
The Amarna Letters
William L. Moran(Editor)
Johns Hopkins University Press
Published on 26. February 2002
Book
Paperback/Softback
448 pages
978-0-8018-6715-6 (ISBN)
Description
An ancient inscription identified some of the ruins at el Amarna as "The Place of the Letters of the Pharaoh." Discovered there, circa 1887, were nearly four hundred cuneiform tablets containing correspondence of the Egyptian court with rulers of neighboring states in the mid-fourteenth century B.C. Previous translations of these letters were both incomplete and reflected an imperfect understanding of the Babylonian dialects in which they were written. William Moran devoted a lifetime of study to the Amarna letters to prepare this authoritative English translation. The letters provide a vivid record of high-level diplomatic exchanges that, by modern standards, are often less than diplomatic. An Assyrian ruler complains that the Egyptian king's latest gift of gold was not even sufficient to pay the cost of the messengers who brought it. The king of Babylon refuses to give his daughter in marriage to the pharaoh without first having proof that the king's sister -- already one of the pharaoh's many wives -- is still alive and well. The king of Karaduniyash complains that the Egyptian court has "detained" his messenger -- for the past six years.
And Egyptian vassal Rib-Hadda, writing from the besieged port of Byblos, repeatedly demands military assistance for his city or, failing that, an Egyptian ship to permit his own escape.
And Egyptian vassal Rib-Hadda, writing from the besieged port of Byblos, repeatedly demands military assistance for his city or, failing that, an Egyptian ship to permit his own escape.
Reviews / Votes
The acknowledged master of these texts is William Moran, who produced a complete re-edition of the tablets, in French, in 1987. The Amarna Letters is a revised version of this, done into English. Open it, and hear these voices from a vanished empire speak after three and a half millennia. Times Literary Supplement Fascinating... The refined scholarship and mature pedagogy of a distinguished student of the ancient Near East. Libraries and Culture "A superb treatment of the Amarna Letters. Zeitschrift fur AssyriologieMore details
Language
English
Place of publication
Baltimore, MD
United States
Target group
College/higher education
Professional and scholarly
Product notice
Paperback (trade)
Dimensions
Height: 229 mm
Width: 152 mm
Thickness: 27 mm
Weight
722 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-8018-6715-6 (9780801867156)
DOI
10.56021/9780801842511
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Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions
William L. Moran
The Amarna Letters
Book
07/1992
Johns Hopkins University Press
€86.96
Article not available for order
Person
William L. Moran (1921-2000) was Andrew W. Mellon Professor of Humanities, Emeritus, in the Department of Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations, Harvard University.