. IX
Photo 9 - Tablet TA .09 .E. 187, obv., lower edge, rev.

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Tab. X A. Archi - F. Venturi, Hittites at Tell Afis

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Alfonso Archi - Hittes at Tell Afis (Syria)

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Alfonso Archi - Hittes at Tell Afis (Syria)

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Hittites at Tell Afis (Syria)

Author(s): Alfonso Archi and Fabrizio Venturi

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Hittites at Tell Afis (Syria)1

Alfonso Archi - Fabrizio Venturi

I. New Evidence of Cultural Links between Syria and Anatolia

Abstract. Northern Syria between 1350-1200 bc fell under Hittite control

1. The historical context

The political scenario of north-western Syria, characterized in the first

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political events referring to this king are known

Fig. 1 - Tell Afis and the excavated areas (elaborated b

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wealthy centres of Ugarit, Ras Ibn Hani and Tell K

2. The Late Bronze Age II stratigraphy at Tell Afis

Finds representing a long sequence overlapping Late Bronze Age and

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The absence of destruction debris points to a vol

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Fig. 3 - Area E4. Sketch plan of the phase Vb residences (elaborate

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The structures of building B are less impressive. A

Phases VI and Vb have given rich repertories of m

4 The reference in TA.08.E.1 to a queen associated with the tow

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4. The standardized pottery production of phas

Following the above-mentioned proposed chronology,

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Fig. 4 - Pottery in room F3 (phase VII) (drawn by S. Ma

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From the Hittite homeland in north-central Anatoli

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Fig. 5 - Phase Vb pottery: bowls and kraters (drawn by S

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north-central Anatolian forms. Our site lacks some of the

5 Müller-Karpe 1988: Taf. 33-34; Parzinger- Sanz 1992: Abb. 19 (type

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Fig. 6 - Phase Vb pottery: fusiform jars (drawn by S. M

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Fig. 7 - Phase Vb pottery: krater-jars (drawn by S. Martelli).

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2000: 183, fig. 37k; Capet 2003: 113, fig. 48a). Th

5. Potmarks on storage jars (phases VII-VIa

The presence of potmarks on big storage jars c

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which sealed the locus. The mark is composed of a cross

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Fig. 8 - Potmarks on storage jars: phase VII (1), VI (2-3), Vb (4-6)

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bowls and kraters. Therefore M. H. Gates suggests that th

6. Two Metal objects (phase VI)

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Fig. 9 - Bronze objects of phase VI (1-2) and lentoid s

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nounced right-angled lugs and a rounded butt. Morpholog

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parts in the Alalah IV and Nuzi glyptic (Collon 1975

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