Reflection of Elam-Babilon’s Business Relationships in the Documents of Achaemenid Period

Author

Abstract

Susa and Babylonia were two important capitals of the governments prior to the Achaemenid,that also had role as administrative and winter capitals in the Achaemenid period.Each of these two important satraps were obliged to give tribute and many gifts to the Achaemenid court. They had a good business background before the Achaemenid period. They were received a better position in commercial affairs in the period, with the entering to the Achaemenid Empire area that was larger than all previous governments.The satraps continued their commercial activities in a wider area, and with the actions that were doing by the Achaemenian kings, especially Darius I,commerce more progress than the previous periods, and consequently, the business also has taken steps quickly progress among the Elamite and Babylonian, and they took advantage of the opportunity. Many documents evidence remains for expansion of the commercial relations between the Elamite and Babylonian in the Achaemenid period. This research try to explain how does Elam and Babylonia trade relations with investigate of  remaining documents of Achaemenid period in a descriptive-analytical way. According to verified documents, the business relations between Elam and Babylon from Cyrus to Bardia have been more related to the slave (Kurtaš) trade, but Darius I's legal and commercial documents reflect the fact that during this period was found no news of slave trade and most of the business relations of Elam and Babylon related to the trade of grains, fruits, garments, and the use of mutual services. After Darius the first, the number of documents declined sharply, and this indicating that it was likely that after the death of Darius the first and until the end of the Achaemenid Empire, the thriving business of Elam and Babylon would be diminished, and even was restored the slave trade, and this maybe has been a sign of reduction of Achaemenid authority and trade security

