Kassites

 ( States And Territories Established In The 16th Century Bc ) 

The Kassites () were a people of the ancient Near East. They controlled Babylonia after the fall of the Old Babylonian Empire from until (short chronology).

The Kassites gained control of Babylonia after the Hittites sack of Babylon in 1531 BC, and established a dynasty generally assumed to have been based first in that city, after a hiatus. Later rule shifted to the new city of Dur-Kurigalzu.Brinkman, J. A.. "1. Babylonia under the Kassites: Some Aspects for Consideration". Volume 1 Karduniaš. Babylonia under the Kassites 1, edited by Alexa Bartelmus and Katja Sternitzke, Berlin, Boston: De Gruyter, 2017, pp. 1-44 By the time of Babylon's fall, the Kassites had already been part of the region for a century and a half, acting sometimes with Babylon's interests and sometimes against.van Koppen, Frans. “THE OLD TO MIDDLE BABYLONIAN TRANSITION: HISTORY AND CHRONOLOGY OF THE MESOPOTAMIAN DARK AGE.” Ägypten Und Levante / Egypt and the Levant, vol. 20, 2010, pp. 453–63 There are records of Kassite and Babylonian interactions, in the context of military employment, during the reigns of Babylonian kings Samsu-iluna (1686 to 1648 BC), Abi-Eshuh, and Ammi-Ditana.Koppen, Frans van. "2. The Early Kassite Period". Volume 1 Karduniaš. Babylonia under the Kassites 1, edited by Alexa Bartelmus and Katja Sternitzke, Berlin, Boston: De Gruyter, 2017, pp. 45-92

The origin and classification of the Kassite language, like the Sumerian language and Hurrian language, is uncertain, and, also like the two latter languages, has generated a wide array of speculation over the years, even to the point of linking it to Sanskrit, however like these other languages it is regarded as a language Isolate and is not accepted to be Semitic or Indo-European.Pinches, T. G. “The Question of the Kassite Language.” Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland, 1907, pp. 685–685 The Kassite religion is also poorly understood, though the names of some Kassite deities are known.Malko, Helen. "The Kassites of Babylonia: A Re-examination of an Ethnic Identity". Babylonia under the Sealand and Kassite Dynasties, edited by Susanne Paulus and Tim Clayden, Berlin, Boston: De Gruyter, 2020, pp. 177-189 The chief gods, titular gods of the kings, were Shuqamuna and Shumaliya, which are distinct from Sumerian, Semitic and Indo-European gods.Krebernik, M., and Seidl, U. (2012). "Šuqamuna und Šu/imalija." in: Reallexikon der Assyriologie und vorderasiatischen Archäologie vol 13, p. 323-325 As was typical in the region, there was some cross-pollination with other religions. After Babylon came within the Kassite sphere of control its city-god, Marduk, was absorbed into the Kassite pantheon.Tenney, J. S. (2016). The elevation of Marduk revisited: Festivals and sacrifices at Nippur during the High Kassite period. Journal of Cuneiform Studies, 68(1), 153-180. Pg 154 note 4.

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History Documentation of the Kassite period depends heavily on the scattered and disarticulated tablets from Nippur, where thousands of tablets and fragments have been excavated. They include administrative and legal texts, letters, seal inscriptions, private votive inscriptions, and even a literary text (usually identified as a fragment of a historical epic). Many of those tablets have not yet been published, including hundreds held in the Ottoman Museum in Istanbul.[3] Veldhuis, Niek. "Kassite Exercises: Literary and Lexical Extracts." Journal of Cuneiform Studies, vol. 52, 2000, pp. 67–94Biggs, Robert D. “A Letter from Kassite Nippur.” Journal of Cuneiform Studies, vol. 19, no. 4, 1965, pp. 95–102

