Changes in Neo-Assyrian Queenship

State Archives of Assyria Bulletin ISSN 1120-4699

Volume XXI 2015

STATE ARCHIVES OF ASSYRIA BULLETIN VOLUME XXI, 2015 Editors Frederick Mario Fales, Simonetta Ponchia, Giovanni-Battista Lanfranchi Published by S.A.R.G.O.N. Editrice e Libreria — Via Induno 18/A — I-35134 Padova (Italy) Distributed by Casalini Libri S.p.A. — Via Faentina 169/15 — I-50010 Caldine (FI) (Italy) — www.casalini.it Arbor Sapientiae s.r.l. — via Bernardo Barbiellini Amidei 80 — I-00168 Roma (Italy) — www.arborsapientiae.com Eisenbrauns — POB 275 Winona Lake, IN 46590-0275 (USA) — https://www.eisenbrauns.com

NATALIE NAOMI MAY, SAANA SVÄRD (EDITORS)

CHANGE IN NEO-ASSYRIAN IMPERIAL ADMINISTRATION: EVOLUTION AND REVOLUTION TABLE OF CONTENTS

1–4 5–10 11–20 21–45 47–77 79–116 117–156 157–171 173–215

ABBREVIATIONS

SAANA SVÄRD AND NATALIE NAOMI MAY, Preface: The Importance of Noticing Change RAIJA MATTILA AND JOUNI HARJUMÄKI, Change or Chance? Studying Change in NeoAssyrian Administration MELANIE M. GROß, Food and Drink for the Palace: The Management of Foodstuffs in Neo-Assyrian Times and Beyond KRZYSZTOF HIPP, Fugitives in the State Archives of Assyria NATALIE NAOMI MAY, Administrative and Other Reforms of Sargon II and Tiglathpileser III ZOLTÁN NIEDERREITER, Cylinder Seals of Eleven Eunuchs (ša rēši Officials): A Study on Glyptics Dated to the Reign of Adad-nērārī III SAANA SVÄRD, Changes in Neo-Assyrian Queenship KAZUKO WATANABE, Innovations in Esarhaddon’s Succession Oath Documents Considered from the Viewpoint of the Documents’ Structure

Editore: S.A.R.G.O.N. Editrice e Libreria — Via Induno 18/A — I-35134 Padova (Italy) Stampa: Copisteria Stecchini — Via Santa Sofia 58–62 — I-35121 Padova (Italy) Direttore responsabile: Prof. Dr. Ines Thomas Finito di stampare il 31.03.2016

N. N. May and S. Svärd Workshop Organisers and Proceedings Editors

Papers Presented at the Workshop

Change in Neo-Assyrian Imperial Administration: Evolution and Revolution Held on July 16th, 2013 on the Occasion of the LIX Rencontre Assyriologique Internationale “Law and (Dis)order in the Ancient Near East” Ghent, July 15th–19th, 2013 with Other Papers Included

ABBREVIATIONS

2 Kings A AHw AO Ash. Ass. BIN BM BM WA BT BWL CAD CT CTN 1

Second Book of Kings. siglum of texts in the Assur collection of the Istanbul Arkeoloji Müzeleri. W. von Soden, Akkadisches Handwörterbuch, I–III, Wiesbaden 1959–81. Museum siglum of Musée du Louvre. Museum siglum of Ashmolean Museum of Art and Archaeology. Siglum of texts excavated in the German excavations in Assur. Babylonian Inscriptions in the Collection of James B. Nies, New Haven. Museum siglum of the British Museum. Museum siglum of the British Museum, Western Asiatic Collection. Siglum of texts excavated in the British excavations of Balawat (Imgur-Illil). W. G. Lambert, Babylonian Wisdom Literature, London 1960. The Assyrian Dictionary of the Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago. Cuneiform Texts from Babylonian Tablets in the British Museum, London. J. V. Kinnier Wilson, The Nimrud Wine Lists. A Study of Men and Administration at the Assyrian Capital in the Eighth Century B.C. (Cuneiform Texts from Nimrud 1), London 1972. CTN 2 J. N. Postgate, The Governor’s Palace Archive (Cuneiform Texts from Nimrud 2), London 1973. CTN 3 S. Dalley, J. N. Postgate, The Tablets from Fort Shalmaneser (Cuneiform Texts from Nimrud 3), London 1984. Del. Siglum of cylinder seals in the Bibliothèque Nationale de France numbered according to L. Delaporte, Catalogue des cylindres orientaux et des cachets assyro-babyloniens, perses et syro-cappadociens de la Bibliothèque Nationale, Paris. EAE Series Enūma Anu Enlil. Edubba 10 A.Y. Ahmad, J. N. Postgate, Archives from the Domestic Wing of the North-West Palace at Kalhu/Nimrud, London 2007. EŞ Museum siglum of Eski Şark Eserleri Müzesi, İstanbul Arkeoloji Müzesi. IAP Interuniversity Attraction Poles. IM Museum siglum of the Iraq Museum. Isaiah The Book of Isaiah. K. Siglum of the texts in the Kouyunjik Collection of the British Museum. KAJ E. Ebeling, Keilschrifttexte aus Assur juristischen Inhalts (Wissenschaftliche Veröffentlichungen der Deutschen Orient-Gesellschaft 50), Leipzig 1927.