Keywords

References

References
-        Augapfel, J., 1917, Babylonische Rechtsurkunden aus der Regierungszeit Artaxerxes I und Darius II, Wien.
-        Boardman, John, N. G. L. Hammond, D. M. Lewis, & M. Ostwald (eds.), 1988, The Cambridge Ancient History, vol. 4: Persia, Greece and Western Mediterranean c. 525 to 479 B.C., Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
-        Boll, F. M. Th., 1939,  Assyrische en Nieuw = Babylonische Oorkonden, Amsterdam.
-        Brinkman, J. A., 1969, “Ur: The Kassite Period and the Period of the Assyrian Kings”, Or. 38, pp. 310-348.
-        Cameron, George G., 1965, “New Tablets from the Persepolis Treasury”, JNES 24, pp. 167-192.
-        Cardascia, G., 1951,  Les Archives des Murashu, Paris.
-        Dandamayev, M. A. and Lukonin, V. G., 1989, The Culture and Social Institutions of Ancient Iran, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
-        Dandamayev, M. A., 1972, “Connections between Elam and Babylonia in the Achaemenid Period”, The Memorial Volume of the Vth International Congress of Iranian Art and Archaeology I, Tehran, pp. 258-264.
-        Dandamayev, M. A., 1984, Slavery in Babylonia from Nabopolassar to Alexander the Great (626-331 B.C.), Northern Illinois University Press.
-        Dandamayev, M. A., 1992, “Commerce: ii, in the Achaemenid Period”, EIr, vol. 6, pp. 59-61.
-        Dandamayev, M.A., 1986, “Šušan in the Murašū Documents”, in the Meyer, L., Gaschhe, H., and Vallat, F. (eds.), Fragmenta Historiae Aelamicae: Mélanges offerts à M. J. Steve, Paris, pp. 289-290.
-        Diodorus of  Sicily, 1968, The Library of History, vol. 1-2, translation By C. H. Oldfather, Cambridge (Mass.) & London: The Loeb Classical Library.
-        Driver, G. R., 1957, Aramic Documents of the Sixth Century B. C., Oxford.
-        Ebeling, E., 1952, “Die Rüstung eines babylonischen Panzerreiers nach einem Vertrag aus der Zeit Darius II”, ZA 50 (N.F. 16), pp. 203-213.
-        Gershevitch, Ilya (ed.), 1985, the Cambridge History of Iran, vol. II: the Median and Achaemenian periods, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
-        Ghirshman, R., 1954, Suse. Village perse-achéménide, M.M.A.I. 36, Paris.
-        Hallock, R. T., 1969, Persepolis Fortification Tablets, Chicago.
-        Herodotus, 1957, The Persian Wars, translated by A. D. Godley, Cambridge (Mass.) & London: The Loeb Classical Library.
-        Joannés, F., 1989, “Un quartier fantôme de Babylone”, N.A.B.U. (vol. 3). 
-        Kent, Ronald G., 1953,  Old Persian, Grammer, Texts, Lexicon (Second Edition), American Oriental Society, New Haven.
-        Kuhrt, Amélie, 1988, “Babylonia from Cyrus to Xrexes”, CAH IV, pp. 112-138.
-        Kuhrt, Amélie, 1990, “Achaemenid Babylonia: Sources and Problems”,  AchHist IV, pp. 177-194.
-        Lambert, M., 1964, “Le destin d’Ur et les routes commerciales”, RSO 39, pp. 89-109.
-        Langdon, S., 19912,  Die neubabylonischen koenigsinschriften,  Leipzig.
-        Lutz, H. F., 1928, An agreement between a Babylonian feudal lord and his retainer in the region of Darius II (UCP 9/iii), Berkeley, Calif.
-        Olmestead, A. T., 1948,  History of Persian Empire, Chicago & London: the University of Chicago Press.
-        Olmestead, A. T., 1948, History of Persian Empire, Chicago & London: the University of Chicago Press.
-        Oppenheim, A. L., 1969, “Essay on Overland Trade in the First Millennium B.C.”, Journal of Cuneiform Studies 21, pp. 236-54.
-        Salles, Jean François, 1987, “The Arab-Persian Gulf in the Seleucid period” in: Kuhrt & Sherwin-White, Hellenism in the East: the interaction of Greek and non-Greek civilizations from Syria to Central Asia after Alexander, London, pp. 75-109.
-        Soden, W. von, 1959, “Assyriologische Miszellen”, WZKM, Bd. 55, pp. 49-51.
-        Stolper, M. W. , 1984, “The Neo-Babylonian Text from the Persepolis Fortification”, JNES 43/4, pp. 299-310.
-        Strassmaier, J. N., 1890a,  Inschriften von Cambyses, könig von Babylon (521-485 v. Chr.) (Babylonische Texte 8-9), Leipzig.
-        Strassmaier, J. N., 1890b, Inschriften von Cyrus, könig von Babylon (538-529 v. Chr.) (Babylonische Texte 7), Leipzig.
-        Strassmaier, J. N., 1893, “Einige kleinere babylonische Keilschrift texte aus dem Britischen Museum”, in: Actes du Huitieme Congres International des Orientalistes, Deuxieme partie, Leiden, pp. 1-35.
-        Strassmaier, J. N., 1897, Inschriften von Darius, könig von Babylon (521-485 v. Chr.) (Babylonische Texte 10-12), Leipzig.
-        Unger, E., 1970, Babylon, Die heilige Stadt nach der Beschreibung der Babylonier, Berlin.
-        Ungnad, A., 1941-1944, “Das Haus Egibi”, AfO 14, pp. 57-64.
-        Ungnad, A., 1959,  “Neubabylonische Privaturkunden aus der Sammlung Amherst”, Afo 19,  pp. 79-81.
-        Vallat, F., 1971, “Deux nouvelles chartes de fondation d’un palais de Darius I”, Syria 48, pp. 53-59.
-        Vallat, F., 1972, “Deux inscriptions élamites de Darius I”, StIr 1, pp. 3-13.
-        Vallat, F., 1998, “Elam i: the history of Elam”, EIr, vol. 8, pp. 301-313.
-        Van Driel, G., 1987, “Continuity or decay in the late Achaemenid period: evidence from southern Mesopotamia”, AchHist I, pp. 159-181.
-        Walker, C. B. F., 1980, “Elamite Inscriptions in the British Museum”, Iran 18, pp. 75-81.
-        Weingort, S., 1939,  Das Haus Egibi in neubabylonischen Rechtsurkunden, Berlin.
-        Weisman, D. J., 1966, “Some Egyptians in Babylonia”, Iraq 28, pp. 154-158.
-        Zadok, Ran, 1976, “On the Connections between Iran and Babylonia in the Sixth Century B.C.”, Iran 14, pp. 61-78.
-        Zadok, Ran, 1984, “New Documents from the Chaldean and Achaemenian Periods”, Orientalia Lovaniensia Periodica 15, pp. 65-75.
-        Zadok, Ran, 1987, “Peoples from the Iranian Plateau in Babylonia during the Second Millennium B.C”, Iran 25, pp. 1-26.
Iranian Civilization Research
Volume 1, Issue 1 - Serial Number 1
September 2019
Pages 123-154

Files

Share

How to cite

Statistics