Adda-danu was the 'mayor' of the city/city-state of Gazru-(modern Gezer
, Israel) of
the Amarna letters period, 1350-1335 BC. 'Adda' is the name of the
West Semitic god
Hadad, and Adda-danu translates as:
"Hadad (is
the) Judge". Adda-danu is one of the three mayors who ruled
Gazru in the 20–year Amarna letters
correspondence, the others being
Milkilu, and
Yapahu.
Adda-danu
is the author of one letter, EA 292, (EA
for 'el
Amarna
'). The letter is entitled:
"Like a pot
held in pledge". It is of note that some of the 382 Amarna
letters contain phrases, quotes, or parables and the title refers
to,
The Pot of a Debt.
Amarna letter--no. 292
Adda-danu's letter to pharaoh Akhenaten
Title:
"Like a pot held in pledge"
- Say to the king-(pharaoh), my lord, [my] go[d], my Sun:
Message of Adda-danu, your servant, the dirt at your feet. I
fall at the feet of the king, my lord, my god, my Sun, 7 times and
7 times. I looked this way, and looked that way,
and there was no light. Then I looked towards the
king, my lord and there was light. A brick may move from under its "partner-(brick)", still
I will not move from under the feet of the king, my lord.
I have heard the orders that the king, my lord, wrote to
his servant, "Guard your commissioner,
and guard the cities of the king, your lord." I do
indeed guard, and I do indeed obey the orders of the king, my lord,
day and night. May the king, my lord, be informed
about his servant. There being war against me from
the mountains, I built: b[a]-n[i]-t[i]
–(banû: to create, build, generate) a house—its (the village's)
name is Manhatu—to make preparations before the arrival of the
archers of the king,
my lord, and Maya has
just taken it away from me and placed his commissioner in
it. Enjoin Reanap, my
commissioner, to restore my village to me, as I am making
preparations before the arrival of the archers of the king, my
lord. Moreover, consider the deed of
Peya, the son of Gulatu, against Gazru, the
maidservant of the king, my lord. How long
has he gone on plundering it so that it has become, thanks to him,
like a pot held in pledge.
People are ransomed from the mountains for 30–shekels of silver, but from
Peya for 100–shekels. Be informed of these affairs
of your servant. -EA 292, lines 1-52 (complete)
Letter no. 1 of 5 from
Yapahu-(of
Gazru), also has the subject of:
The pot of a
debt. It is a short, 21-line, undamaged letter, entitled:
"The sweet breath of the king". See:
Yapahu.
Three quotes in letter no. 292
A list of quotes from the letter:
- #7 times and 7 times
- #A brick may move from under its partner, still I will not
move from under the feet of the king, my lord. Used in letters
EA 266, 292, and 296.
- #a pot held in pledge
- #Day and
night, or "Night and Day" is used repeatedly. It
is also used to refer to having to escape detection, and only enter
into the cities at night.
See also
References
- Parpola,
Simo, with Mikko Luuko, and Kalle Fabritius, The Standard
Babylonian, Epic of Gilgamesh.
Resources
- Parpola, Simo, with Mikko
Luuko, and Kalle Fabritius, The Standard Babylonian, Epic of
Gilgamesh, The Neo-Assyrian Text Corpus
Project,1997, (softcover, ISBN 951-45-7760-4); (Volume 1) in
the original Akkadian cuneiform and transliteration; commentary and
glossary are in English.
Bibliography
- Moran, William L. The
Amarna Letters. John Hopkins University Press, 1987, 1992.
(softcover, ISBN 0-8018-6715-0)
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