2 KAN 4

ABBREVIATIONS

B. Faist, Neuassyrische Rechtsurkunden IV. Mit einem Beitrag von E. KlengelBrandt (Wissenschaftliche Veröffentlichungen der Deutschen Orient-Gesellschaft 132 = Keilschrifttexte aus Neuassyrischer Zeit 4), Wiesbaden 2010. KAR E. Ebeling, Keilschrifttexte aus Assur religiösen Inhalts, I‒II (Wissenschaftliche Veröffentlichungen der Deutschen Orient-Gesellschaft 28, 34), Leipzig 1919, 1923. KAV O. Schroeder, Keilschrifttexte aus Assur verschiedenen Inhalts (Wissenschaftliche Veröffentlichungen der Deutschen Orient-Gesellschaft 35), Leipzig 1920. MARV 3 H. Freydank, Mittelassyrische Rechtsurkunden und Verwaltungstexte II (Wissenschaftliche Veröffentlichungen der Deutschen Orient-Gesellschaft 92), Berlin 1994. MARV 5 H. Freydank, B. Feller, Mittelassyrische Rechtsurkunden und Verwaltungstexte V (Wissenschaftliche Veröffentlichungen der Deutschen Orient-Gesellschaft 106), Saarbrücken 2004. MARV 6 H. Freydank, B. Feller, Mittelassyrische Rechtsurkunden und Verwaltungstexte VI (Wissenschaftliche Veröffentlichungen der Deutschen Orient-Gesellschaft 109), Saarwellingen 2005. MARV 7 H. Freydank, B. Feller, Mittelassyrische Rechtsurkunden und Verwaltungstexte VII (Wissenschaftliche Veröffentlichungen der Deutschen Orient-Gesellschaft 111), Saarwellingen 2006. MARV 10 H. Freydank, D. Prechel, Mittelassyrische Rechtsurkunden und Verwaltungstexte X (Wissenschaftliche Veröffentlichung der Deutschen Orient-Gesellschaft 134), Wiesbaden 2011. MSL 12 M. Civil (ed.), The Series lú = ša and Related Texts (Materials for the Sumerian Lexicon 12), Rome 1969. NBC Museum siglum of Nies Babylonian Collection, Yale University Library. ND Siglum of texts excavated in the British excavations at Nimrud (Kalhu). NWL see CTN 1. O Siglum of texts in the Royal Museum of Art and History, Brussels. PNA K. Radner, H. D. Baker (eds.), The Prosopography of the Neo-Assyrian Empire 1– 3, Helsinki, 1998–2011. RIMA 1 A. K. Grayson, Assyrian Rulers of the 3rd and 2nd Millenia BC (to 1115 BC) (The Royal Inscriptions of Mesopotamia, Assyrian Periods 1), Toronto 1987. RIMA 2 A. K. Grayson, Assyrian Rulers of the Early First Millennium BC I (1114–859 BC) (The Royal Inscriptions of Mesopotamia, Assyrian Periods 2), Toronto 1991. RIMA 3 A. K. Grayson, Assyrian Rulers of the Early First Millennium BC II (858–745) (The Royal Inscriptions of Mesopotamia, Assyrian Periods 3), Toronto 1996. RINAP 1 H. Tadmor, Sh. Yamada, The Royal Inscriptions of Tiglath-pileser III (744‒727 BC), and Shalmaneser V (726?‒722 BC), Kings of Assyria (Royal Inscriptions of the NeoAssyrian Period 1), Winona Lake, IN 2011. RINAP 3/1 A. K. Grayson, J. Novotný, The Royal Inscriptions of Sennacherib, King of Assyria (704–681 BC), Part 1 (Royal Inscriptions of the Neo-Assyrian Period 3/1), Winona Lake, IN 2012.

ABBREVIATIONS

3

RINAP 3/2 A. K. Grayson, J. Novotný, The Royal Inscriptions of Sennacherib, King of Assyria (704–681 BC), Part 2 (Royal Inscriptions of the Neo-Assyrian Period 3/2), Winona Lake, IN 2014. RINAP 4 E. Leichty, The Royal Inscriptions of Esarhaddon, King of Assyria (680–669 BC) (Royal Inscriptions of the Neo-Assyrian Period 4), Winona Lake, IN 2011. SAA 1 S. Parpola, The Correspondence of Sargon II, Part I: Letters from Assyria and the West (State Archives of Assyria 1), Helsinki 1987. SAA 10 S. Parpola, Letters from Assyrian and Babylonian Scholars (State Archives of Assyria 10), Helsinki 1993. SAA 11 F. M. Fales, J. N. Postgate, Imperial Administrative Records, Part II: Provincial and Military Administration (State Archives of Assyria 11), Helsinki 1995. SAA 12 L. Kataja, R. Whiting, Grants, Decrees and Gifts of the Neo-Assyrian Period (State Archives of Assyria 12), Helsinki 1995. SAA 13 S. W. Cole, P. Machinist, Letters from Assyrian and Babylonian Priests to Kings Esarhaddon and Assurbanipal (State Archives of Assyria 13), Helsinki 1998. SAA 14 R. Mattila, Legal Transactions of the Royal Court of Nineveh, Part II. Assurbanipal through Sin-šarru-iškun (State Archives of Assyria 14), Helsinki 2002. SAA 15 A. Fuchs, S. Parpola, The Correspondence of Sargon II, Part III. Letters from Babylonia and the Eastern Provinces (State Archives of Assyria 15), Helsinki 2002. SAA 16 M. Luukko, G. Van Buylaere, The Political Correspondence of Esarhaddon (State Archives of Assyria 16), Helsinki 2002. SAA 17 M. Dietrich, The Babylonian Correspondence of Sargon and Sennacherib (State Archives of Assyria 17), Helsinki 2003. SAA 18 F. Reynolds, The Babylonian Correspondence of Esarhaddon and Letters to Assurbanipal and Sîn-šarru-iškun from Northern and Central Babylonia (State Archives of Assyria 18), Helsinki 2003. SAA 19 M. Luukko, The Correspondence of Tiglath-pileser III and Sargon II from Calah/ Nimrud (State Archives of Assyria 19), Helsinki 2012. SAA 20 S. Parpola, Assyrian Royal Rituals and Cultic Texts (State Archives of Assyria 20), Helsinki forthcoming. SAAS 5 R. Jas, Neo-Assyrian Judicial Procedures (State Archives of Assyria Studies V), Helsinki 1996. SH Siglum of Tall Šēḫ Ḥamad texts. SIT Series Šumma Sīn ina tāmartīšu. StAT 2 V. Donbaz, S. Parpola, Neo-Assyrian Legal Texts in Istanbul (Studien zu den AssurTexten 2), Saarbrücken 2001. StAT 3 B. Faist, Alltagstexte aus neuassyrischen Archiven und Bibliotheken der Stadt Assur (Studien zu den Assur-Texten III), Saarbrücken 2007. STT O. R. Gurney, The Sultantepe Tablets (British Institute of Archaeology at Ankara. Occasional Publications 3), London 1957–1964.

