Ammurapi (; ) was the last Bronze Age ruler and king (c. 1215 to 1180 BC) of the ancient Syrian city of Ugarit. Ammurapi was a contemporary of the Hittite King Suppiluliuma II.
Reign The King of Alashiya (Cyprus) wrote to Ammurapi enquiring about enemy ships: "You wrote to me the following 'the ships of the enemy were seen in the sea. If so, be careful.'" Subsequently, Ammurapi confirmed:
This letter dramatically highlights the desperate situation facing Ugarit while it was also under attack by the invading Sea Peoples.
Egyptian relations In the reign of the pharaoh Merneptah, a King of Ugarit (possibly Ammurapi or his predecessor Niqmaddu III) wrote to Egypt, requesting a sculptor for their city, to "make an image of Merneptah in front of the statue of Ba’al in his (renovated) temple in Ugarit."Lackenbacher, S. (1995). Une Correspondence entre l’administration du pharaon Merneptah et le roi d’Ougarit. In YON M., SZNYCER M. et BORDREUIL P. (éds), Le pays d’Ougarit autour de 1200 av. J.-C.: Histoire et archéologie. https://www.mission-ougarit.fr/parutions/serie-ras-shamra-ougarit/ The pharaoh delayed or declined this request, but sent gifts including textiles, ebony wood, plaques of coloured stones, and ropes.Singer, I. (2011). The Calm Before the Storm: Selected Writings of Itamar Singer on the late Bronze Age in Anatolia and the Levant, pp. 107-111. Society of Biblical Literature. This letter, and others from the same period, may reflect a renewal of ties between Ugarit and Egypt, as Hittite influence waned in Syria.Singer, The Calm Before the Storm p.108
RS 88.2158. During the reign of Seti II (?), Ammurapi requested help during famine writing: "In the land of Ugarit there is a severe hunger. May my Lord save it, and may the king give grain to save my life…and to save the citizens of the land of Ugarit".archaeology.org https://archaeology.org/issues/july-august-2021/features/ugarit-bronze-age-archive/
Divorce Suppiluliuma II was responsible for the divorce settlement between Ammurapi and a Hittite woman,RS 17.226, 17.355 (PRU iv 208-210, Dossier VIII A.) but it did not cause a problem between the Kingdom of Ugarit and the Hittite Empire; instead it demonstrated the relationship between both kingdoms.
Bronze Age Collapse Ammurapi is the last known ruler of Ugarit. The city may have been destroyed around 1192-1190 BC.Kaniewski, David & Campo, Elise & Van Lerberghe, Karel & Boiy, Tom & Vansteenhuyse, Klaas & Jans, Greta & Nys, Karin & Weiss, Harvey & Otto, Thierry & Bretschneider, Joachim. (2011). The Sea Peoples, from Cuneiform Tablets to Carbon Dating. PloS one. 6. e20232. 10.1371/journal.pone.0020232. Ugarit would become one of the many states of the ancient Near East that were destroyed or abandoned during the Bronze Age collapse.
Attestations Famine / grain-request correspondence RS 88.2158 — the letter to Egypt quoting "there is a severe hunger... may the king give grain" RS 18.038 — cited alongside 88.2158, 94.2530, 94.2523 as key dating evidence for Ammurapi's reign RS 94.2530 — Hittite request to Ammurapi for grain RS 94.2523 — a letter from Penti-Šarruma, a Hittite prince, complaining to Ammurapi about not receiving his share of lapis lazuli — also cited for grain matters by other authors, so it may cover more than one topic.Birzeit https://fada.birzeit.edu/bitstream/20.500.11889/4717/1/Halayqa-%20UF-42%20%20the%20Demise%20of%20Ugarit.pdf RS 88.2011 — fragmentary, also concerns a grain demand
Sea Peoples / final invasion correspondence RS 18.147 — Ammurapi's own letter, written in response to a plea for assistance from the king of Alasiya, describing the enemy's ships burning his cities. RS 34.129 — from "the Great King" (presumably Suppiluliuma II) to the prefect of Ugarit, ordering that a man named Ibnadushu be sent for questioning because the king (Ammurapi) was too immature to respond.
Diplomatic/tribute correspondence with Hatti RS 34.136 (RSO 7, 7) — probably from Talmi-Tešub, king of Carchemish, to Ammurapi, reproaching him for sending unsuitable gifts to Hittite dignitaries.Birzeit https://fada.birzeit.edu/bitstream/20.500.11889/4717/1/Halayqa-%20UF-42%20%20the%20Demise%20of%20Ugarit.pdf
Seals and administrative/legal texts RS 96.2042 — a clay tag from the House of Urtenu bearing Ammurapi's personal cylinder seal impression, inscribed "Seal of Ammurapi, king of Ugarit".CSIC Digital https://digital.csic.es/bitstream/10261/192448/3/Aula%20Orientalis%2031%20-2.pdf RS 34.126 (RSO 7, 90) — funerary ritual text, cited in connection with settling the question of Niqmaddu III's queen (not directly about Ammurapi's marriage, but from the same succession dossier)
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