About 100 Kassite tablets were found at Dur-Kurigalzu.O. R. Gurney, Texts from Dur-Kurigalzu, Iraq, vol. 11, no. 1, pp. 131–149, 1949O. R. Gurney, Further Texts from Dur-Kurigalzu, Sumer, vol. 9, pp. 21–34, 1953 A few inscribed building materials of Kurigalzu I were found at Kish.T. Clayden. “Kish in the Kassite Period (c. 1650-1150 B.C.).” Iraq, vol. 54, 1992, pp. 141–55 Several tablets dated to the reign of Agum III were found at the Dilmun site of Qal'at al-Bahrain.Højlund, Flemming. Qala'at al-Bahrain/2 The central monumental buildings. Aarhus Univ. Press, 1997 In total, about 12,000 Kassite period documents have been recovered, of which only around 10% have been published. There are also a number of building inscriptions, all but one written in Sumerian unlike the Akkadian typically used by the Kassites.[4] Brinkman, J.A. 1976. Materials and Studies for Kassite History. Vol. 1, pt. A, Catalogue of Cuneiform Sources Pertaining to Specific Monarchs of the Kassite Dynasty. Chicago: Chicago University Press. A number of seals have also been found.[5] Donalds M Matthews, The Kassite Glyptic of Nippur, Freiburg, Switzerland / Göttingen,Germany: Universitätsverlag / Vandenhoeck Ruprecht, 1992Kjaerum, F. “SEALS OF ‘DILMUN-TYPE’ FROM FAILAKA, KUWAIT.” Proceedings of the Seminar for Arabian Studies, vol. 10, 1980, pp. 45–53 , stone stele used to record land grants and related documents, provide another source for Kassite history.Paulus, Susanne. "10. The Babylonian Kudurru Inscriptions and their Legal and Sociohistorical Implications". Volume 1 Karduniaš. Babylonia under the Kassites 1, edited by Alexa Bartelmus and Katja Sternitzke, Berlin, Boston: De Gruyter, 2017, pp. 229-244 This practice continued for several centuries after the end of the Kassite Dynasty.Brinkman, J. A. “Babylonian Royal Land Grants, Memorials of Financial Interest, and Invocation of the Divine.” Journal of the Economic and Social History of the Orient, vol. 49, no. 1, 2006, pp. 1–47 Often situated on the surface, many were found early and made their way to museums around the world.Lambert, W. G. “The Warwick Kudurru.” Syria, vol. 58, no. 1/2, 1981, pp. 173–85

The ancient city of Nippur was a major focus for the Kassites. Early on, refurbishments were conducted of the various religious and administrative buildings, the first of these datable to Kurigalzu I. Major construction occurred under Kadashman-Enlil, Kudur-Enlil, and Shagarakti-Shuriash, with lesser levels of repair work under Adad-shuma-usur and Meli-Shipak.Schneider, Bernhard. "Studies Concerning the Kassite Period Ekur of Nippur: Construction History and Finds". Babylonia under the Sealand and Kassite Dynasties, edited by Susanne Paulus and Tim Clayden, Berlin, Boston: De Gruyter, 2020, pp. 146-164 Other important centers during the Kassite period were Larsa, Sippar and Susa. The Kassites were very active at Ur.Brinkman, John Anthony. "Ur:" The Kassite Period and the Period of the Assyrian Kings"." (1969): 310-348 At the site of Isin, which had been abandoned after the time of Samsu-iluna, major rebuilding work occurred on the religious district including the temple of Gula. The work at Isin was initiated by Kurigalzu I and continued by Kadashman-Enlil I, and after a lapse, by Adad-shuma-usur and Meli-Shipak II.Kaniuth, Kai. "18. Isin in the Kassite Period". Volume 2 Karduniaš. Babylonia under the Kassites 2, edited by Alexa Bartelmus and Katja Sternitzke, Berlin, Boston: De Gruyter, 2017, pp. 492-507 After the Kassite dynasty was overthrown in 1155 BC, the system of provincial administration continued and the country remained united under the succeeding rule, the Second Dynasty of Isin.Brinkman, J. A. “Provincial Administration in Babylonia under the Second Dynasty of Isin.” Journal of the Economic and Social History of the Orient, vol. 6, no. 3, 1963, pp. 233–42