4 TCL 3 VA VAT Ziyaret

ABBREVIATIONS

F. Thureau-Dangin, Une relation de la huitième campagne de Sargon (Textes cunéiformes du Louvre 3), Paris 1912. Museum siglum of Vorderasiatisches Museum, Berlin. Siglum of the texts in of Vorderasiatisches Museum, Berlin. Tablet excavated at Ziyaret Tepe, 2002–2003; S. Parpola, “Cuneiform Texts from Ziyaret Tepe (Tušḫan), 2002–2003”, State Archives of Assyria Bulletin 17 (2008), 1–113, pls. I–XXIII.

State Archives of Assyria Bulletin Volume XXI (2015) N. N. MAY, S. SVÄRD (EDS.) CHANGE IN NEO-ASSYRIAN IMPERIAL ADMINISTRATION: EVOLUTION AND REVOLUTION

CHANGES IN NEO-ASSYRIAN QUEENSHIP * Saana Svärd

1. Introduction This paper investigates the changes within the institution of queenship during the NeoAssyrian era. It is based mainly on the textual evidence, although iconographical evidence will be touched upon. 1 In this article I will first discuss the role of the queen and the mother of the king in general terms (sections 2 and 3). 2 After that I will discuss the possible changes within the Neo-Assyrian period, first in the administrative role of the queen’s household (section 4) and then in the context of the royal ideology (section 5). Regarding the queen’s household, some changes did occur in the reigns of Sargon, Sennacherib, and Assurbanipal, but regarding the royal ideology, the results of the analysis are more tentative.

2. Queen and Mother of the King: Overview of Textual Evidence The Neo-Assyrian queen, literally “the woman of the palace” (MÍ.É.GAL, sēgallu) and/or the mother of the king is mentioned in 177 texts. Figure 1 presents the basic chronological and geographical distribution of these texts. The earliest reference to the queen comes from 844 BCE and the evidence continues up until the destruction of the Empire in 612 BCE. There is consistent proof of her activities throughout the years in between. Geographically, there are no glaring anomalies to the distribution of material in general. The

* 1. 2.

I would like to thank Natalie N. May and Robert Whiting for many helpful suggestions regarding this paper and the latter also for improving my English. In this article I have a chance to expand and elucidate some of the proposals that I made earlier in Svärd 2015. I use “mother of the king”, “queen mother” and “king’s mother” interchangeably to refer to the mother of the ruling monarch, Akkadian ummi šarri (AMA–LUGAL/MAN).

158

SAANA SVÄRD Nineveh

Kalḫu NW P.

Kalḫu Other

14 No specific date possible 3 Shalmaneser III (858-824) Šamšī-Adad V (823-811) 1 7 Adad- nērārī III (810-783) or Shalmaneser IV (782-773) Adad- nērārī III (810-783) 2 1 1 Shalmaneser IV (782-773) 2 1 Aššūr-dān III (772-755) 3 4 Aššūr-nērārī V (754-745) 6 3 Tiglath-pileser III (744-727) Shalmaneser V (726-722) 2 4 6 1 Sargon II (721-705) Before the reign of Sennacherib 1 5 2 11 Sennacherib (704-681) Esarhaddon (680-669) 14 Assurbanipal (668-630*) 8 1 Esarhaddon or Assurbanipal Aššūr-etel-ilāni (629*-625*) 1 1 4 11 Sīn-šarru-iškun (626*-612*)

Assur

Other/Unknown

11

5

3 44

3

3

3 1 2

Fig. 1. Chronological and geographical distribution of the Neo-Assyrian texts that refer to the queen and/or the queen mother.

oldest texts originate from the old capital of the Empire, Kalḫu. As expected, the clear majority of the texts have been excavated from the later capital Nineveh, where the huge archives of the Empire were discovered. The smaller archives excavated from Assur and provincial towns are attested in the evidence as well. It thus seems that the texts relating to the queen cover the Empire (chronologically and geographically) in a fairly consistent and persistent manner. 3 It is essential that we separate in research 1) the king’s sexual partner(s), 2) the king’s wife/wives and 3) the title of the queen, and 4) the position of the queen as the head of the queen’s household. For the first two there is little more to offer than speculation. Based on what we know about the king’s children, it seems that he often had more than one sexual partner and that sometimes his children were given birth by the MÍ.É.GAL. 4 Moreover, although it seems like a reasonable assumption that the queen was married to the king, royal marriage is poorly documented in the Neo-Assyrian era. There is no direct evidence regarding the king’s wedding ceremony, or the possible number of wives, or

3. 4.

For details, see Svärd 2015: 177–221 (Appendix A) and 240f. (Appendix D). For a list of Esarhaddon’s children, see Parpola 1983 [2007]: 117–119. See also PNA for lists of Sargon’s and Sennacherib’s children (s.v. Šarru-kēnu 2.II and Sīn-aḫḫē-erība 1.3.b Fuchs 2011: 1240 and Frahm 2002: 1114f. respectively).

