| Sukkalmah dynasty | |
| Other Names: | Epartid dynasty |
| Parent Family: | Shimashki dynasty |
| Type: | Dynasty |
| Final Head: | Siwe-Palar-Khuppak |
| Final Ruler: | Kutir-Nahhunte II |
| Notes: | The Elamites remained a major source of tension for the Sumerians, Akkadians, Amorites, Assyrians, Babylonians, and Kassites centuries after the Old Elamite empire reached its peak during the reign of Siwe-Palar-Khuppak. |
| Country: | Elam |
| Historic Seat: | Susa |
| Other Families: | Awan dynasty |
The Sukkalmah or Epartid dynasty (named after the title sukkalmah used by many of the dynasty's rulers; as well as, the eponymous founder Ebarat II/Eparti II),[1] [2] was an early dynasty of West Asia in the ancient region of Elam, to the southeast of Babylonia. It corresponds to the third Paleo-Elamite period (dated to). The Sukkalmah dynasty followed the Shimashki dynasty .[3] [4] The title of Sukkalmah means "Grand Regent" and was used by some (but not all) Elamite rulers.[3] Numerous cuneiform documents and inscriptions remain from this period, particularly from the area of Susa, making the Sukkalmah period one of the best documented in Elamite history.[3]
Sukkalmah was a Sumerian title first attested in the Pre-Sargonic texts from Girsu, where it seems to have had the meaning of "prime minister" or "grand vizier."[5] The title was well-attested under the powerful Ur III state, where it remained associated with Girsu and nearby Lagash. The Sukkalmahs of Lagash held effective control over the entire ma-da or buffer zone to the north and east of the Ur III core territory, and thus held authority over Susa.[6] The Sukkalmah Arad-Nanna held the title of shagina or military governor of Pashime on the southern coast of Iran, indicating that the influence of the Neo-Sumerian Sukkalmahs could extend quite deep into Elamite territory.[7] The later adoption of the title Sukkalmah by the Elamites probably reflects the considerable political influence that the Neo-Sumerian Sukkalmahs had on Susiana and Elam, and may have also been favored due to similarity between the Sumerian sukkal and the Elamite title sunkir or sukkir meaning "king".[8]
The founder of the dynasty was a ruler named Shilhaha, who described himself as "the chosen son of Ebarat", who may have been the same as King Ebarti mentioned as the 9th King of the Shimashki Dynasty.[4] Ebarat appears as the founder of the dynasty according to building inscriptions, but later kings rather seem to refer to Shilhaha in their filiation claims.[1]
The names of Ebarat and Shilhaha, the founding members of the Sukkalmah Dynasty, have been found on the Gunagi silver vessels, inscribed in the Linear Elamite script. The Gunagi vessels were discovered relatively recently, in 2004. French archaeologist François Desset identified repetitive sign sequences in the beginning of the Gunagi inscriptions, and guessed they were names of Kings, in a manner somewhat similar to Grotefend's decipherment of Old Persian cuneiform in 1802-1815.[9] Using the small set of letters identified in 1905-1912, the number of symbols in each sequence taken as syllables, and in one instance the repetition of a symbol, Desset was able to identify the only two contemporary historical rulers that matched these conditions: Shilhaha and Ebarat, the two earliest kings of the Sukkalmah Dynasty. Another set of signs matched the well-known God of the period: Napirisha:
The dynasty was roughly contemporary with the Old Assyrian period, and the Old Babylonian period in Mesopotamia. During this time, Susa was under Elamite control, but Akkadian-speaking Mesopotamian states such as Larsa and Isin continually tried to retake the city. Notable Sukkalmah dynasty rulers in Elam during this time include Suruhduh/Siruk-tuh/Sirukdukh (c. 1850), who entered into various military coalitions to contain the power of the south Mesopotamian states. Siruk-tuh was the king of Elam when Hammurabi first ruled,[12] he and later kings of the Elamite dynasty were referred to as "great king" and "father" by kings in Syria and Mesopotamia and were the only kings that the Mesopotamian Kings considered to be higher in status than themselves.[13] [14]
Siwe-Palar-Khuppak, who for some time was the most powerful person in the area, respectfully addressed as "Father" by Mesopotamian kings such as Zimrilim of Mari, Shamshi-Adad I of Assyria, and even Hammurabi of Babylon. During his reign alone, Elam interfered extensively with Mesopotamian politics, allowing messengers and envoys to travel far west to Emar and Qatna in Syria.[15] His messenger reached Emar and sent his three servants to King Amut-piʾel II of Qatna (1772-1762 BC), and the king of Qatna also sent two messengers to Elam.[16] Around 1760 BC, Hammurabi drove out the Elamites, overthrew Rim-Sin of Larsa, and established a Babylonian Empire in Mesopotamia. Thus, Siwe-Palar-Khuppak instead turned his army eastward conquering parts of Iran.