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Origins The origin of the Kassites is uncertain, though a number of theories have been advanced. Several suspected Kassite names are recorded in economic documents from the Ur III period (c. 2112–2004 BC) in southern Babylon, but their origin is ambiguous.J. A. Brinkman, “Kassiten (Kassû),” RLA, vol. 5 (1976–80 They are thought to originate from the Zagros Mountains. Kassites were first reported in Babylonia in the 18th century BC, especially around the area of Sippar. The 9th year name of king Samsu-iluna (1749–1712 BC) of Babylon, the son of Hammurabi mentions them ie. ("Year in which Samsu-iluna the king (defeated) the totality of the strength of the army / the troops of the Kassites"). Year Names at CDLI

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Middle Bronze Age As the Babylonian empire weakened in the following years the Kassites became a part of the landscape, even at times supplying troops for Babylon.[7] Claudia Glatz, et al., Babylonian Encounters in the Upper Diyala River Valley: Contextualizing the Results of Regional Survey and the 2016–2017 Excavations at Khani Masi, American Journal of Archaeology, Vol. 123, No. 3 (July 2019), pp. 439-471 The Hittites had carried off the idol of the god Marduk, but the Kassite rulers regained possession, returned Marduk to Babylon, and made him the equal of the Kassite Shuqamuna. Babylon under Kassite rulers, who renamed the city Karanduniash, re-emerged as a political and military power in Mesopotamia.

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Late Bronze Age The fall of the First Sealand dynasty in 1460 BC created a power vacuum which the Kassites filled. After the destruction of the Mittani by the Hittites in the early 14th century BC, Assyria rose in power creating a three-way power structure in the region between the Kassites, Hittites, and Assyrians, with Elam exerting influence from the east and Egypt from the south. A number of the Amarna Letters are correspondence between the respective rulers (including 14 between the Pharaoh and the Kassite ruler).Miller, Jared L.. "3. Political Interactions between Kassite Babylonia and Assyria, Egypt and Ḫatti during the Amarna Age". Volume 1 Karduniaš. Babylonia under the Kassites 1, edited by Alexa Bartelmus and Katja Sternitzke, Berlin, Boston: De Gruyter, 2017, pp. 93-111 An international system came into place between these parties connected by widespread trade, treaties, and intermarriage between the ruling classes (especially between the Kassites and Elamites).Schulman, Alan R. “Diplomatic Marriage in the Egyptian New Kingdom.” Journal of Near Eastern Studies, vol. 38, no. 3, 1979, pp. 177–93Roaf, Michael. "6. Kassite and Elamite Kings". Volume 1 Karduniaš. Babylonia under the Kassites 1, edited by Alexa Bartelmus and Katja Sternitzke, Berlin, Boston: De Gruyter, 2017, pp. 166-195 A typical treaties include the Egyptian–Hittite peace treaty (c.1259 BC) and the treaty between the Kassite ruler Karaindash and the Assyrian ruler Ashur-bel-nisheshu (c. 1410 BC).