CHANGES IN NEO-ASSYRIAN QUEENSHIP

159

dowry. 5 Indeed, in only one case do we even know the identity of the father of the queen. 6 Thus, there is no reason for a facile assumption of equating the sexual partner(s) of the king with wife/wives and/or queen(s). The arrangements for pleasure and/or offspring did not necessarily intersect with the concerns of the empire. Therefore, this article concentrates on the title of the queen and on the position of the queen as the head of the queen’s household. The Neo-Assyrian queen supported temples financially, dedicated jewelry to the gods, received divine messages and was involved in arranging rituals. She also had a role to play in the making of political decisions. Based on the letters that she received, she clearly commanded respect from a number of highranking officials. She had considerable financial resources that are in evidence not only in texts, but also in the treasures found in the queens’ graves at Kalḫu (modern Nimrud). 7 The majority of the 177 texts in question relate to the activities of her staff, not directly to the activities of the queen herself. The administrative unit of the queen’s household was an integral part of the Neo-Assyrian administration throughout its existence. Her household had extensive land holdings and offices all over the empire, employing hundreds of persons. Her staff was headed by female administrators (šakintu in Akkadian, attested in 54 texts) apparently throughout the Neo-Assyrian Empire. The first attestation of a šakintu comes from 788 BCE (Edubba 10 6) and the last ones from the very end of the Empire. These women were present in many royal palaces, and they had considerable resources and extensive staff. There is a record of administrators being present in a total of 23 palaces throughout the Neo-Assyrian Empire, including, of course, the capital cities of Assur, Kalḫu and Nineveh. In Kalḫu and Nineveh, the office of šakintu is attested in several different palaces. The šakintus were not only working for the queen in the capital city, but probably ran the provincial households fairly autonomously. The administrators were apparently present in those cities where the queen had some financial interest. The administrator lent and borrowed commodities. She had a staff of her own, including female and male administrative staff (for example, eunuchs, village managers, treasurers, the palace overseer and the chief baker) and menial workers (for example, leatherworkers, shepherds, weavers and bakers). One of the main enterprises in these households may have been textile production for the use of the royal palaces, but possibly also for trade. To put it succinctly, the šakintu and her staff were the executive arm of the queen’s finances. 8 5.

6. 7. 8.

However, there are some interesting references in the lists of booty in royal inscriptions. High-ranking women, often the relatives of kings, are referred to as booty, together with their dowries. This suggests that some of these women became wives of the king or possibly the wives of his high officials (see Svärd 2015: 127–130). Svärd 2015: 40, 49; al-Rawi 2008: 122–125, texts nos. 2 and 3. Svärd 2015: 39–85. Svärd 2015: 91–105.

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A continuing tradition throughout the era seems to have been that at any given time there was only one queen, or more specifically, only one head of the queen’s household. The argument for this is long-winded, and I will not recount it in full here. 9 I will merely state the two main supporting arguments. First, among the many texts relating to the queen, only one refers to them in the plural. 10 Second, if there were more than one queen, personal names or other indicators would have been used to identify a specific queen among them. Instead, in all the administrative documents there is never any ambivalence: texts refer to “the Queen”. Names of the queens are actually rather rarely attested. The title of the queen is a different matter. It seems possible that the title could still be used in some circumstances, even when the responsibilities of heading the household of the queen had passed on to another woman. 11 The only documented case of such a situation relates to Naqīʾa, but this could have happened more than once.

3. The Mother of the King I have included in Figure 1 both the queens and the mothers of the kings because it seems that the mother of the king occasionally occupied the weighty office of the head of the queen’s household. In some cases a woman may have continued as the head of the queen’s household even after her spouse was replaced by a new king. Such individuals were probably the queens Mullissu-mukannišat-Nīnua, Sammu-rāmat, Iabâ/Bānītu and Naqīʾa/ Zakūtu. 12 At the very least Naqīʾa is a confirmed case and I will explain this in more detail here. The remarkable mother of Esarhaddon, Naqīʾa, is also known by her Akkadian name as Zakūtu. She was possibly the MÍ.É.GAL of Sennacherib (704–681), but had a more visible role during the reign of her son, Esarhaddon (680–669), and her grandson, Assurbanipal (668–ca. 630). Naqīʾa is perhaps best known from the “Treaty of Zakūtu” (SAA 2 8). There she binds the whole nation in unswerving loyalty to the new king, Assurbanipal. This is unique in Mesopotamia, and while it is not the only evidence we have regarding Naqīʾa’s important role in governmental decision-making, it is certainly the clearest. Following Sarah Melville, it seems plausible that Naqīʾa’s authority in the NeoAssyrian court was bolstered so that she would be in a strong position to secure the throne for her grandson Assurbanipal. 13

9. 10. 11. 12. 13.

For the full argument on this topic, see Svärd 2015: 40–48. A cultic text SAA 20 34 (forthcoming), most recently discussed in Parpola 1983 [2007]: 190f. Svärd 2015: 44–47. See Svärd 2015: 48 (Table 2). Svärd 2015: 52–59 and Melville 1999: 91f.

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Because Naqīʾa is clearly the best documented Neo-Assyrian woman and because many of her deeds are remarkable, one could easily consider her as an exceptional woman, a harbinger of change among the generally invisible Neo-Assyrian mothers of the kings. 14 On closer examination, however, it becomes clear that her role and activities need to be understood in the context of Neo-Assyrian queenship. After the death of her daughter-inlaw, Ešarra-ḫammat in 672, Naqīʾa took over and carried out the duties of the head of the queen’s household at least until the early part of her grandson Assurbanipal’s reign. 15 In Figure 2, I compare the chronological distribution between text references to the queen and the king’s mother. Five unclear cases are not included and two texts refer to both the queen and the queen mother; thus the total number of occurrences in the chart is 174, not 177. 16 The overwhelming majority of the texts referring to the king’s mother come from the reign of Esarhaddon. In general, the evidence regarding the queen is fairly Queen

Queen mother

No specific date possible 3 Shalmaneser III (858-824) Šamšī-Adad V (823-811) 1 7 Adad- nērārī III (810-783) or Shalmaneser IV (782-773) 4 Adad- nērārī III (810-783) Shalmaneser IV (782-773) 3 Aššūr-dān III (772-755) 3 4 Aššūr-nērārī V (754-745) 9 Tiglath-pileser III (744-727) Shalmaneser V (726-722) 2 11 Sargon II (721-705) 7 Before the reign of Sennacherib Sennacherib (704-681) 8 Esarhaddon (680-669) Assurbanipal (668-630*) 8 Esarhaddon or Assurbanipal 2 Aššūr-etel-ilāni (629*-625*) 2 1 6 Sīn-šarru-iškun (626*-612*)

16

1 16

2 38

18

2

Fig. 2. Chronological distribution of the titles “queen” and “mother of the king” in Neo-Assyrian texts. 14. Although here too Sammu-rāmat, the mother of Adad-nērārī III (810–783), should be mentioned (Svärd 2015: 49–51). 15. The idea that Naqīʾa took over the duties of the queen was suggested in passing already by K. Radner in 2003 (Radner 2003: 168). 16. The chart is necessarily based on my interpretations of the texts, but I have endeavored to err on the side of caution in my calculations. I have counted references to queens and queen mothers even in cases where the title does not appear, for example, references to Naqīʾa with only her name during the reign of Esarhaddon. In texts where Naqīʾa or Sammu-rāmat uses both titles, I have counted the text as representing the queen mother. For the 177 texts that form the basis for this chart, see Svärd 2015: 177–221 (Appendix A) and 240f. (Appendix D).

