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    Aratta (Yousef Majidzadeh 1976)

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    Aratta (Yousef Majidzadeh 1976)

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    Journal of Near Eastern Studies, Vol. 35, No. 2 (Apr., 1976), pp. 105-113

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    Aratta (Yousef Majidzadeh 1976)

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    ‘THE LAND OF ARATTA YOUSEF MAJIDZADBH, Department of Archaeology and History of Art, Delran University Doanixe the last thirty years, one of the outstanding problems in the field of the ancient history of Tran has been the earch forthe exact location of Anshan and Aratta, ‘bro important neighboring city states somewhere on the Tranianplatean, Both states are mentioned forthe frst time in the Sumerian texts usually thought to relet the Karly Dynastic I period (the first half of the third millennium ».c). Anshan remained well known in later periods also as one of the main centers of the Elamite kingdom, while ‘Aratta was wealthy area to which the Early Dynastic rulers looked asa source for costly commodities. The uncertainty as to the precise lotion of these two regions resulted in seria of controversies among scholars who have proposed to identify them with different areas within the present geographical borders of Iran. The siate of Anshan, however, finally found ite identity and exact location Unrough the archaeological activities af TalLiMalyan led by William Sumner. It is noteworthy that before the evidence of the discoveries at Tal:iMalyan was available, John Hansman was the only scholar who identified that site as Anshan, * So far, four different regions have been proposed by four different scholars as the exact location of the state of Aratia, all bfore the recent definitive demonstration of the location of Anshan: (1) 8. N. Kramer equated the state of Aratta with the modem province of Luristan in the southwestern Iran; (2) the second proposal was made by Georgina Herrmann, while discussing the lapis lazuli trade, who located the state of Aratta “somewhere south oF southeast of the Caspian”s* (3) the third suggestion was made by Hansman® in a footnote, where he identified the city with Shahr-+Sokkta, an archacological site on th southeast ide of Lake Hilman which has produeed thousands of flakes of lapis laa and carnelian during recent excavations (4) and finally, Sol Coben hus identified Aratta with the combined areas of Hamedan-Nahayand-Kermansheh- ina very detailed discussion in his PhD. dissertation # ‘The discovery ofthe cxact location of the state of Anshan as the modem province of AW. Sumner, “Excavations at Tallétalyan 1971-73)" ran 12 (1874): 135-75; Enna Heinen ‘MTalsMalyan, Epigphie Binds 197172" Jean 13 Achacmenians and 72) 101-25 femerkor a he Lord of Arai: A Sumer Bpie Tate of Tag and Tron (hie toa. ‘errmann “Lapis Lael: The Haely Phase ofits Trad," frog 30 (1008): 64. Asha. Hb 2 (LES ano. 204 a tebe pion otcheao. ML, Tosi, “Hsxcavations at ShabriSokhte, A lols Settlement in the Tunian Stans Pree Uimivary Report on the’ Piet Cammpaigay Oster Decomibor lob" Saotand Wes 18 (1868) 9-08 Sern, “xeaveions at Shake Sokhta,Prelaminary Reporte ‘on the Bocond Campaign, September Ductber 1968" Fast ant Weat 10 (1060; 289 98 idem, "Shae Slthtn," am 1070) 1984 em, “Shab. Sole.” fran"10 {1038 174-75, 6.0. Lamb KKovlovaky and M. Ton, ShabeSokhtn and Tey Yahya Tracks on the Earlot Hiatory ofthe Ia Platon,” Barun Weat 9 (1873) 21 Sa "WS: Cohen, "Bnmerkar and the Lord of Anetta (PRD. dina Univemity of Penayivenie 979. T mst eis now available from nlveraty Mersin, sf Ann Arbor, can, 105 Jounvat ov Near Fasreey Serums ro, 1-—Map showing loeation of major archaeological sites it Tran ‘Tae Lavo oF Anarma 107 Fars, however, proved that the identification of Aratta as Luristan by Kramer, as south fr southeast of the Caspian by Herrmann, and as Hamadan-Nahavand-Kermanshah- ‘Sanandaj by Cohen are all completely out of the question sineo itis known that the state of Aratta was adjacent to the state of Anshan. In contrast to other scholars, Hansman looked to the east. He included the province of Kerman in the ancient state of Anshan, ‘and having brought the modern state of Sistan into the neighborhood of Anshan, pro- posed the possibility that Shabr-i-Sokhta could be identified with the eity of Aratta.