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Document Details :

Title: The Foundation Charter of the Kamanas' Town Fortifications
Author(s): WOUDHUIZEN, F.C.
Journal: Ancient West & East
Volume: 7    Date: 2008   
Pages: 1-16
DOI: 10.2143/AWE.7.0.2033250

Abstract :
The well-preserved Luwian hieroglyphic inscription on a stele from Cekke in northern Syria deals with the foundation of Kamanas’ town and its fortifications, named after Kamanas, country-lord of Karkamis and Malatya, who ruled in the years about the middle of the 8th century BC. As a preparatory act to the foundation land has been bought from the Kanapuweans, and officials and their deputies stationed in places along the frontiers of the newly founded fortification works are sworn in to preserve the borders set for it. Thanks to the Cekke text, we get a unique insight in the many-layered structure of the Karkamisian governmental machinery. As usual, the inscription ends with a damnation formula in which possible violators of Kamanas’ town fortification works, its borders or the monument commemorating its foundation are warned for inevitable divine retribution.

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