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consistent throughout the Neo-Assyrian period. Therefore, it is significant that in the reign of Esarhaddon the number of references to the queen drops radically, while references to his mother Naqīʾa increase sharply. Most of the texts from the reign of Esarhaddon cannot be dated to a specific year, but it seems that Naqīʾa did exist as a member of the court with a household of her own even before the death of Ešarra-ḫammat in 672. 17 Thus, she would already have been in a good position to fill the role of the head of the queen’s household. After the death of Ešarra-ḫammat the only influential woman appearing in the textual evidence is the king’s mother Naqīʾa. Her activities documented in the texts from the reign of Esarhaddon were similar to those of queens. Clearly, Naqīʾa is taking on the responsibilities of the queen until Assurbanipal’s queen assumes them. Thus, Naqīʾa is not establishing a new tradition of a spectacular queen mothership, but she is keeping up the age-old tradition of Neo-Assyrian queenship. 18 This state of affairs is reflected in our material regarding the queens and queen mothers. There are only four occurrences out of the corpus of 177 texts where the title “mother of the king” refers to a woman who was not holding the position of the head of the queen’s household. 19 Unlike the queen, there is no continuous evidence regarding the importance of the mother of the king. It thus seems that the mother of the king did not have the same kind of institutional position as the queen did. Why certain individual queen mothers, like Naqīʾa, stepped up to take care of the queen’s obligations in their sons’ reigns cannot be known for certain. Certainly it had a great deal to do with contemporary political circumstances, and possibly also with the personality of the woman in question. In any case, analyzing the relationship between the queen and the king’s mother focuses attention on the fact that Neo-Assyrian dynasties were family undertakings. When needed, members of the royal family, both men and women, stepped up to ensure that the dynasty flourished.

4. Changes in Queenship: Emergence of Military Units of the Queen and Her Bureau Seal It has been suggested that Sennacherib shifted power to the members of his own family and away from the high officials and that this development is signaled by the arrival of 17. SAA 6 252 (674 BCE) refers to the sister of the queen mother and SAA 6 255 (678 BCE) indicates that the queen mother had a town manager. 18. See Svärd 2015: 177–221 (Appendix A) and 240f. (Appendix D) for a summary of the whole textual evidence. For Naqīʾa and Ešarra-ḫammat, see esp. Svärd 2015: 46, 192–207. 19. The four texts are SAA 7 48, SAA 6 143, SAA 12 22 and Parker 1954, 35, text ND 2093. The text ND 2093 was collated by K. Radner for the electronic database “The Neo-Assyrian Text Corpus” (http:// www.helsinki.fi/science/saa/). I wish to thank professor emeritus S. Parpola for making the database available to me.

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the bureau seals of the queen and the crown prince, as well as the appearance of their own army units. 20 In this section I analyze these changes and their exact timing regarding the queen. As far as the emergence of military units of the queen is concerned, this shift apparently already began during Sargon’s reign. In a letter from the crown prince Sennacherib to Sargon he sent “10 chariot ow[ne]rs from the household of the queen” to the king.21 Furthermore, Sargon split the office of turtānu in two, 22 probably in order to reduce the authority and influence of the most important of the magnates. Finally, changes regarding the crown prince and king’s brother (sukkallu) took place during his reign as well. 23 During Sennacherib’s reign, the occurrence of the queen’s military units becomes more frequent. Several different types of military personnel are known. In the witness list of a contract (SAA 6 164) from 686 BCE, there are three witnesses from the queen’s army units: Mannu-kī-Issār-lēʾi and Banūnu, cohort commanders of the queen (r. 4: LÚ.GAL– ki-ṣir ša MÍ.É.GAL) and Nabû-šarru-uṣur, “third man of the queen” (r. 11: LÚ.3-šú ša MÍ.É. GAL). Another contract (SAA 6 165) from the reign of Sennacherib refers to cohort commanders of the queen as well. Only the title of the first witness has been preserved (r. 6: GAL–ki-ṣir ša MÍ.KUR), but the following two cohort commanders are called Nabû-naʾid and Banūnu. Following Banūnu the fourth witness is only listed with his name, Mannukī-Issār-lēʾi. Considering the context and the connection of this text to SAA 6 164, it seems plausible that this is the same cohort commander of the queen. 24 During the reign of Esarhaddon, when his mother Naqīʾa was in charge of the queen’s household, even more varied military personnel are attested. The cohort commander and the third man of the mother of the king appear in the witness list of a contract, although their names have not been preserved (SAA 6 253). Furthermore, the administrative lists SAA 7 5 and 9 from Nineveh provide detailed information on these army officials. The list SAA 7 5 contains no information as to its purpose, but SAA 7 9 is a list for lodgings for officials. The two lists are connected, as the same persons appear in them. The editors of SAA 7 suggest that these lists (SAA 7 1–12) were all connected with a celebration that was taking place in the capital. 25 SAA 7 5 lists about 166 persons, and refers to many 20. Radner 2008: 510. 21. The letter has been recently republished as SAA 19 158. The editor of SAA 19, M. Luukko convincingly argues that this letter was sent by Sennacherib to Sargon. For a suggestion that the letter was sent by the crown prince to Tiglath-pileser III, see Radner 2003–04: 101 (text no.5). 22. Mattila 2000: 107–125, 153. 23. See May 2012, especially 202 and May in this volume. 24. See PNA 2/II, where it is suggested that the same Mannu-kī-Issār-lēʾi was a witness in SAA 6 177 (from 684 BCE) as well, although there his title is abbreviated to “cohort commander” (Baker 2001a: 692 s.v. Mannu-kī-Issār-lēʾi 1). 25. Fales & Postgate 1992: xviif.