At the peak of their power the Kassites, under Kurigalzu I in the mid 14th century BC, conquered Elam and sacked the capital of Susa.Frans van Koppen (2006). "Inscription of Kurigalzu I". In Mark William Chavalas (ed.). The ancient Near East: historical sources in translation. Blackwell Publishing Ltd That ruler initiated significant building efforts in Ur and other southern Mesopotamia cities.Clayden, Tim. "Ur in the Kassite Period". Babylonia under the Sealand and Kassite Dynasties, edited by Susanne Paulus and Tim Clayden, Berlin, Boston: De Gruyter, 2020, pp. 88-124 The most notable of these efforts was the construction of a new city, Dur-Kurigalzu. It contained a number of palaces and also temples to many Babylonia gods including Enlil, Ninlil, and Ninurta.Clayden, Tim. "16. Dūr-Kurigalzu: New Perspectives". Volume 2 Karduniaš. Babylonia under the Kassites 2, edited by Alexa Bartelmus and Katja Sternitzke, Berlin, Boston: De Gruyter, 2017, pp. 437-478Malko, Helen. "17. Dūr-Kurigalzu: Insights from Unpublished Iraqi Excavation Reports". Volume 2 Karduniaš. Babylonia under the Kassites 2, edited by Alexa Bartelmus and Katja Sternitzke, Berlin, Boston: De Gruyter, 2017, pp. 479-491 The Kassites also extended their power into the Persian Gulf, including at Qal'at al-Bahrain.Potts, D. T. “Elamites and Kassites in the Persian Gulf.” Journal of Near Eastern Studies, vol. 65, no. 2, 2006, pp. 111–19 Being in close proximity the Assyrians and Kassites often came into political and military conflict over the next few centuries. For a time in the early reign of Tukulti-Ninurta I, Assyria gained ascendancy, until the Elamites under Kidin-Hutran III intervened. This period is marked by a building hiatus at Babylon, similar to the one after the fall of the First Babylonian dynasty.Pedersén, Olof. 2005. "Archive und Bibliotheken in Babylon. Die Tontafeln der Grabung Robert Koldeweys 1899–1917." Saarbrücken: Saarländische Druckerei und VerlagSternitzke, Katja. "Babylon in the Second Millennium BCE: New Insights on the Transitions from Old Babylonian to Kassite and Isin II Periods". Babylonia under the Sealand and Kassite Dynasties, edited by Susanne Paulus and Tim Clayden, Berlin, Boston: De Gruyter, 2020, pp. 125-145

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Iron Age The of the Shutrukid dynasty conquered Babylonia, carrying away the Statue of Marduk, in the 12th century BC, thus ending the Kassite state.Potts, Daniel T. (1999). The Archaeology of Elam: Formation and Transformation of an Ancient Iranian State. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. . pp. 233–234 According to the Assyrian Synchronistic Chronicle, which is not considered reliable, the last Kassite king, Enlil-nadin-ahi, was taken to Susa and imprisoned there in 1155 BC, where he also died.Albert Kirk Grayson (1975), Assyrian and Babylonian Chronicles, Locust Valley, New York: J. J. Augustin,

The annals of the Assyrian king Sennacherib detail that on his second, eastern, campaign of 702 BC he campaigned against the land of the Kassites, that being along the Diyala River between the Jebel Hamrin and the Darband-i-Khan. The Kassites took refuge in the mountains but were brought down and resettled, in standard Assyrian practice, in Hardispi and Bit Kubatti, which were made part of the Arrapha district.Levine, Louis D. "The Second Campaign of Sennacherib". Journal of Near Eastern Studies, vol. 32, no. 3, 1973, pp. 312–317Levine, Louis D. "Geographical Studies in the Neo-Assyrian Zagros—I". Journal of the British Institute of Persian Studies 11.1 (1973): 1–27Levine, Louis D. "Geographical Studies in the Neo-Assyrian Zagros—II". Journal of the British Institute of Persian Studies 12.1 (1974): 99–124.

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Kassite dynasty The Babylonian and Assyrian king lists mention eight or nine early Kassite rulers whose names are not fully known and who precede the following kings.Chen, Fei (2020). Study on the Synchronistic King List from Ashur. Leiden: BRILL. ISBN 978-9004430914.Astour, Michael C. "The Name of the Ninth Kassite Ruler". Journal of the American Oriental Society vol. 106, no. 2, 1986, pp. 327–331 Another Kassite king, Hašmar-galšu, is known from five inscriptions from the Nippur area.Horowitz, W., Reeves, S., Stillman, L., White, M., & Zilberg, P. (2015). "Cuneiform Texts in The Otago Museum: A preliminary report". Buried History, 51, 57–60MacGinnis, J. (2015). Ira Spar, Michael Jursa: "Cuneiform Texts from the Metropolitan Museum of Art IV: The Ebabbar Temple Archive and Other Texts from the Fourth to the First Millennium BC". Zeitschrift für Assyriologie und vorderasiatische Archäologie 105(2), 255–257.