® ‘The discovery of Anshan in Fars and the results of the last fifteen years of archaco- logical activity in the provinee of Kerman can now help us to review all the available sources and to make another attempt in the hope of finding the precise location of the state of Aratta, ‘The earliest written sources in which the state of Aratta was mentioned belong to Enmerkar, who according to the Sumerian King list was the second king of the First Dynasty of Uruk® Tt is also probable that Enmerkar was a ruler during the Barly Tiynaati T pariad 10 Ona of the texte ie known as “Rnmerker and the Lord of Arata,” for which I shall use the abbreviation ELA, and the other, “Rnmerkar-Lugalbanda,”"® for which T shall use the abbreviation EL. We learn from the Epie of ELA that the king demands the adviee of the goddess Inanna in the search for gold, silver, and lapis lazuli from the state of Aratta: “it was then the lord of Uruk-Kullaba, Enmerkar ...in need of Aratta’s craftsmen and building material, turned, at the outside of the propitions fertility rite.” Heeding his (Enmerkar’s) plea, Inanna . .. advises him to select a sui able emissary to carry her message via Susa, the mountain country of Anshan, and over great mountain ranges to the land of Aratta,”** Accordingly, in order to get to Arata, ‘the emissary had to eross Susa (the modern province of Khuzistan) and traverse Anshan (the modern province of Fars). Furthermore, we know that after crossing Anshan and before arriving at Aratta, one had to cross seven mighty mountains.t® This geographical description fits very well with the character of the mountainous region between Fars and ‘Kerman, so that the destination of Enmerkar’s emissary could have been nowhere but ‘the modern province of Kerman, Geographieslly, Kerman is separated from Fars by the long chain of the Kerman range, comprised of high mountains, some of which reach six and seven thousand feet above the surfuee of the surrounding plateau.%® There isa series of long and southeastward intermontaine valleys which are located hetween the Kerman range and the Zagros mountains of Fars and within the Kerman range. These valleys include the Anar Valley, the Bard-Sir Valley, the Kerman Basin, and the Rayin-Sarvestan ‘Valley.17 More intermontaine valleys are situated in the southwest region of the Kerman province, among which are the Soghun Valley, the Jirott Valley, and the Dolatabad Plain.2® Furthermore, it is within these intermontaine valleys that two important exca- vated and many unexeavated fourth and third millennium n.c. settlements are located. "3. Kanan lamite, Achaemenians and 18, Cohen, “Eterkar and the Lond of Arata," Anahi. 118, 97 1. Jncobieny The Sumerian King Lit, AS no, 11 939) eae Lars The Easly Phase Lord of Art "sumerke an the Lord of Arata 36." Wilkes Dus Lugalbandorper (Wiebadon, 106; t-rovems by 8: N- Reamer cts Or 39 (0891) ang. tend B. CWvil gS 31 (1072) 386 28-20. bid pp. 30-81, 8. N Ramer, Enmerkar nd the Lord of Arata, polylines 166m Je RL. Caldwel, Ineatigtions ot Tabict¥in, inois Stic Musou, Proimaasy Reports, no. 8, (2965), pp. 21-40. ikl 1, C Lamberg Karlovy and M. Tosi, “Shae. Soka nd Tepe Yea,” p-38 108 JouRNAL oF Near Fasten SzoDiEs (On the other hand, it is impossible to accept the ancient settlement of Shahr-iSokhta, located in Sistan well to the east of Kerman, as a probable region for the location of Aratta, Since the writers of the Epic of BLA and the EL Cycle were able to give such ‘detailed geographical descriptions for the regions between Uruk and Aratta, if Shahr. Sokhta had been Aratta, they would certainly have mentioned the erossing of the salt, desert of Dasht-i-Lut (the deadly desert which lies between Kerman nd Sistan) and Lake Hilmand. ‘The mountain range of hur-sag-zubi/black mountain in ELA, (lines 73-74, 108-09, and 164-65) passed on the route of Aratta, has been taken as a reference to the Qara Dagh in southern Kurdistan and thus as a reason to look for Aratta in this direction, However, there is evidence to indicate that for the Sumerians a black mountain was & source for white gypsum.