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military units of the king’s mother. Altogether the staff of the king’s mother is referred to 16 times. The officials of the crown prince are referred to 21 times, which makes this the second largest group of officials within SAA 7 5. The new military officials that appear in Naqīʾa’s service in this list are bodyguards (ša qurbūti) and chariot drivers (mukīl appāti). 26 In SAA 7 9 the queen’s staff appears six times and one of the occurrences refers to Uazaru, her bodyguard. 27 Especially SAA 7 9 confirms that Naqīʾa had servants outside Nineveh, although apparently she herself lived in the capital city. It is noteworthy that the queen’s staff is absent from these administrative lists. This is yet another indication that Naqīʾa was the head of the queen’s household at this time. Clearly these military units should be regarded as part of queen’s household. During the reign of Assurbanipal, the queen Libbāli-šarrat had a chariot driver called Marduk-šarru-uṣur. He is documented with his name and title as a witness in texts where a chariot driver of the king purchases people and real estate. 28 Additionally, and interestingly, the same individual is apparently actively involved in quelling the revolt of Šamaššumu-ukīn. 29 Furthermore, Līt-ili, “cohort commander of the chariot fighters”, witnesses a transaction of Milki-nūri, the eunuch of the queen. 30

26. The following appear in SAA 7 5 (transliterations by editors of SAA 7, translation mine): i 42 [NN], bodyguard of the king’s mother (m[x x x] LÚ–qur-ZAG AMA–MAN); i 43 Issār-naʾdi, bodyguard of the king’s mother (m15–I [L]Ú–KIMIN KIMIN!). Possibly the same Issārnaʾdi who appears in SAA 7 9 ii 32′; ii 30 Salāmānu, cohort [commander] of the king’s mother (msa-lam-a-nu L[Ú.GAL]–ki-ṣir AMA–MAN); ii 32 Mutakkil-Aššūr, [bodygua]rd of the king’s mother (mmu-tak-kil–aš-šur L[Ú–qur-ZA]G! AMA– MAN); iii 7 [Bēl]-aḫḫēšu, third man of the king’s mother ([mE]N!–PAB!.MEŠ-šú [LÚ].˹3˺-šú AMA–MAN!); iii 18 Nabû-šarru-uṣ[ur, … of the kin]g’s mother (mdPA–MAN–P[AB LÚ.x AM]A–MAN). Despite the fact that Nabû-šarru-uṣur is a common name, this could be the same individual known from the reign of Sennacherib as the third man of the queen, or alternatively the bodyguard in SAA 7 9 (r. i 8), which would then need to be understood as the bodyguard of the queen mother; iii 42 Inūrta-ilāʾī, bodyguard of the king’s mother (mdMAŠ–DINGI[R-a-a] LÚ–qur-ZAG AMA–MAN); iv 5 Bir-Iamâ, chariot driver of the king’s mother (mbir–ia-ma-a LÚ.DIB–PA.MEŠ AMA–MAN); iv 10 Iltadaia, chariot driver of the king’s mother (mil-ta-da-a-a LÚ.DIB–PA.MEŠ AMA–MAN). 27. r. i 22 Uazaru, bodyguard of the king’s mother is assigned to the residences of the Dikanaeans (mú-aza-ru LÚ–qur-ZAG AMA–MAN). 28. SAA 6 329 r. 13 mdAMAR.UTU–MAN–PAB LÚ.DIB–KUŠ.PA.MEŠ ša MÍ.É.GAL, duplicate SAA 6 330 (dated to 660 BCE, the title is restored) and SAA 6 332 (the title is restored). 29. For this, see H. D. Baker’s summary in PNA 2/II s.v. Marduk-šarru-uṣur 23 (Baker 2001b: 729). There are altogether eighteen military officials of the queen known by name (all introduced in this section). According to the relevant articles in PNA, there is no direct evidence of any of the others engaging in military action. 30. SAA 14 7 r. 7–8 LÚ.GAL–ki-ṣir ša LÚ.A-SIG ša MÍ.É.GAL.

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Although the names of the queens who followed Libbāli-šarrat are not known, the queens continued to hold military staff until the end of the Neo-Assyrian era. During the post-canonical period there are three references to these military officials. In a donation made to the Nabû temple by Nabû-sakip for the life of the king Sīn-šarru-iškun and his unnamed queen, Šumu-ukīn, cohort commander of the household of the queen, acts as a witness. 31 Furthermore, two unpublished texts from Maʾallanate from post-canonical times refer to a bodyguard and to a “third man” of the queen. 32 The existence of cohort commanders proves that these were not just personal guards of the queen, but actual military units. Cohort commanders would have been commanders of infantry units. Furthermore, chariotry is well represented (third men of chariot teams, chariotry officers, owners and drivers) and the existence of a cohort commander of the chariot fighters implies the existence of a whole military unit of chariotry. Interestingly, the wife of the crown prince, i.e., the “lady of the house” (bēlat bēti), also had chariotry in her household during the Neo-Assyrian era. 33 This was very probably connected with her future rise to queenship in the normal course of events. Finally, there are the queen’s “bodyguards” (ša qurbūti) who may have been more than just military staff. “Royal confidante” is a translation suggested by Eckart Frahm for this expression. 34 Based on the CAD (Q 315–317 s.v. qurbūtu in ša qurbūti) attestations from the Neo-Assyrian period, it seems this person was indeed a personal envoy of the king, somebody who was literally close to the king and had his ear. These individuals are also known from the service of the crown prince and the queen. It seems probable that the service they performed for them was similar to the one that they performed for the king. Thus, these persons were probably special envoys of the queen, taking care of her affairs, under direct orders from her. 35 To sum up, it seems that 1) some of the military personnel (SAA 7 9) existed outside Nineveh, 2) some of them took part in actual military operations (Marduk-šarru-uṣur) and 3) that some of the units were at the disposal of the crown prince (SAA 19 158). It thus 31. SAA 12 96 s. 2, mMU–GIN LÚ.˹GAL˺–k[i-ṣi]r š[a] ˹É˺ MÍ.É.GAL. 32. See Pearce 2011: 1358 for Ubrî (s.v. Ubrî 7), bodyguard of the queen (eponym of Iqbi-ilani, 626*) and Garelli 1986: 243, 245f. for Adda-rāmu, the third man of the queen (eponym of Daddî, 622*). For more details on these texts, see Svärd 2015: 217. For post-canonical dates (indicated here with *), see PNA 1/I xviii–xx. 33. There are three occurrences: the first one probably in the reign of Sennacherib (SAA 6 200), the second ca. 671–660 BCE (SAA 6 339) and the third in 619* BCE (eponym of Mannu-kī-aḫḫē, SAA 14 169). For the suggestion that “Lady of the House” refers to the wife of the crown prince see Svärd & Luukko 2009. See also Svärd 2015: 90f., 230f. 34. Frahm 2009: 56, based on Radner 2002: 13f. 35. For military units in the service of the royal women, see also Dezső 2012-I: 142, 177f. and Dezső 2012-II: 95, 100f., 105. For the development of the Neo-Assyrian army, see generally also Dezső 2012-II: 147–164.

