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Assur. The Statutes of the kàrum(see 1.2) distinguish between meet-
ings of its “big” and “small” members, which correlates with the
occurrence of “verdicts of the kàrumbig and small,” namely, of its
plenary assembly, and implies the existence also of a smaller exec-
utive committee consisting of the “big men.” They may have been
identical to “the elders” (“ìbùtum), also twice attested for the kàrum.^212.1.4 The Legislature^22
The City Assembly most probably was the institution which took
care of legislation. Verdicts in frequent and important legal issues in
connection with trade (such as payments of debts, compensation for
losses during caravan trips, the death of a trader) apparently could
become “orders of the City” (awàt àlim) of more general validity
and formulation (“Anyone who.. .,” “No citizen of Assur whatso-
ever.. .”). In due time, they could be engraved on a stela (naru"àum),
which equaled publication. A unique official letter of the ruler sent
to kàrumKanish, after stating that a recent verdict of the City con-
cerning gold has been canceled, continues: “We have not fixed a
(new) rule. The previous ruling (awàtum) is still (valid)... In accor-
dance with the words of the stela, no citizen of Assur whatsoever
shall.. .; whoever does so shall not stay alive.” It clearly quotes a
law with its heavy sanction. That this letter uses the first person
plural, suggests that City and ruler together were responsible for
“fixing rules” and probably also for publishing them as laws.^23
On the colonial level, kàrumKanish could also issue orders (awà-
tum), but its authority probably was limited to practical administra-
tive matters (e.g., the rate of interest among Assyrians) and to issues
directly related to the trade, probably in consequence of appeals
(e.g., the prohibition on selling goods to an Anatolian official before
he has paid his debts to a trader).(^21) KTK 20:25 and kt m/k 14:12; see Larsen, City-State.. ., 165.
(^22) Veenhof, “Legislation...”
(^23) For the sources, see Veenhof, “Legislation.. .,” 1732ff., and for “fixing a rule,”
Veenhof, “Ißurtum.. .,” esp. 328f.
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