The Pazarcık Stele is an

Assyria Assyria (Neo-Assyrian cuneiform: , ''māt Aššur'') was a major ancient Mesopotamian civilization that existed as a city-state from the 21st century BC to the 14th century BC and eventually expanded into an empire from the 14th century BC t ...

n monument which functioned as a boundary stone erected by the Assyrian king

Adad-nirari III Adad-nīrārī III (also Adad-nārārī, meaning "Adad (the storm god) is my help") was a King of Assyria from 811 to 783 BC. Family Adad-nīrārī was a son and successor of king Shamshi-Adad V, and was apparently quite young at the time of hi ...

in 805 BC to demarcate the border between the kingdoms of

Kummuh Kummuh was an Iron Age Neo-Hittite kingdom located on the west bank of the Upper Euphrates within the eastern loop of the river between Melid and Carchemish. Assyrian sources refer to both the land and its capital city by the same name. The city ...

and Gurgum. The reverse and obverse of the

stele A stele ( ) or stela ( )The plural in English is sometimes stelai ( ) based on direct transliteration of the Greek, sometimes stelae or stelæ ( ) based on the inflection of Greek nouns in Latin, and sometimes anglicized to steles ( ) or stela ...

have been inscribed in the Akkadian language in different times.

Description

The stele was found at Kizkapanli, Pazarcik village, about 30km southeast from the city of

Kahramanmaraş Kahramanmaraş (), historically Marash (; ) and Germanicea (), is a city in the Mediterranean Region, Turkey, Mediterranean region of Turkey and the administrative centre of Kahramanmaraş Province, Kahramanmaraş province. After 1973, Maraş was ...

in Turkey. The location spot is about halfway between the modern cities of Kahramanmaraş and

Gaziantep Gaziantep, historically Aintab and still informally called Antep, is a major city in south-central Turkey. It is the capital of the Gaziantep Province, in the westernmost part of Turkey's Southeastern Anatolia Region and partially in the Medi ...

. It is preserved in its entirety, and it is high, wide and thick. Its front side is covered with an inscription of King

(810–783 BC), while the back side is covered with an inscription of king

Shalmaneser IV Shalmaneser IV ( Neo-Assyrian cuneiform: , meaning "Salmānu is foremost") was the king of the Neo-Assyrian Empire from 783 BC to his death in 773 BC. Shalmaneser was the son and successor of his predecessor, Adad-nirari III, and ruled during a p ...

(782–773 BC) that was added later. The monument is housed at the Kahramanmaraş Archaeology Museum.

Karaçay stele

A similar stele, known as the 'Karaçay/Pazarcık Stele of Storm God', has been found in this area as well. It was found in 1969 during the construction of the irrigation regulator in Karaçay village of Pazarcık. The Karaçay stele was dated to the 8th century BC by Bunnens. But some of its elements may indicate a much earlier period, similar to the

Tell Ahmar Til Barsip or Til Barsib ( Hittite Masuwari, modern Tell Ahmar; ) is an ancient site situated in Aleppo Governorate, Syria by the Euphrates river about 20 kilometers south of ancient Carchemish. History The site was inhabited as early as the Neo ...

stelae. So it may be dated to the middle 9th century BC.

Border dispute

In 805 BCE, as reported on the Pazarcık Stele, Kummuh king Ušpilulume (Šuppiluliuma) asked for the assistance of the Assyrian king Adad-nirari III against the a coalition of eight kings led by Atarshumki I of

Arpad, Syria Arpad (; or ; modern Tell Rifaat, Syria) was an ancient Aramaean Syro-Hittite city located in north-western Syria, north of Aleppo. It became the capital of the Aramaean state of Bit Agusi established by Gusi of Yakhan in the 9th century BC. ...

. Adad-nirari apparently travelled with his mother Šammuramat, defeated the alliance at Paqarhubuna, and established the border between Kummuh and Gurgum at Pazarcık. In 773 BCE, the same boundary was re-established by Assyrian general ( turtanu) Šamši-ilu acting on behalf of Assyrian king Shalmaneser IV.

Antakya stele

is another similar stele from the same time. It settles another border dispute, the territorial conflict between the kings Atarshumki I of Arpad, and

Zakkur Zakkur (or ''Zakir'') was the ancient king of Hamath and Luhuti (also known as Nuhašše) in Syria. He ruled around 785 BC. Most of the information about him comes from his basalt stele, known as the Stele of Zakkur. History Irhuleni and his son ...

of Hamath, and it was also set up in the name of Adad-Nirari III and Shamshi-ilu. Atarshumki I is mentioned in both of these stelae. According to Hawkins, Antakya stele should be dated 9 years later in 796 BC, and Ataršumki, the former enemy of Assyria, is now the beneficiary of the Assyrian arbitration.

Biblical reference

The stela also mentions the name of Hezyon, king of Damascus. According to the inscription, the general of Shalmaneser IV Šamši-ilu received a rich tribute from him. Hezyon (Hezion) of Damascus is mentioned i
1 Kings 15-18
in connection with king

Asa of Judah Asa (; ; ; ) was, according to the Hebrew Bible, the third king of the Kingdom of Judah and the fifth king of the Davidic line, House of David. Based on the Biblical chronology, Biblical scholars suggest that he reigned from the late 10th to earl ...

.The Pazarcik Stela, 773 BCE.
Center for Online Judaic Studies But, in the Bible, king Asa sends the tribute to

Ben-Hadad I Ben-Hadad I (), son of Tabrimmon and grandson of Hezion, was king of Aram-Damascus between 885 BCE and 865 BCE. Ben-Hadad I was reportedly a contemporary of kings Baasha of the Kingdom of Israel and Asa of the Kingdom of Judah. According to ...

, the grandson of Hezion. So this may be another Hezion, since these biblical events refer to the 9th century.

Description

Karaçay stele

Border dispute

Antakya stele

Biblical reference

References

Further reading