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seems plausible that these units were more than just an honor guard of the queen — they were part of the military might of Assyria. Karen Radner has suggested that seals where the scorpion — the queen’s symbol — acted as a filler-motif would have been personal seals of the queen, whereas seals with the scorpion as the main motif (alone and combined with other motifs) was the official bureau seal that appeared in the 7th century. Based on the textual evidence, she suggests that this development may have happened during Sennacherib’s reign. 36 Firmly datable appearances of the scorpion seal are few in the known seal evidence. Of these, the scorpion as a filler motif appears in seals or seal impressions in the reign of Shalmaneser IV, Sargon II (716 BCE) and Sennacherib (681 BCE). The only firmly dated seal impression with the scorpion as the main motif comes from the reign of Assurbanipal (658 BCE, SAA 7 93). 37 Thus, if a change happened, it seems the reign of Esarhaddon or Assurbanipal would be likelier candidates for the change regarding the appearance of the bureau seal. Textual evidence is a different matter and it could very well be that the change in the queen’s position was a gradual process, perhaps beginning in the reign of Sargon and culminating in the reign of Assurbanipal. Certainly Naqīʾa’s prominence could be seen in this light as well, as a part of a trend already started by her father-in-law, Sargon II.

5. Changes in Queenship: the Image of Queenship In this section I examine the queen’s role in the royal ideology. To be clear, by royal ideology I mean the efforts of the members of the elite to project a certain “image” of kingship. Regarding the queens and mothers of kings, I examine how they were presented as part of the institution of creating kingship. This is why I will here only discuss the texts and images which were meant to be seen and to impress a certain image upon the viewer or reader. There are only three large-scale representations of queens. The first one is the socalled Garden Scene relief, showing a woman, presumably the queen Libbāli-šarrat banqueting with Assurbanipal in the garden. The second one is a stele that was erected in the Assur stele yard among the 140 steles of kings and high functionaries. This stele of Libbāli-šarrat is the only one of them that has the image of the person, in addition to the name. 38 Finally, the third item is a bronze relief fragment depicting Naqīʾa following a king, presumably her son Esarhaddon, in what seems to be a religious ceremony. Remar-

36. Radner 2008: 494–502, 509f. For the scorpion symbol, see also Svärd 2015: 68f. 37. See Radner 2008: 494–502, Niederreiter 2008: 82–84 and Mitchell & Searight 2008 (catalogue), nos. 8, 37, 95–96, 220–224, 230–233. 38. See below fn. 49 for the inscription.

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kably, Naqīʾa’s name is inscribed on her image to make it very clear that this is indeed her representation. 39 The queen is wearing the mural crown in all these large-scale artworks and in some of the seal evidence as well. It seems to have been a specifically Neo-Assyrian symbol of queens. All three of these images were part of the royal ideology of Esarhaddon and Assurbanipal. 40 Furthermore, there are a number of texts where the high status of the queen or the mother of the king is broadcasted to a more general elite population. These texts, which I see as belonging to the general framework of royal ideology, are introduced here briefly with the main aim of highlighting their chronology. In these texts two women in particular are prominent: the mother of Esarhaddon, Naqīʾa, and the mother of Adad-nērārī III, Sammu-rāmat. Regarding Sammu-rāmat: a dedication by her to Ištar is known. 41 Furthermore, a dedication made for her and her son exalts the god Nabû and states that these inscribed statues were dedicated for the wellbeing of the king Adad-nērārī and the queen Sammu-rāmat. 42 Then there is the remarkable boundary stone that documents Sammu-rāmat’s involvement in a military campaign with her son the king. 43 Finally, a stele from Assur reads: “Image of Sammu-rāmat, queen of Šamšī-Adad, king of everything, king of Assyria, mother of Adad-nērārī, king of everything, king of Assyria, daughter-in-law of Shalmaneser, king of the four corners of the earth”. 44 Dedications made to the deities by the queen mother Naqīʾa/Zakūtu number four altogether. 45 She is also of course known from the Zakūtu treaty (SAA 2 8) and her building inscription. 46 Regarding the queens who are presented not as mothers of the reigning king, but as his consorts, there are several attestations relating to royal ideology. The earliest known reference is attested when Sennacherib records on a lion colossus from the South-West Palace at Nineveh how he built a palace for “Tašmētu-šarrat, the queen, my beloved wife, 39. RINAP 4 2010. 40. For a detailed analysis of these three images, see Macgregor 2012: 87–93, 109–118. An additional two other images have been suggested as portraying the queen, but since these are very uncertain, they are not discussed further here. See Reade 1987: 139f. and Ornan 2002: 461, 463, 475. 41. Seymour 2008: 104. 42. RIMA 3 A.0.104.2002. 43. RIMA 3 A.0.104.3. 44. ṣa-lam MÍ.sa-am-mu–ra-mat MÍ.É.GA[L ša mšam]-ši–dIM MAN ŠÚ MAN ˹KUR˺–[da]-šur MÍ.AMA [ša md I]M–ERIM.GABA MAN ŠÚ MAN K[UR]–da-šur MÍ.kallat [mdD]I-ma-nu–MAŠ MAN kib-rat 4-ti. Transliteration from RIMA 3 A.0.104.2001: 1–7 (with transliteration style changed to fit the format of current publication), translation mine. 45. RINAP 4 2005–2008. 46. For the building inscription, see RINAP 4 2003 and 2004; Melville 1999: 38–42 for discussion.

