The
Bronze Tablet, also known as the
Kurunta Treaty, (Bo 86/299) is a
bronze tablet with a
Hittite language cuneiform inscription dating to the
Bronze Age and setting forth a
vassal treaty between
Hittites King
Tudhaliya IV and his cousin, King Kurunta of
Tarhuntassa.
While thousands of Hittite clay tablets have been unearthed, the Hattusa Bronze Tablet is the only Hittite metal tablet discovered so far.
It was discovered near the Sphinx Gate of the Hittite capital
Hattusa (modern day
Bogazkale,
Turkey).
[ The tablet is housed at the Museum of Anatolian Civilizations in Ankara.
]
The text includes a detailed description of the boundaries of the kingdom of Tarhuntassa.[ For that reason, the tablet is an important source for Anatolia geography in the Bronze Age.]
The tablet is one of only three Hittite diplomatic documents so far discovered that are believed to be originals, rather than archival copies or drafts.
Analysis of the tablet showed that it consists of bronze with a very high tin content.[ The use of tin-heavy bronze may have been deliberate, in order to create a "light silverish color and sheen."][
]
