French book on Mari
Syria, Literature, 12/10/1997

A new book was recently published in French on the Syrian kingdom of Mari. The French-language book, entiltled "Mari" casts light on the process of discovery of Mari which dates back to 4,500 years and on the external civilizations of the Near East.

The author of the book, Jean Mary Doranes, also sheds light on the administrative division in the kingdom which showed a relatively high progress. It tackles the industry which flourished in the area during consecutive periods including wood, textile, leather and medical industries.

The book explores the diplomatic relations between Mari and the nearby kingdoms. Discovered in 1933, the excavations conducted on this site has been one of the keys to the unveiling of the history of Syria and Mesopotamia region during the early millennia of recorded history.

Its excavation has largely rested in the hands of French archeologist Andre Parrot, who supervised the excavations from 1933 to 1974. Many of the most important prewar finds can now be seen in the Louvre. Since 1978 excavations have continued in collaboration with the French antiquities directorate.

Mari was the 3rd millennium BC royal city state. On the outer reaches of the Mesopotamian world, it was an important hub between the main irrigation-based state of the land of the two rivers (the Tigris and Euphrates) and the drier plains of northern Syria and the upper Euphrates Khabbour system.

Caravan routes through Mari also crossed the Syrian desert to Southern Syria bringing, among other items, tin for the bronze industries to the West. It was a highly developed palace state of the art now to be found Damascus and Paris illustrates its archives have yielded a major source of information on political, economic and social life of the time.

The "Tell" or Mound is surprisingly low and is a rough oval oriented diagonally to the compass, reaching 1.2 km from its north to the South extremities and the same from east to west. It was first occupied at the beginning of the 3rd millennium (2900) BC. Positioned in an area of limited natural agricultural potential, the center based its foundation not only on its trading position but also on a sophisticated irrigation system.

The book spoke about the archives, which are in Babylonian cuneiform and show a rich commercial life. It exploited its position midway between Babylon and the Mediterranean but often had to compromise its independence when faced with major adversaries.

It succumbed to the Akkadian empire for a while but reestablished its prosperity, its population heavily boosted by the arrival of many Amorites by the year 2000 BC. After a period during which a succession of local princes extended their influence as far as Lebanon, it lost out in the power struggle touched off by the Assyria under Shamsi-Adad. It briefly found its independence under Zimri Lim, only to lose it in 1759 BC to Hamourabi of the Babylonian state, who sacked it two years later.

Its walls were razed, its temples sacked and the Palace of Zimri lim set on fire and dismantled. The city was no longer a city of any importance from that time, though there are signs of limited reoccupation in the Seleucid and Sasanian period.

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