The Elamite rulers had become increasingly involved in Mesopotamian politics during the Sukkalmah dynasty. In fact, Rim-Sin of Larsa himself was of Elamite descent, notwithstanding his Akkadian name.[17] Kudur-Nahhunte, who plundered the temples of southern Mesopotamia. But Elamite influence in southern Mesopotamia did not last. Little is known about the later part of this dynasty, since sources again become sparse with the Kassite rule of Babylon (from c. 1595).
The following list should not be considered complete:
| Depiction | Name | Succession | Title | dates | Notes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Isin-Larsa period | |||||||
| Shimashki dynasty | |||||||
| 9th | Ebarat II E-b-r-t | Eponymous founder of the Epartid dynasty | Sukkalmah King of Anshan and Susa King of Shimashki | Uncertain, to Matum-Niatum | |||
| 8th | Tan-Ruhuratir II | Son of Indattu II (?) | King of Shimashki | Uncertain, |
| ||
| 10th | Indattu II | Son of Tan-Ruhurater I (?) | King of Shimashki |
| |||
| 11th | Idattunapir | Unclear succession | King of Shimashki | Uncertain, |
| ||
| 12th | Idattutemti | Unclear succession | King of Shimashki | Uncertain, | |||
| Epartid dynasty | |||||||
| 2nd | Shilhaha Shi-l-ha-ha | Son of Ebarat III | Sukkalmah King of Anshan and Susa | Uncertain, |
| ||
| 3rd | Kuk-Nashur I | Son of Shilhaha | Sukkalmah | ||||
| Sukkalmah dynasty | |||||||
| 4th | Palar-Ishshan | Unclear succession | Sukkalmah | Uncertain, | |||
| 5th | Kuk-Sanit | Son of Palar-Ishshan (?) | |||||
| 6th | Lankuku | Father of Kuk-Kirwash | Uncertain, | ||||
| 7th | Kuk-Kirwash | Nephew of Palar-Ishshan (?) | Sukkalmah Sukkal of Elam and Shimashki and Susa | ||||
| 8th | Tem-Sanit | Son of Kuk-Kirwash | Uncertain, | ||||
| 9th | Kuk-Nahhunte | Son of Kuk-Kirwash | |||||
| Old Babylonian period | |||||||
| 10th | Attakhushu | Son of Kuk-Nashur I (?) | Sukkal and Ippir of Susa Shepherd of the people of Susa Shepherd of Inshushinak | Uncertain, |
| ||
| 11th | Tetep-Mada | Son of Kuk-Nashur I (?) | Shepherd of the people of Susa | Uncertain, |
| ||
| 12th | Shirukduh | Descendant of Shilhaha (?) | Sukkalmah | Uncertain, |
| ||
| 13th | Shimut-Wartash I | Son of Shirukduh | Uncertain, |
| |||
| 14th | Siwe-Palar-Khuppak | Son of Shirukduh | Sukkalmah Sukkal of Susa Prince of Elam | Uncertain, | |||
| 15th | Kuduzulush I | Son of Shirukduh | Sukkalmah Sukkal of Susa | Uncertain, |
| ||
| 16th | Kutir-Nahhunte I | Son of Kuduzulush I | Sukkalmah | Uncertain, | |||
| 17th | Lila-Irtash | Son of Kuduzulush I | Uncertain, | ||||
| 18th | Temti-Agun I | Son of Kutir-Nahhunte I | Sukkalmah Sukkal of Susa | ||||
| 19th | Atta-Merra-Halki | Son of Kuk-Nashur I (?) | Sukkalmah | Uncertain, | |||
| 20th | Tata II | Brother of Atta-Merra-Halki | Sukkal | Uncertain, | |||
| 21st | Kutir-Shilhaha I | Son of Temti-Agun I | Sukkalmah Sukkal | Uncertain, |
| ||
| 22nd | Kuk-Nashur II | Son of Kuk-Nahhunte (?) | Sukkalmah | Uncertain, |
| ||
| 23rd | Kuk-Nashur III | Son of Kutir-Shilhaha I | Sukkal of Elam Sukkal of Susa | Uncertain, |
| ||
| 24th | Temti-Raptash | Son of Kutir-Shilhaha I | Uncertain, | ||||
| 25th | Shirtuh | Son of Kuk-Nashur III | King of Susa | Uncertain, | |||
| 26th | Shimut-Wartash II | Son of Kuk-Nashur III | Uncertain, | ||||
| 27th | Kuduzulush II | Son of Shimut-Wartash II | Sukkalmah King of Susa | Uncertain, | |||
| 28th | Tan-Uli | Descendant of Shilhaha (?) | Sukkalmah Sukkal | Uncertain, | |||
| 29th | Temti-Halki | Son of Tan-Uli | Sukkalmah Sukkal of Elam and Simashki and Susa | Uncertain, | |||
| 30th | Kutik-Matlat | Son of Tan-Uli | Uncertain, | ||||
| 31st | Kuk-Nashur IV | Son of Tan-Uli | Sukkalmah | Uncertain, | |||
| 32nd | Kutir-Nahhunte II | Son of Kuduzulush I (?) | Uncertain, | ||||