Brotherhood of Kings:How International Relations Shaped the Ancient Near East by Podany Amanda H

Author:Podany, Amanda H. [Podany, Amanda H.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Published: 2017-05-01T04:00:00+00:00

Mending Fences

Although we don’t know what conversation took place between Keliya and Amenhotep III, an example of the delicate way in which an envoy could influence a king without causing offense is seen in a letter sent by King Burnaburiash II of Babylon to the pharaoh.

Burna-buriash was an ill-tempered king, to judge from his letters, always quick to take offense and to assume the worst from the behavior of his allies. He worried constantly about appearances and about keeping up with the neighbors. When his daughter was to marry the Egyptian king, Burna-buriash wouldn’t let her go unless she could travel in a style appropriate to the daughter of a great king, with a large escort. Burna-buriash was horrified that “[M]y neighboring kings [would say], ‘They have transported the daughter of a great king [t]o Egypt in 5 char[iots’].”64

More than any of the other great kings, Burna-buriash II wanted the pharaoh to think that his land was just as rich as Egypt. All the kings must have known, based on the reports from their messengers, that Egypt was far wealthier than their own lands, and several of them commented (with no small amount of jealousy) that gold lay around like dirt in the streets of Egypt, so why didn’t the Egyptian king send more? But it would have hurt Burnaburiash’s pride to suggest that he was poorer than Akhenaten: “as I am told, in my brother’s country everything is available and my brother needs absolutely nothing. Furthermore, in my country everything too is available and I for my part nee[d] absolutely nothing.”65 Of course, he still wanted luxury goods from Egypt, in spite of such protestations. When the Egyptian king failed to send a greeting gift, on one occasion, Burna-buriash didn’t send one either, in protest. But he felt that he had to add that this wasn’t because he couldn’t afford to: “I am one for whom nothing is scarce, and you are one for whom nothing is scarce.”66 We really are equals, he was saying. But perhaps the Egyptian king thought that he protested too much.

In any event, an Egyptian envoy arrived in Babylon on one occasion, only to find that the self-absorbed king was ill. One can imagine Burna-buriash holding court from his bed, unable to get up, but perhaps taking comfort in the many messages that were flowing in from local dignitaries all wishing for his speedy recovery.

The Egyptian envoy was an important man and deserved an appropriate reception. Burna-buriash would normally have hosted the banquet to celebrate his arrival, but he was unable to do so. He described his dilemma in a letter to the pharaoh, writing that “I have not been well, and so on no occa[sion] has [the Egyptian] messenger eaten food and [drunk] spirits [in my com]pany.”67

The envoy had brought a letter from the pharaoh, but, not surprisingly, it made no mention of Burna-buriash’s poor health. Burna-buriash was outraged at the pharaoh’s insensitivity and seems to have had a temper tantrum, directed at the Egyptian messenger.

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