Mitanni Cuneiform Tablet (5084.12.1680)
Recovered from Tell el-Fakhariya
Translated by Academician Demétrios Manikas (5090 EK)

Here begins the Victory of the lord of Ishuwa and Nairi, master of Karkemish and Harran, conqueror of Nineveh and Ashur, king of the Mitanni and the Hurri-folk, the powerful king, lord of the four quarters of the earth, the king of kings, Artatama, son of Indara the Thunderer. This victory he achieved in the land of Subartu, to the east of the great Tigris River, as far as the country of the mountain-dwelling Kassites.

Now the Man of Ashur had gone up into the land of Akkad, to contend with the sons of Hammurabi. From the land of Akkad came messengers to my lord, saying: “See how the wicked Man of Ashur comes up into our land, to batter down the walls of our cities and oppress our people. Always you have fought in the cause of justice. Come now and defend us.”

Hearing this, my lord prayed to his Father, saying: “O Indara, you who lift up the outcast who is oppressed, you who glorify the blind and the lame, ride with me now as I go forth to smite the fallen Man of Ashur.” He arose with all his strong-armed men, all his mighty chariots led by the finest teams of horses, and he went forth to war.

In the ninth year of his reign, in the third month of spring, my lord set out from Washukanni with his entire host. He passed east as swiftly as the wind, crossed the Tigris River near the fortress of Tarbisu, and then turned south to invest the city of Ishtar. The city was ill-guarded, and its goddess feared the Thunderer’s wrath. Nineveh soon opened its gates. Its leading men came out to bow down and swear fealty to my lord.

Hearing of this, the Man of Ashur trembled in rage and fear. He said: “I shall march against the lord of Mitanni. I shall throw him down into the dust, break his strong-armed men and his mighty chariots, and smash the walls of his cities. Never again shall he insult my lord Ashur, nor rob him of men or cities.” Then he gathered his host and abandoned the land of Akkad, marching north along the Tigris River.

As the days passed, my lord crossed over the Tigris once more and approached the city of Ashur. He thought to invest the city, throw down its walls, and humble its wretched god for all time. He pitched his camp north of the city, at the place called Me-tabuti. There he took his seat upon a throne of gold, and commanded that scouts be sent forth to spy out the ways of the land.

Soon there came before my lord a scout of his household, bringing with him two strangers. These were introduced into his Presence, and he asked of them: “What are you?” They answered him, saying: “We belong to the fallen Man of Ashur. He it is who has sent us to find where my lord is camped.” Then my lord questioned them, saying: “Where is he himself, the shameful Man of Ashur? Behold, I have heard that he is far away in the land of Akkad, contending with the sons of Hammurabi.” And they said to my lord: “See, the vile Man of Ashur is come, together with the many foreign countries allied with him. His infantry are more numerous than the sand of the river-banks. They stand equipped and ready to fight, not far from the walls of the city.”

My lord arose in wrath, saying: “The gods of war have delivered him into my hand. For behold! He has not chosen to meet us from behind the strong walls of his city, but in open country, good for chariots and the flight of arrows. As a mountain shall we fall upon him, and all his host shall burn as chaff in a summer fire.”

Then did the men of Mitanni deploy in all their array of battle, the sun glittering on the bronze points of their spears. My lord and all his chariotry drew up on the right, ready to ride against the foe. Yet when all had taken their place upon the field, the sky grew pale. A great darkness arose in the west, like a mighty storm coming from beyond the land of Martu. Then did the god of Ashur appear in the ranks of the men of his city, like a great man mounted upon the sun-disc, his wings spread wide, his bow bent and ready to cast arrows of fire. Seeing this, the men of Mitanni shivered in fear, saying: “See, the god of Ashur stands against us. Now we comprehend why the wretched Man of Ashur has chosen to meet us in the open country. No man can stand against a god.”

But my lord laughed, and called out to his host, saying: “Are you cowards, my liege-men and vassals? Will you not follow where I lead, I who support all of you with the strength of my arm? Always have I said unto the suppliant, ‘I will do as you ask.’ Always have I said unto the widow and the orphan, ‘I will feed you and see you housed.’ There stands not a man among you who does not owe me for his life and his prosperity. If you will not fight in my host now, then I will fight alone, and to me alone will fall the glory. But there is no cause to fear. The god of Ashur has taken the field against us. Yet he is a little god, a shameful god, who rules only as far as he may see from the pinnacle of his temple. My Father stands in the highest heaven. He demands justice and good kingship in every land, and men praise him in every nation across the wide earth. Today he has won a great victory in the distant west, and now he comes to stand with me, his son. Behold!”