* Therefore, the identification of the hur-sag-zubi in BLA with any identified or unidentified black mountain which was located in the viinity of Sumer ‘and vas used as a souree for white gypsum could be & mistake since this name apparently wae not a propor name for a specifi mountain but for black mountaine which could produce white gypsum. Even today qara, a word of Turkish origin is used commonly as ‘an adjective for geographical names such as gara su or qara chai ‘black river,” gare chaman “black grass,” or gara dagh “black mountain." The existence of such black ‘mountains as the source for gypsum, however, has been attested in the vicinity of Tal Iblis in western Kerman by the unearthing of a large furnace for baking gypsum.*! ‘Therefore, the mountain with the gypsum resourees used at Tal--Lblis or any similar “black mountain” within the Kerman region may be identified with the mountain range of hur-sag-zubi of ELA, Like the reference of hur-sag-zubi, the names of the two rivers Aratta and Rappa, crossed by Sargon TL, in his eighth eampsign,2? have been taken as evidence for the location of the land of Aratta; the two rivers have been identified by Gordon as the Ab-i- Sirwan and the headwaters of the Diyala. If we accept the assumption that the river Aratta is adjacent to the land of Aratta, this could again point towards the west. How. ever, there is no certainty that the Aratta river in this Iate text refers to the same place as the Barly Dynastic Aratta. The identity in namne between Aratta river and the state of Aratta may be a mere eoincidence and not an indication of relationship, since we know that the word aratta was also a word for “abundance” and “glory.” Another possibility is that Aratta was applied to more than one area.2 1B, Gordon, “A New Look at the Wiidoun of same aot" hr en 3h; burgh msm bab ben ‘ac oxntaing hes produced wht Cypes 1, Famopde In hie “Two Aneient Menunents in 55. Cohen, “Enmerkar and the Lord of Arata," =A goed example siterns tates of Pace In the ‘Neo-Aseyian recora- On the basi of go the oonurranes of these thee difeent locations ‘Southam Kurdistan,” Gapraphra Journal 8 (13) ‘ioe the intresting ft that Gare Dah the biack mountain” where the Dassulte of Navan Sin rere fours, pode ep 2 For more cxamplor of nile names se Dehidoda, Laphamaime, vl. 83 (160) p00 where snothor Qaca Dagh mentioned te wns range In Azarbayine SN. Coldwell, Invusiations at abe soar p.178 pa ea eI 2'F. RhureaDangin, TCZ 3. pp. 8 and 30 298. GordanRASKAL- KUR JOS 21 807): rand apical doerion Sn he rlga of Shee 1s wel a the thied campaign of Shamita le of AdedNirrt lend from the reign of Tiglathptesee IIT tndieate thatthe land of Pasoon ‘hold be lost inthe nactnnesteen agron, During the seventh century bc, acsordng to he aosount the egth eampaigy of Seanacherb andthe rents ‘of Ashurbanipaly a tesond Pacros was loated in the ‘Southwrestrn Zaatos probably on the mde Karun ‘River ye, the third Poraun wae in the ‘ars the homeland ofthe Achernntd Pe anil study too. Cupler Young, Jr ‘Migeation into the Zapron" Zram 9 (0009) 17-10. ‘Tux Laxp oF Anarta 100 ‘The occurrence of various geographical names in both ELA and BL# which have been identified with localities noighboring Sumer in west central Iran oecur as places on the route between Uruk and Aratta. As in the case of the black mountains and river Aratta, we may presume that familiar names were applied to similar geographical features on the road to Arata. Furthermore, the erossing of seven mountains®” may very well be formulaic* since the number seven had particular signifieance and could be used as the symbolic expression for such things as the measurement of time, space, and distance in the ancient Near East, as