740
the ancient Near East. Indeed, the correspondence of Rib-Hadda of
Byblos, by far the largest in the corpus, basically consists of com-
plaints and accusations of the crimes and abuses committed against
him and the pharaoh, especially by the rulers of Amurru, namely
Abdi-Ashirta and, later, his son Aziru.
Rib-Hadda and other rulers, for example, Abdi-Heba of Jerusalem,
demanded from the pharaoh immediate justice and punishment. “Is
there no judgment on their lives?” Rib-Hadda would ask the pharaoh
rhetorically in EA 89:14 (following Na"aman’s reading), with refer-
ence to the criminals who had usurped the throne of Tyre.^7Litigation
Following the accusations of some of his Canaanite vassals, the
pharaoh as highest court would take various measures. First, he
would interrogate the accused party, as expressly demanded, for
example by the plaintiffAbdi-Heba in EA 289:10 against his rival
Milkilu: “Why does the king not interrogate him (i“al“u)?” The dec-
larations of the accused would presumably be spoken in the pres-
ence of the dispatched or resident Egyptian governor(s) and would
probably be accompanied by the taking of an oath (cf. EA 286). So,
for example, Aziru’s sworn statement in EA 261: “May your gods
and the Sun be witnesses: I was residing in Tunip.”
Faced with such accusations, the alleged offenders would gener-
ally reply that they are being slandered (ikkalù karßiya) in the presence
of the king (EA 286:6f.; cf. also EA 252:14).
In some cases, however, especially if the accusations did not cease
(like Rib-Hadda’s) and the pharaoh did not find the answers satis-
factory, he could summon the accused to his court in Egypt. That
is what is required of Aziru, as deduced from several letters (cf. espe-
cially EA 162). As a matter of fact, Aziru had already once been
summoned and personally interrogated: “On my arrival in the pres-
ence of the king, my lord,”—he declares in EA 261—“I spoke of
all my affairs (amàtè) in the presence of the king, my lord.” The
same Rib-Hadda, this time accusing one of the pharaoh’s commis-
sioners, advises his king to fetch him, examine him (dagàlu), and find
out about his affairs (awàtè lamàdu).(^7) See Na"aman, “Looking for the Pharaoh’s Judgment,” 145ff.
westbrook_f19_736-743 8/27/03 1:33 PM Page 740