A gift such as this (Correspondence)
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Title:
A gift such as this
Subject:
The Assyrian king writes complaining about the amount of gold sent by the Egyptian king
Publication:
EA 16
Sender:
Ashur-uballit I, king of Assyria
Recipient:
Akhenaten, king of Egypt
URL:
Text:
To Akhenaten, Great King, king of Egypt, my brother, speak: thus says Ashur-uballit, king of the land of Ashur, great king, your brother: For you, for your household and your country, may all be well.
When I saw your messengers, I was very joyous. Your messengers will indeed reside in hospitality in my presence.
As your greeting-gift I send you a beautiful royal chariot of my yoking, and two white horses also of my yoking, one chariot not yoked (to a team), and one genuine lapis lazuli seal.
Is it from a great king, a gift such as this? Gold is dust in your land - one gathers it up. Why should it linger before you? I intend to build a new palace. Send me gold enough for its decoration and its furnishing.
When my ancestor Ashur-nadin-ahhe wrote to the land of Egypt, they sent him twenty talents of gold. When the Hanigalbatean king wrote to your father, to the land of Egypt, he sent twenty talents of gold to him. Now, I am equal to the Hanigalbatean king, but to me you send only […] gold, and it does not suffice for the expense of my messengers' journey there and back.
If in good faith your intention is friendship, send me much gold. And here it is your house - write to me, so that what you desire may be taken to you. We are distant lands. Should our messengers go back and forth in such a way?
As to your messengers having been delayed in reaching you, the Suteans, their guides, were dead(?); until I wrote and they took for me the Suteans, the guides, I detained them. My messengers must not be delayed in reaching me.
Why are my messengers made to stand around in the open sun, so that they die of sunstroke? If there is benefit to the king in standing in the open sun, then let him stand there and die of sunstroke, and let it benefit the king. But if not, why should they die of sunstroke? The messengers whom we send to each other [...] they should sustain the messengers. They make them die of sunstroke!