Returns Marduk statue to Babylon

Treaty with Puzur-Ashur III of Assyria

Son of Burnaburiash I, Grandson of Agum-Kakrime

Conquers the first Sealand Dynasty

Possible campaigns against "The Sealand" and "in Dilmun"

Treaty with Ashur-bel-nisheshu of Assyria

Campaign against the Suteans

Founder of Dur-Kurigalzu and contemporary of Thutmose IV

Contemporary of Amenophis III of the Ancient Egypt Amarna letters

Contemporary of Akhenaten and Ashur-uballit I

Grandson of Ashur-uballit I of Assyria

Usurper "son of a nobody"

Son of Burnaburiash II, Battle of Sugagi with Enlil-nirari of Assyria

Contemporary of Adad-nirari I of Assyria

Contemporary of Hattusili III of the Hittites

Contemporary of Hattusili III of the Hittites

Time of Nippur renaissance

"Non-son of Kudur-Enlil" according to Tukulti-Ninurta I of Assyria

Deposed by Tukulti-Ninurta I of Assyria

Deposed by Elamite king Kidin-Hutran III

Son of Kashtiliashu IV

Sender of rude letter to Ashur-nirari III and Ilī-ḫaddâ, the kings of Assyria

Correspondence with Ninurta-apal-Ekur

Son of Meli-Shipak II

Defeated by Shutruk-Nahhunte of Elam

Defeated by Kutir-Nahhunte II of Elam

Note that the relative order of Kadashman-Turgu and Kadashman-Enlil II have been questioned.Donbaz, Veysel. "A Middle Babylonian Legal Document Raising Problems in Kassite Chronology". "'Journal of Near Eastern Studies'' vol. 41, no. 3, 1982, pp. 207–212

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Kassite language The Kassite language has not been classified. The few extant sources consist of personal names, a few fragmented documents, and some technical terms related to horses and chariotry.Brinkman, J. A. "Foreign Relations of Babylonia from 1600 to 625 B. C.: The Documentary Evidence". American Journal of Archaeology vol. 76, no. 3, 1972, pp. 271–281 What is known is that their language was not related to neither the Indo-European language group, nor to Semitic or other Afro-Asiatic languages. It is most likely to have been a language isolate, although some linguists have proposed a link to the Hurro-Urartian languages of the Armenian highlands and Upper Mesopotamia.Schneider, Thomas (2003). "Kassitisch und Hurro-Urartäisch. Ein Diskussionsbeitrag zu möglichen lexikalischen Isoglossen". Altorientalische Forschungen (30): 372–381.

It has been suggested that several Kassite leaders bore Indo-European names, and they might have had an Indo-European elite similar to the Mitanni. Over the centuries, however, the Kassites were absorbed into the Babylonian population. Eight among the last kings of the Kassite dynasty have Akkadian names. It has also been suggested that the first element in Kudur-Enlil's name is derived from Elamite but that is disputed. footnote 22.Brinkman, J. A. "Administration and Society in Kassite Babylonia". Journal of the American Oriental Society vol. 124, no. 2, 2004, pp. 283–304

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Kassite art

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Ceramics The Kassites produced a substantial amount of pottery. It is found in many Mesopotamia cities including Eridu and Tell Khaiber. Archaeologists divide it into three periods, Early Kassite (before c. 1415 BC), Middle Kassite (c. 1415–1225 BC), and Late Kassite (c. 1225–1155 BC). Many small pottery kilns, generally no bigger than 2 meters in diameter with domed tops, were found in the Babylonian city of Dilbat. Goblets and wavy sided bowls are commonly found in Kassite pottery deposits. Other ceramic goods, such as traps for small animals and vessels commonly thought to be fruit stands were found also. Kassite pottery deposits have been found as far away as Al Khor Island in the Persian Gulf area.

