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2.2 Functions
2.2.1 Compulsory Service^8
Two sale documents (AT 52 and AT 54) and one deed of gift (AT
96) state that the property which is the object of transfer is granted
“immunity” (zakûtu).^9 The exempted duties that are implicit in this
formulaic expression may possibly correspond to the services quoted
in AT 55, namely the ilkum, dikûtum, and “arrupabinnum. In line 8,
dikûtumis qualified as that of the “troops with bronze spears” (érin.me“
gi“.igi.dù.zabar) and may possibly refer to some kind of military ser-
vice; ilkum is the standard service due to the state in the ancient
Near East.^10- Litigation
3.1 Almost all the extant litigation documents concern disputes over
property and inheritance. In many cases, the defendant is the ruler
of Alalakh himself. Although there is hardly any reference that would
provide proper identification, litigants must clearly belong to the
ruler’s entourage. Women appear frequently among them (e.g., AT
7, AT 8, and AT 11).
The documents first record the subject matter and the declara-
tion of the plaintiff’s claim, occasionally followed by the statement
of the defendant. Then both parties are said to come (lit., enter)
before the king of Yamkhad (or other court), who has the final deci-
sion. Witnesses might be called upon to testify (e.g., in AT 7, AT
57, or AT 455) and documents could be produced as evidence (e.g.,
in AT 57).3.2 In AT 11, where the plaintiff’s claim was rejected, she was to
suffer some kind of shaming before the court (lit., her head was
struck by the accused).^11 As a rule, court decisions were secured by
heavy penalties imposed on any of the parties who would claim again(^8) See Zaccagnini, “Asiatic Mode of Production.. .,” 80f.; Kienast, “Die alt-
babylonischen Kaufurkunden.. .,” 37, 42.
(^9) See also Kraus, “Ein mittelbabylonischer Rechtsterminus,” 37f., and Ries,
“Lastenfreiheit,” 509.
(^10) Cf. also the mention of the ilkumof Aleppo in AT 58. An attempt to under-
stand the term “arrupabinnuwas made by Gaal, “Alalahian Miscellanies I,” 9f.
(^11) See Malul, Legal Symbolism, 432ff.
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