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including the name of the scribe, ends the text. Unlike their Old
Babylonian counterparts, these documents are not dated, and no
envelopes were used.1.5 The international documents are of relevance because they con-
tain provisions concerning disputes between ordinary citizens of
Alalakh and those of the treaty partner. They cover matters such as
theft, deposit, and the return of fugitive slaves.1.6 Apart from legal documents, several administrative records and
a few letters unearthed at Level IV, as well as a letter sent from
Alalakh to Ugarit, where it was discovered (RS 4.449), throw fur-
ther light on legal practice in early Late Bronze Age Alalakh.- Constitutional and Administrative Law
2.1 Organs of Government^25
2.1.1 The King
In this period, Alalakh was a vassal kingdom of Mittani. Nonetheless,
the king of Alalakh seems to have regulated most, if not all, affairs
that concerned his subjects within his own kingdom.2.1.2 The Administration
The king presides over most of the transactions available to date.
He seems to have been assisted in court by a body of nobles or
maryannus.^26
Likewise, the local authorities were composed of the mayor (¢azannu),
at the head of the city, and a body of five nobles (damqùtu; AT 3)^27
or elders (“ìbùtu; AT 2). In treaties, they appear as being responsi-
ble to their own king for returning foreign runaways.2.1.3 The Courts
Most of the extant legal transactions are before the king. They are
witnessed by a body of nobles who appear not only repeatedly as
witnesses in different transactions but also as active participants in(^25) See Liverani, “La royauté syrienne.. .,” “Communautés de village et palais
royal.. .,” and “Communautés rurales...”
(^26) See Márquez Rowe, “A Number or a Measure?.. .,” 255.
(^27) Cf. Márquez Rowe, “The Akkadian Word for aristoi?”
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