The darkness in the west rose up to cover the face of the sun, and lightning dashed across the sky, and thunder was heard from horizon to horizon. The god of Ashur hesitated; the brightness of his sun-disc fell into shadow.

Then my lord ordered the advance. The ranks of infantry marched in good order, their spear-points like an array of stars in the darkness. The archers filled the sky with flight after flight of arrows. The chariots leaped forth and fell upon the flank of the men of Ashur, my lord always in the vanguard, his bow striking like the thunderbolt. The Thunderer himself appeared, striding across the flame-lit heavens. Where his eyes fell upon the ranks of the men of Ashur, they quailed. Where his spears fell among them, they dropped their weapons and fled. Great was the victory of the men of Mitanni.

Seeing his men fallen on the field, seeing his god defeated, the fallen Man of Ashur sent and did homage to my lord, saying: “Truly you are the son of the thunder, mightiest of men, Great King of the four quarters of the earth. The fear of you is a scourge of flame upon our backs. Indara has caused it to be known that you are the son of his body, and he has given to you all of the countries under heaven. As for the land of Subartu, where once the Man of Ashur ruled, it is now yours. The men of Subartu are your servants, they are under your feet. Indara your noble father has given them to you. Prevail not over us. Behold, your might is great, your strength is heavy upon us, your yoke has fallen upon our shoulders. Is it good for you to slay your servants, to turn a savage face toward them without pity? You have left the land of Subartu desolate and without heirs. Be not harsh in your dealings, victorious king. Peace is better than fighting.”

Then my lord accepted the fealty of the men of Ashur, inhabiting all the lands of Subartu, east of the Tigris River as far as the mountains of the Kassites. He placed governors over the men of Ashur, to rule with justice in his name. All things having been ordered as his Father commanded, my lord turned back in peace to the land between the rivers, to Mitanni his own kingdom. Artatama great in victory, all life and dominion in his hand, all foreign countries fallen beneath his feet for everlasting.

Translator’s Note:

The so-called “Victory Tablet” was discovered at Tell el-Fakhariya during the excavation campaign of 5084 EK. As with most tablets recovered from the so-called “royal archive,” it was written in a cuneiform script derived from Akkadian, but the underlying language is Hurrian. This specific tablet is notable for several reasons:

• First, along with the other contents of the “royal archive,” it provides some of the first conclusive evidence for the identification of Tell el-Fakhariya with the ancient Mitanni capital of Washukanni.
• Second, it indicates that an organized and powerful Mitanni kingdom existed as early as the 15th century, over a hundred years before any previous attestation.
• Third, it refers to a formerly unknown military campaign on the part of Mitanni against the Assyrian Old Kingdom. Indeed, it may provide insight into the abrupt collapse of that realm at the height of its power, formerly an historical mystery.
• Fourth and last, it may reflect an eyewitness account of the aftermath of the Kalliste eruption of 1430 EK.

The tablet’s description of King Artatama’s parentage, and of the gods battling over the field at Me-tabuti, can safely be ascribed to poetic license.

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Author’s Note

I originally wrote most of “Fragment” in 2015.

As sometimes happens, I was inspired by a tabletop game: Genesis, published by GMT Games in 2013. Genesis is a loose historical simulation of Bronze Age power politics. It has a solitaire scenario covering the rise of the Akkadian Empire (c. 2300 BCE), and several multi-player scenarios covering the late Bronze Age (c. 1700 BCE). As a realistic simulation of historical events, the game falls short, but it does convey the flavor of the period fairly well.

At the time, I was tinkering with various models of Bronze Age history with the half-baked idea of developing an alternate-history timeline for my “Danassos” stories (of which “Safe Haven,” published last month, was one). The idea didn’t go anywhere in the end, but it did get me to do some new research on the period.

“Fragment” can be considered a vignette in the “royal triumph” genre that was common in ancient literature, recording the heroic deeds of kings when facing their rivals. In particular, I drew inspiration from the Kadesh inscriptions, from the reign of the Egyptian king Ramesses II. More recently I added a few “translator’s notes,” to round it out as a complete story.

I doubt I’ll ever do anything more with the alternate history implied in this piece, but one never knows. At least it was fun to write.

“Fragment” © 2020 by John Alleyn (Jon F. Zeigler). All rights reserved.