The Median 'Empire', the End of Urartu and Cyrus the Great's Campaign in 547 BC

The focus of this paper is, first, the reading of the toponym in Nabonidus Chronicle II 16 of which only the first character is preserved, and, second, an historical reassessment according to which the territory loosely controlled by a Median ‘confederation’ cannot be called an ‘empire’. Contrary to the generally held view the first character cannot be read as ‘LU’ which would require us to restore the text as lu-[ud-di], i.e. Lydia. Collation shows beyond doubt the character represents ‘Ú’ and the only plausible restoration is ú-[ras-†u], i.e. Urartu. Urartu was therefore not destroyed by the Medes at the end of the 7th century BC but continued to exist as an independent political entity until the mid-6th century BC. Thus Nabonidus Chronicle II 16 shows that it was the conquest by Cyrus the Great which brought about the end of Urartu. Introduction In 1988, 1994 and 1995, the late Heleen Sancisi-Weerdenburg questioned with arguments of considerable weight, the existence of a Median ‘empire’ as a political entity with structures comparable with those of the so called Neo-Assyrian, NeoBabylonian or the Achaemenid ‘empires’.1 She called for a methodologically fresh approach, cast doubt on the general validity of our most important source, i.e. Herodotus’ Medikos Logos, and pointed out gaps in the non-classical sources, primarily for the first half of the 6th century BC. She also considered anthropological models of state formation and conceptual systems used in the social sciences. Independent from each other Burkhart Kienast and I questioned the alleged vassal status of the early Persians vis-à-vis the Medes.2 Amélie Kuhrt recently showed that the Assyrian heartland as well as its eastern fringes (the region around ArrapÌa) * This paper was originally intended to be published as part of the Proceedings of the 1st International Conference on Ancient Cultural Relations Between Iran and West Asia. An earlier draft was also placed at www.achemenet.com/ressources/souspresse/annonces/annonces.htm. Since these Proceedings are no longer scheduled to appear, the article was updated, and the totally revised (and definitive) version is now published here. I would like to thank Konrad Kinzl (Peterborough) for reading the manuscript and improving my English and Wilfrid Allinger (Innsbruck) for creating the map (Fig. 1). 1 Sancisi-Weerdenburg 1988; 1994; 1995. Cf. Briant 1996, 36-37. 2 Kienast 1999, 65; Rollinger 1999, 127-34. 1197-08_Anc.West&East_03 12-18-2008, 11:11 51