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whose form Bēlet-ili made perfect above all other women”. 47 Then we have one of the Assur steles which belonged to a female person connected with Sennacherib. Unfortunately, the name and even the title in this badly damaged inscription remains unsure. 48 The other attestations are later. The inscription on the third and the last stele of a royal woman bore a representation of the queen and the inscription: “Image of Libbālišarrat, queen of Assurbanipal, king of the universe, king of Assyria”. 49 There is also one dedication, made by Libbāli-šarrat to an unknown deity. 50 Finally, there is a dedication to Nabû which was made for the life of Sīn-šarru-iškun and his unnamed queen (SAA 12 96). As can be seen from this brief review, the chronological distribution of these texts covers most of the Neo-Assyrian period. Their distinctive feature is that although all these women headed the queen’s household in their turn, the mothers of kings (Sammu-rāmat and Naqīʾa) appear in more texts than the spouses of the king (Tašmētu-šarrat, Libbālišarrat and the unidentified queens). Thus, although the evidence is numerically sparse, there seems to be a difference between how the role of the queen and the role of the mother of the king was presented to the world. Based on textual and iconographic evidence presented here as well as studies done on the topic, 51 I suggest that Naqīʾa and Sammu-rāmat were presented to the world as part of the dynasty, acting as guarantors and guardians of kingship. With the usurpation of Sargon and the murder of Sennacherib and the ensuing civil war, dynastic continuity and legitimation must have been a significant concern for Esarhaddon and Assurbanipal. Under such circumstances the mother of Esarhaddon, Naqīʾa, could and did become especially important in ensuring the continuation of the dynasty. Regarding Sammu-rāmat, if Adad-nērārī was very young when he came to the throne, the role of his mother was again understandably crucial from the point of view of dynastic continuity. The evidence on the role of the queen-spouse in royal politics and ideology is even sparser, but the steles at Assur imply that her role was similar to that of the queen mother. In other words, both were part of the legitimation efforts of the dynasty, but the mother of the king could in some circumstances become especially important. 47. MÍ.dtaš-me-tum–šar-˹rat˺ MÍ.É.GAL ḫi-ir-tu na-ram-ti-ia ša dbe-lit-DINGIR.MEŠ UGU gi-mir MÍ.MEŠ úšak-li-la nab-ni-sa, transliteration from Galter, Levine & Reade 1986: 32 (with transliteration style changed to fit the format of current publication), translation mine. 48. For a good bibliography and a recent discussion, see RINAP 3/2: 364. 49. [ṣ]a-lam [MÍ].URU.ŠÀ–URU–ša[r-rat] MÍ.É.[GAL] šá mAN.ŠÁR–DÙ–[A] MAN ŠÚ M[AN] KUR–a[š?-šur?] (A[N.ŠÁR] is also a possible restoration; the meaning, however, is not in question). This transliteration is based on the copy and a rather outdated transliteration in Andrae 1913: 8. Translation mine, the small restorations in the transliteration are not indicated in the translation. 50. Deller 1983: 22–24. 51. Svärd 2015: 39–85, Siddall 2013: 86–100 and Melville 1999 (see esp. 91f.).

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6. Concluding Remarks I established in the first part of the article that the institutional queenship was present throughout the Neo-Assyrian era and that the household of the queen was always in the hands of one individual; wife or mother (or grandmother) of the king. The queen’s household was an integral part of the administration of the realm. Two innovations relate to the queen’s household. There is the appearance of military units for the queen in the reign of Sargon and/or Sennacherib. Additionally, we have the emerging bureau seal of the queen perhaps as late as the reign of Assurbanipal. Thus, it seems that the queen’s administrative bureau gained more weight and resources during the reigns of these kings. Another focus of the current article was the position of the queen and the mother of the king in the royal ideology. Based on the textual evidence, the role of the mother of the king seems to be more important for royal ideology than the role of the wife. From that perspective, it is intriguing that the queen Libbāli-šarrat appears twice in large-scale representations, whereas the mother of the king, Naqīʾa, is attested only once. The numbers are so small, however, that I do not think that it invalidates my suggestion regarding the importance of the mother of the king. Instead one should perhaps think about Libbālišarrat as a game-changer or a culmination point regarding the queen’s role in royal ideology. One should also remember that these two depictions of Libbāli-šarrat are more exceptional than Naqīʾa’s appearance in the bronze relief. Naqīʾa following her son the king has precedents in the Neo-Assyrian seal imagery, but the stele in the Assur stele yard that belonged to Libbāli-šarrat breaks the conventions of the steles that had been in place for hundreds of years. It is building on an earlier tradition of queenship (the two earlier steles at Assur), but her pictorial representation on the stele is unique. Furthermore, without going into details, the banquet relief is in many respects a unique and puzzling scene. 52 Additionally, the possible emergence of the office seal of the queen around this time can be seen as more than a coincidence. It could imply a growing importance for the queen’s household. The queen’s household was especially important during the reign of Esarhaddon, and this legacy could have been guarded and increased by Libbāli-šarrat. Thus, if a change in queenship is sought, the strongest evidence for change — although far from conclusive evidence — relates to Libbāli-šarrat. To summarize, the prominence of Sammu-rāmat and Naqīʾa can be connected to the tradition of the mother taking care of the dynastic line. This was not a private matter of the royal family, but a strategy to maintain royal ideology and ensure dynastic continuity. However, it seems plausible that such a strategy would have found wide acceptance among the elite — or else why repeat it? Apparently elite femininity was understood in such a way that it was deemed appropriate for a woman to step up and assume authority 52. For a recent discussion, see Macgregor 2012: 89–93.

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if this was necessary to further the interests of the whole family. 53 Similarly the wide economic and administrative reach of the queens’ households can perhaps be understood from this perspective. The importance of kinship and the emphasis on family and dynasty actually necessitated that the females of the ruling family were also part of the administration of the Empire.

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