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Glass works Remnants of two Kassite glass beakers were found during the 1964 excavation in a (c. 800 BC) destruction layer of Hasanlu, in northwest Iran. The mosaic glass beakers are thought to have been heirlooms, possibly for ritual use the find spot being a temple. The panes of glass used to create these images were very brightly colored, and closer analysis has revealed that they were bright green, blue, white, and red-orange. A Kassite text found at Dur-Kurigalzu mentions glass given to artisans for palace decoration and similar glass was found there.Taha Baqir, "Iraq Government Excavations at 'Aqar Qüf. Third Interim Report, 1944–5", Iraq, VIII, 1946 Other similar glass dated 1500 BC was found at Tell al-Rimah.von Saldern, Axel. "Mosaic glass from Hasanlu, Marlik, and Tell al-Rimah". Journal of Glass Studies, vol. 8, 1966, pp. 9–25

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Seal impressions Seals were used widely across the Near Eastern kingdoms during the Kassite rule. They were used to mark official items and ownership. The images created by these seals were unique to each seal, but many shared the same subject matter. Bearded men, religious symbols, horned quadrupeds, and fauna are often shown in these images.Matthews, Donald M. Principles of composition in Near Eastern glyphic of the later second millennium BC. Vol. 8. Universitätsverlag/Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 1990 The seals were generally made of stone, glass, or clay. The images were made by stamping or rolling the seals into wet clay.Buchanan, Briggs. "On the Seal Impressions on Some Old Babylonian Tablets". Journal of Cuneiform Studies vol. 11, No. 2 (1957), pp. 45–52

==Gallery==

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See also

• Chronology of the ancient Near East
• List of Mesopotamian dynasties
• Cities of the ancient Near East
• Early Kassite rulers
• Kassite deities
• Kassite language
• Kudurru

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Sources

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• Almamori, Haider Oraibi and Bartelmus, Alexa. "New Light on Dilbat: Kassite Building Activities on the Uraš Temple “E-Ibbi-Anum” at Tell al-Deylam" Zeitschrift für Assyriologie und vorderasiatische Archäologie, vol. 111, no. 2, 2021, pp. 174–190
• K. Balkan, Die Sprache der Kassiten, ( The Language of the Kassites), American Oriental Series, vol. 37, New Haven, Conn., 1954.
• Bass, George F., et al. "The Bronze Age Shipwreck at Ulu Burun: 1986 Campaign." American Journal of Archaeology, vol. 93, no. 1, 1989, pp. 1–29
• Brinkman, J. A.. "The Names of the Last Eight Kings of the Kassite Dynasty" Zeitschrift für Assyriologie und Vorderasiatische Archäologie, vol. 59, no. Jahresband, 1969, pp. 231–246
• Brinkman, J. A. “Mu-Ús-Sa Dates in the Kassite Period.” Die Welt Des Orients, vol. 6, no. 2, 1971
• Ferrara, A. J. “A Kassite Cylinder Seal from the Arabian Gulf.” Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research, no. 225, 1977, pp. 69–69
• Albrecht Goetze, "The Kassites and Near Eastern Chronology," Journal of Cuneiform Studies, vol. 18, No. 4, pp. 97–101, 1964
• A. Leo Oppenheim, Ancient Mesopotamia: Portrait of a Dead Civilization, 1964.
• Walter Sommerfield, The Kassites of Ancient Mesopotamia: Origins, Politics, and Culture, vol 2 of J. M. Sasson ed. Civilizations of the Ancient Near East, Charles Scribner's Sons, 1995

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External links

• Daniel A. Nevez, 'Provincial administration at Kassite Nippur' abstract of a dissertation gives details of Kassite Nippur and Babylonia.

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