A prosperous sea and trading culture, Ugarit shines like a jewel as a city of commerce and exchange on the coast of ancient Syria. Excavations show activity in the area as early as 6000 BCE. In the Late Bronze Age Ugarit makes its presence felt throughout the known world. It's a city vibrant with success.
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By the Neolithic or New Stone Age the city of Ugarit is already surrounded by sturdy stone walls. The Ugaritic ruins are known as Ras Shamra after their region of discovery.
On the eastern shores of the Mediterranean Sea, Ugarit is a vassal kingdom to the Hittite Empire. It becomes a center of great importance in the Levant and other areas from c. 1800 BCE. Ugarit falls into destruction in the late 12th century BCE as part of the Bronze Age Collapse.
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A progressive region, in the ancient world Ugarit exchanges goods and correspondence with Egypt, the Aegian, Syria, the Hittites, Isle of Cyprus and the east Mediterranean. Sea routes and overland roads come together here. Trade and travel prosper.
First written mention of Ugarit comes from Ebla in 1800 BCE. Egypt and Ugarit were in contact even earlier, from c 1970 BCE. By the 19th century BCE the Ugarites have their own language and many also speak and write Akkadian, the international language of trade and commerce.
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The height of power for Ugarit comes in the 1400s BCE. Influenced by Egyptian, the Ugaritic alphabet is composed c. 1400 BC and consists of 30 letters, corresponding to sounds, inscribed on clay tablets.
Another language seemingly derived from Egytian is Phoenician, coming from the coastal and inland areas of today's Lebanon. The Phoenicians occupy the area for many years before they rise in might as an international seafaring society.
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Literary works such as poetic odes are composed by the Kingdom's countless scribes, who immortalize legends and heroes in tablets of clay. Royal correspondence flows, delivered by boat or beast to countries once strange and unknown.
Most people, especially those in business, speak at least two or three languages. At the advent of popular writing, engagement of scribes, education of the priest classes and self-learning gain momentum. In the Mediterranean, the late Bronze Age is an Age of Communication.
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Legends known from the Ugaritic include:
Baal Cycle - Baal, Ba'al, storm & fertility god, various stories
Legend of Keret - Epic poem, King of Hubur's many misadventures
Tale of Aqhat - Danal needs an heir, asks help of Gods; 650 poetic lines, damaged
Later Hebrew biblical literature, especially divine imagery and poetic form, contains stylistic parallels with Ugaritic poetry. Other important texts include accounts of daily life.
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The Baal cycle represents Baal Hadad's destruction of Yam (the god of chaos and the sea). This motif often appears in creation myths. A warrior god rises up as the hero of the new pantheon to defeat chaos and bring order. In Hurrian mythology and Hittite mythology the Old Gods are banished to the Underworld.
Another example is that of Mesopotamian hero-god Marduk battling Tiamet (sea, chaos) in her sea serpent form. Ugaritic mythology envisions the concept and embodiment of chaos as divine despite, or because of, opposing forces.
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Ugaritic mythology has the complexity of a developed civilization. Early gods at their basic are equated with nature and worshipped as the Sky (God), Earth (Goddess). Later, assimilation of cultures or migration, marriage and trade-based contacts introduces new gods and new forms of old gods.
The last King of Ugarit, Ammurapi (c. 1215 to 1180 BCE), is a contemporary of the last Hittite king, Suppiluliuma II. In a letter, Ammurapi stresses the cataclysmic effects of unprecedented attacks on near Eastern states.
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In another, the coastal towns are under attack. An appeal for help from the king of Alashiya (Cyprus) highlights the desperate situation of Ugarit and other cities:
My father, behold, the enemy's ships came (here); my cities(?) were burned, and they did evil things in my country. Does not my father know that all my troops and chariots(?) are in the Land of Hatti, and all my ships are in the Land of Lukka? ... Thus, the country is abandoned to itself. May my father know it: the seven ships of the enemy that came here inflicted much damage upon us.
The Land of Hatti is the Hittite Empire; Land of Lukka refers to Lycia. The ruler of Carchemish (northern Syria) sent troops, but Ugarit has already been sacked.
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From a letter sent after the destruction of Ugarit:
When your messenger arrived, the army was humiliated and the city was sacked. Our food in the threshing floors was burnt and the vineyards were also destroyed. Our city is sacked. May you know it! May you know it!
After the late 12th century, the city stands shattered and abandoned. Eventually it's overgrown and filled in. In the early 20th century, a peasant plowing his field uncovers ancient ruins.
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They include elaborate buildings such as a royal palace of ninety rooms, laid out around eight courtyards. Rich private dwellings are also found.
Atop the city hill are two temples, one to Baal and one to the chthonic god of fertility and wheat, Dagon (Dagaon). Dozens of stelae, deity worship momuments of wood or stone, often found in temples, are uncovered.
The status of women shows a greater degree of autonomy than some other regions at the time. The woman is officially considered the head of the household. She is responsible for domestic duties but can work outside the home or run a business; she can own livestock, property and slaves.
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Women are often scribes, in positions requiring study and education at special schools. The most common languages include Ugaritic, Akkadian, Sumerian, and Hurrian. Seven different scripts are used in Ugarit: Egyptian, Hittite, Cypro-Minoan, Sumerian, Akkadian, Hurrian and Ugaritic cuneiform.
The Queens of Ugarit have their own estates, and act in chief diplomatic capacities. Queen Thariyelli personally sacrifices a bull on the acropolis of Ugarit, a role usually given only to men.
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The Bull is a representative of the King, the God, and masculinity. People believe the Bull's sperm runs through his bones. A Queen taking this role would raise some eyebows. It's like a man trying tell a woman about menstruation.
It might even cause a divorce. The last King of Ugarit, Ammurapi, marries Ehli-Nikkalu, a daughter or niece of the Hittite king. Marriages are often arranged to forge unions of empires.
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Divorce is a common option at the time. It's not considered wrong, though it has to be mediated. The reason for the royal marriage ending isn't found. The Ugaritic King says the Queen committed a grievous sin. Is there a connection?
In archaeology, the city has much to share. The Ras Sheras mound shows several layers of settlement. Sound wave technology is able to distinguish about five levels from the Neolithic through the Copper and Bronze Ages.
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Control of Ugarit in the 18th and 17th centuries BCE belongs to a newly known tribe. They're related to the Hyksos or West Asians. According to scholars they could be Hurrians or Mitannians. Their rule marks the mutilation of Egyptian monuments.
In c.1200 BCE Ugarit comes under attack by the notorious Sea People. It's razed to the ground and eventually abandoned.
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After the collapse of the Bronze Age the region is populated by small settlements. As time goes by, one settlement is built atop another, a style of mound or tumulus building. The history and culture of cities like Ugarit are preserved layer by layer.
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