well as today. Therefore, the number seven may only indicate the crossing of a series of mountains. Finally, one has to keep in mind that both texts are pies from which one should not expect detailed geographical exactitude ‘As for the sources of precious stones, in the epie of ELA, Bnmerkar addresses Tnanna, saying: “Let the people of Aratts, having brought dawn the stones of the mountains from their highlands, build for me the great temple... "2° which is not really specific as to the source of the valuable stones. Although the existence of lapis lazuli in tho monntaina of Kerman has heen mentioned in two modineal reports, the ana hy Hama. Allah-Mostawi of Qazvin, the state accountant of Sultan Abu Said (4.p. 1316-35),° and the other in 1295 by Can Te, a Chinese traveler in Sistan the similarity of lapis lazuli, found in large numbers of chips, from Shahr-i-Sokhta with that of Badakhshan indicates that this stone was being imported from Afghanistan®® and shipped to Uruk via Kerman, Anshan, and Susa.*® Kerman falls into place hetween Shahr.i-Sokbta and Uruk, so that the route via Aratta, Anshan, and Susa by which Badalhshan lapis Iszuli reached Mesopotamia is evident and fits the textual evidence.% There i, however, evidence to Indicate that some of the lapis Inzuli of Badakhshan, while passing through the Kerman area, vas used in the region. This has heen shown through the excavations of Ali Hakemi of the Iranian archacologieal service at Shahdad at the northwestern edge of the Dasht- Lut somewhat northeast of the city of Kerman. In his brief report the excavator 2 8, Cohen, “Homerkar and Uhe Lon of Arata, pp. 30°85. PSN, Keamee, Bumerkar andthe Lond of Arate, ofthe geographical deerpsion of the resion and ite "torical bmekgrotnd a given here. The Dest {is mparated from the Kerman raion hy t range of eli 100 7. Woke, Dar Lugatiandacpor, p- 12, Vins er, nme andthe Lard of Arai, Oilinee 38 SeTTumd-Ailah Mostew, The Geographical Part hata ul, rene Le trang (Cal Zranin Chiou. 1010), 9,250 v.09, 39 All Hatem, “Etude areolgiques de lire ty Disert de Lous” stan Chena ox Hons Toa, eeweorhisiogc art franiens (1009) 90-38 pobadion of the Teatons of the fanian Ministry of Caltare and Art, no 196 (pel 1875) 76-83 and no. 12 (lay, 197}, 79-80, nce ‘how ail are in Paria 8 immaty teanaation ‘ountane which continues northwrede the rope of Ravar and Deetend, nd soutiwande nto the are fam. Sheldon nine fortheancient ety of ‘habs, loon nt the foot of Mount Jon, the highest peak of which race comme 8,000 m. bows ca level The peeks of his mountain ange are covered ith snow Unt Ube mle of My. Thus fly unt of water dows into the Shab pin ‘rodah the yer. The permanent water of Shad provided by the Deena sve, whist gins [ithe Hinnaaan mouateinss another svee with lon Sar originates in the high peaks of Jott. “The mein of several aie Tver hed i this region indbnte that n prkistoie tite the Shad plain enjoyed miveh more water than today, The reset region of Shahsd a eticly covered with Eltron and date trees which ere mote dete ithe Suthers and western tha the sates a norte paritoltherepone riot survey in the vicinity of the Shad emery has demonstrated extensive ultra ‘aie upto Tim. tothe eat ofthe omer. A Ese fod during the twelfth or thireunth sey a. Aestroyed thislargesttomont. The remain ol Various “eetlemonts ranging inate rm the presto to the 10 Jounyat ov Nzaz Fasten Sropres mentions the appearance of a large number of lapis lazuli beads in association with objects related to the Early Dynastic II-III periods, Since the Shahdad findings come from a cemetery, one has to consider the possibility of the existence of an advanced stone industry for lapis lazuli in a nearby settlement whose desd were buried at the ‘Shahdad cemetery, where a portion of the manufactured materials were placed with the dead. Although there has been relatively little archacological activity in the eastem part of Iran, there is already enough evidence to prove the province of Kerman to have been & highly.

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