Adda-danu
Encyclopedia
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 Northwest 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.
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
.
Mayor
In many countries, a Mayor is the highest ranking officer in the municipal government of a town or a large urban city....
' of the city
City
A city is a relatively large and permanent settlement. Although there is no agreement on how a city is distinguished from a town within general English language meanings, many cities have a particular administrative, legal, or historical status based on local law.For example, in the U.S...
/city-state
City-state
A city-state is an independent or autonomous entity whose territory consists of a city which is not administered as a part of another local government.-Historical city-states:...
of Gazru-(modern Gezer
Gezer
Gezer was a Canaanite city-state and biblical town in ancient Israel. Tel Gezer , an archaeological site midway between Jerusalem and Tel Aviv, is now an Israeli national park....
, Israel) of the Amarna letters
Amarna letters
The Amarna letters are an archive of correspondence on clay tablets, mostly diplomatic, between the Egyptian administration and its representatives in Canaan and Amurru during the New Kingdom...
period, 1350-1335 BC. 'Adda' is the name of the Northwest Semitic god Hadad
Hadad
Haddad was a northwest Semitic storm and rain god, cognate in name and origin with the Akkadian god Adad. Hadad was often called simply Ba‘al , but this title was also used for other gods. The bull was the symbolic animal of Hadad. He appeared as a bearded deity, often shown as holding a club and...
, 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
Text corpus
In linguistics, a corpus or text corpus is a large and structured set of texts...
, the others being Milkilu
Milkilu
Milkilu, and more properly Milk-ilu, or Milku-ilu, with an alternate version of Ili-Milku-, was the mayor/ruler of Gazru- of the 1350-1335 BC Amarna letters correspondence...
, and Yapahu
Yapahu
Yapahu was a mayor/ruler of the city/city-state of Gazru of the 1350-1335 BC Amarna letters correspondence. Two other mayors of Gazru during the Amarna letters period, were Adda-danu and Milkilu....
.
Adda-danu is the author of one letter, EA 292, (EA for 'el Amarna
Amarna
Amarna is an extensive Egyptian archaeological site that represents the remains of the capital city newly–established and built by the Pharaoh Akhenaten of the late Eighteenth Dynasty , and abandoned shortly afterwards...
'). 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.
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 feetProstration formulaIn the 1350 BC correspondence of 382–letters, called the Amarna letters, the Prostration formula is usually the opening subservient remarks to the addressee, the Egyptian pharaoh. The formula is based on Prostration, namely reverence and submissiveness...
. 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 brickBrickA brick is a block of ceramic material used in masonry construction, usually laid using various kinds of mortar. It has been regarded as one of the longest lasting and strongest building materials used throughout history.-History:...
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 commissionerCommissionerCommissioner is in principle the title given to a member of a commission or to an individual who has been given a commission ....
, 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 archersArchers (Egyptian pítati)The Pítati were a contingent of archers in the Egyptian Empire, often requested and dispatched, to support the Egyptian vassalage in Canaan, or northern Canaan...
of the king, my lord, and Maya has just taken it away from me and placed his commissioner in it. Enjoin ReanapReanapReanap, also Reanapa, was an Egyptian commissioner, of the 1350-1335 BC Amarna letters, written from a 15-20 year time period. Of the 382 EA Amarna letters correspondence, Reanapa is referenced in 3 letters: .The topic of two short letters, EA 315, and 326 is Reanapa, and no intrigues of other...
, 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 GazruGezerGezer was a Canaanite city-state and biblical town in ancient Israel. Tel Gezer , an archaeological site midway between Jerusalem and Tel Aviv, is now an Israeli national park....
, 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–shekelShekelShekel , is any of several ancient units of weight or of currency. The first usage is from Mesopotamia around 3000 BC. Initially, it may have referred to a weight of barley...
s of silverSilverSilver is a metallic chemical element with the chemical symbol Ag and atomic number 47. A soft, white, lustrous transition metal, it has the highest electrical conductivity of any element and the highest thermal conductivity of any metal...
, 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
Yapahu
Yapahu was a mayor/ruler of the city/city-state of Gazru of the 1350-1335 BC Amarna letters correspondence. Two other mayors of Gazru during the Amarna letters period, were Adda-danu and Milkilu....
-(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
Yapahu
Yapahu was a mayor/ruler of the city/city-state of Gazru of the 1350-1335 BC Amarna letters correspondence. Two other mayors of Gazru during the Amarna letters period, were Adda-danu and Milkilu....
.
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
- MilkiluMilkiluMilkilu, and more properly Milk-ilu, or Milku-ilu, with an alternate version of Ili-Milku-, was the mayor/ruler of Gazru- of the 1350-1335 BC Amarna letters correspondence...
, Gazru mayor - YapahuYapahuYapahu was a mayor/ruler of the city/city-state of Gazru of the 1350-1335 BC Amarna letters correspondence. Two other mayors of Gazru during the Amarna letters period, were Adda-danu and Milkilu....
, Gazru mayor, (for 2nd "Pot of a Debt" letter-(EA 297)) - Amarna lettersAmarna lettersThe Amarna letters are an archive of correspondence on clay tablets, mostly diplomatic, between the Egyptian administration and its representatives in Canaan and Amurru during the New Kingdom...
- Amarna letters–phrases and quotationsAmarna letters–phrases and quotationsAmarna letters–phrases and quotations is an article for the 1350 BC Amarna letters, the correspondence to the pharaohs of Egypt.Of the 382 Amarna letters, many are direct in describing the conditions of the author in their local regions...
Resources
- Parpola, SimoSimo ParpolaSimo Parpola is a Finnish archaeologist, currently professor of Assyriology at the University of Helsinki. He specialized in epigraphy of the Akkadian language, and has been working on the Neo-Assyrian Text Corpus Project since 1987...
, with Mikko Luuko, and Kalle Fabritius, The Standard Babylonian, Epic of Gilgamesh, The Neo-Assyrian Text Corpus ProjectNeo-Assyrian Text Corpus Project-State archives of Assyria cuneiform texts:The following works are published in the series: State Archives of Assyria Cuneiform Texts:*1997–SAACT-Volume I..---The Standard Babylonian Epic of Gilgamesh, by Simo Parpola, 1997....
,1997, (softcover, ISBN 951-45-7760-4); (Volume 1) in the original Akkadian cuneiform and transliteration; commentary and glossary are in English.