Introduction
Ugarit , capital of the Ugarit kingdom, is an ancient city
lying in a large artificial mound called Ras Shamra (Ra's
Shamrah), 10 km north of Latakia on the
Mediterranean coast of northern Syria.
Its ruins, less than 1 Km from the shore, were first uncovered by
the plow of a peasant at Al-Bayda Bay. The name of this city was
known from Egyptian and Hittite sources, its location and history
were a mystery until the accidental discovery (1928) of an ancient
tomb at the small Arab village of Ras Shamrah. Excavations were
begun in 1929 by a French archaeological mission under the
direction of Claude F.A. Schaeffer. The site was been particularly
rich in finds, which have yielded much valuable historical
information and from which a partial account of the city has been
constructed.
History
The golden age of Ugarit:
Ugarit was probably occupied from the first appearance of
humans in Syria, but the most
prosperous and the best-documented age in Ugarit's history, dated
from about 1450 to about 1200 BC, produced great royal palaces
and temples and shrines, with a high priests'
library and other libraries on the acropolis. Some of the
family vaults built under the stone houses show strong Mycenaean
influence. Mycenaean and Cypriot pottery in great amounts has also
been found.
After the discovery of the temple library, which
revealed a hitherto unknown cuneiform alphabetic script as
well as an entirely new mythological and religious literature,
several other palatial as well as private libraries were
found, along with archives dealing with all aspects of the city's
political, social, economic, and cultural life.
The art of Ugarit in its golden age is best illustrated by a
golden cup and patera (bowl) ornamented with incised Ugaritic
scenes; by carved stone stelae and bronze statuettes and
ceremonial axes; by carved ivory panels depicting royal
activities; and by other fine-carved ivories. Despite Egyptian
influence, Ugaritic art exhibits a Syrian style of its own.
Soon after 1200 BC Ugarit came to an end. Its fall coincided
with the invasion of the Northern and Sea Peoples and certainly
with earthquakes and famines. In the Iron Age and during the
6th-4th century BC, there were small settlements on the site
(Leukos Limen).
The excavators of the site were fortunate in the number and
variety of finds of ancient records in
cuneiform script. The excavations continue, and each season
throws some new and often unexpected light on the ancient north
Canaanite civilization. The texts are written on clay tablets
either in the Babylonian cuneiform script or in the special
alphabetic cuneiform script invented in Ugarit. Several copies of
this alphabet, with its 30 signs, were found in 1949 and later. A
shorter alphabet, with 25, or even 22, signs, seems to have been
used by 13th-century traders.
Scribes used four languages: Ugaritic, Akkadian, Sumerian, and
Hurrian, and seven different scripts were used in Ugarit in this
period: Egyptian and Hittite hieroglyphic and Cypro-Minoan,
Sumerian, Akkadian, Hurrian, and Ugaritic cuneiform. These show
clearly the cosmopolitan character of the city.
The Middle Bronze Age period:
A carnelian bead identified with the pharaoh Sesostris I (reigned
1971-28 BC) and a stela and statuettes, gifts to the kings of
Ugarit from other Middle Kingdom pharaohs (e.g., Sesostris II,
1897-78, and Amenemhet III, 1842-1797), provided the first exact
dating in the history of Ugarit. Eggshell ware from Crete (Middle
Minoan period) and Babylonian cylinder seals found in the tombs of
level II also provided cross datings. During the 18th and 17th
centuries BC, Ugarit was apparently under the control of new
tribes related to the Hyksos, probably mainly Hurrians or
Mitannians, who mutilated the Egyptian monuments.
Ras Shamra texts and the Bible:
Many texts discovered at Ugarit, including the "Legend of Keret,"
the "Aghat Epic" (or "Legend of Danel"), the "Myth of
Baal-Aliyan," and the "Death of Baal," reveal an Old Canaanite
mythology. A tablet names the Ugaritic pantheon with Babylonian
equivalents; El, Asherah of the Sea, and Baal were the main
deities. These texts not only constitute a literature of high
standing and great originality but also have an important bearing
on Old Testament studies. It is now evident that the patriarchal
stories in the Old Testament were not merely transmitted orally
but were based on written documents of Canaanite origin, the
discovery of which at Ugarit has led to a new appraisal of the Old
Testament.
The Ras Shamra mound:
Soundings made through the Ras Shamra mound revealed a reliable
stratigraphic sequence of settlements from the beginning of the
Neolithic period. Above the ground level, five main upper levels
(levels V to I) were identified. The three lowest levels have been
subdivided into smaller layers. The earliest settlement on level
V--already a small fortified town in the 7th millennium BC--shows
a prepottery stage with flint industries. Also on level V, but in
a later layer, light, sun-dried pottery appears. Level IV and part
of level III date back to the Chalcolithic, or Copper-Stone, Age,
when new ethnic groups arrived from the northeast and the east.
This stage shows Mediterranean as well as strong Mesopotamian
influence. During the Early Chalcolithic Age, painted pottery of
the Hassunan and Halafian cultures of northern Iraq is very
common. The Late Chalcolithic shows fresh Mesopotamian influence
with its monochromatic, Ubaidian, geometric painted pottery. The
flint industry was then in competition with the first metal tools,
made of copper. The Early Bronze Age (3rd millennium) layers,
immediately above, in level III, yielded no more painted ware but
various monochromatic burnished wares and some red polished ware
of Anatolian origin. With Early Bronze Age III, metallurgy quickly
developed. In the Middle Bronze Age, newcomers, so-called
Torque-Bearers, expert in bronze metallurgy, arrived (c. 2000-1900
BC). Levels II and I correspond to historical periods within the
2nd millennium BC.
Attractions and historical building
- Among the more important discoveries at Ugarit are
tablets from the 14th cent. B.C. Written in a
cuneiform script, in a hitherto unknown language, Ugaritic,
they record the poetic works and myths of the ancient Canaanites.
They are written in an alphabet that is one of the earliest
known. Ugaritic has been identified as a Semitic language,
related to classical Hebrew, the language of the Old Testament,
and these tablets, the first authentic specimens of pagan
Canaanite literature, have been of great importance to students of
language and of the Bible. They offer evidence that the stories of
the Old Testament were based on written Canaanite documents as
well as being passed down orally.
- The main palace dates back to the 14th to 13th
century BC. There are two pillars on both sides of the entrance.
Through the entrance between the pillars is a courtyard sort of
reception area which opens up into the rest of the palace. On the
left of this courtyard are a few rooms that where the important
archives were found. Also evident in the courtyard are the water
canals that would send the water around the building. Further on
are the 90 rooms situated in a maze like structure covering an
area of approximately 6500 sq. meters.
On both the north and south sides of the main palace is what are
called subsidiary palaces. There are also a few resident
houses with a shrine, and the Governor's residence, which is
older as it was not rebuilt after the 14th century BC. East of the
main palace is the residential area. There is a large building in
this quarter which is called the House of Rupanu. Further
up the tell is the main temple area. There are two temples on this
acropolis, one dedicated to the worship of the Semitic patron
deity Baal, and the other to Dagon.
- The temple of Baal is structured as a courtyard
with an altar in the center, the cella like that of the Palmyrean
Temple of Bel. The temple of Dagon who is God of the
Underworld, follows the same plan as the Baal temple. In between
the two temples are the priests quarters where an archive of
religious writings and chants were found.
Some private houses were found, which have provided information
about the various handicrafts that the inhabitants may have
practiced including ship building, weaving, and ceramic work, not
to mention bronze work.
|