The Hurrians were a people who inhabited the Ancient Near East during the Bronze Age. They spoke the Hurrian language, and lived throughout northern Syria, upper Mesopotamia and southeastern Anatolia.
Foundation tablet. Dedication to God Nergal by Hurrian king Atalshen, king of Urkish and Nawar, Habur Bassin, circa 2000 BC. Louvre Museum AO 5678. "Of Nergal the lord of Hawalum, Atal-shen, the caring shepherd, the king of Urkesh and Nawar, the son of Sadar-mat the king, is the builder of the temple of Nergal, the one who overcomes opposition. Let Shamash and Ishtar destroy the seeds of whoever removes this tablet. Shaum-shen is the craftsman."
Incense burner. Hurrian period, 1300–1000 BC. From Tell Basmosian (also Tell Bazmusian), modern-day Lake Dukan, Iraq. Currently displayed in Erbil Civilization Museum.
Hurrian incense container
The Hittite gods Teshub and Hebat, chamber A, Yazilikaya, Hittite rock sanctuary, Turkey
Hurrian is an extinct Hurro-Urartian language spoken by the Hurrians (Khurrites), a people who entered northern Mesopotamia around 2300 BC and had mostly vanished by 1000 BC. Hurrian was the language of the Mitanni kingdom in northern Mesopotamia and was likely spoken at least initially in Hurrian settlements in modern-day Syria.
The Louvre lion and accompanying stone tablet bearing the earliest known text in Hurrian
Foundation tablet with a dedication to the god Nergal by the Hurrian king Atalshen, king of Urkish and Nawar, Habur Bassin, circa 2000 BC. (Louvre Museum AO 5678.) The text on the tablet reads:Of Nergal the lord of Hawalum, Atal-shen, the caring shepherd, the king of Urkesh and Nawar, the son of Sadar-mat the king, is the builder of the temple of Nergal, the one who overcomes opposition. Let Shamash and Ishtar destroy the seeds of whoever removes this tablet. Shaum-shen is the craftsman.
