Even so, Xerxes put the thoughts of the brevity of life from his mind and ordered the crossing and the invasion of Greece. Vashti - Wikipedia Abagtha -- a eunuch of Ahasuerus 4, 5. Nearly two thousand pots of Susa I style were recovered from the cemetery, most of them now in the Louvre. (WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS), Esther 8:12on one day in all the provinces of King Ahasuerus, on the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, which is the month Adar. AHASUERUS. Today, though the canal itself has been covered up over time, its contours are still visible. (WEB KJV JPS ASV DBY WBS YLT NAS), Esther 3:6But he scorned the thought of laying hands on Mordecai alone, for they had made known to him Mordecai's people. These are typical stories of oriental despots that people like to tell, and which Greeks liked to tell about Persians, he added. 2532, 1857, "M. J. Did Esther meet a tragic end? - The Jewish Chronicle God, however, had revealed their location to Cyrus when He gave orders that the Temple was to be rebuilt. In addition to being featured in the story of Esther, a king named Ahasuerus is also mentioned in the books of Ezra and Daniel. Ahasuerus-Xerxes | Encyclopedia.com Esther 8:10 And he wrote in the king Ahasuerus's name, and sealed it with the /a/ahasuerus's.htm - 6k, Xerxes (24 Occurrences) chshwrsh, probably pronounced 'achshawarash, but at a later time it was wrongly vocalized so as to produce 'achashwerosh, from whence "Ahasuerus" in English /x/xerxes.htm - 14k, Ahasu-e'rus (30 Occurrences)Ahasu-e'rus. The strong contrasts of light and shade, and the theatrical poses create a vivid scene. I devastated the provinces of Elam and, on their lands, I sowed salt."[65]. Twelve kings of each of the first two dynasties, those of Awan (or Avan; c. 24002100 BC) and Simashki (c. 21001970 BC), are known from a list from Susa dating to the Old Babylonian period. 46, Geuthner, 1971, Jean Perrot, Les fouilles de Su en 1975, Annual Symposium on There is no reference to known historical events in the story; some consider the narrative of Esther was to provide an aetiology for Purim, and the name . Therefore Haman sought to destroy all the Jews who were throughout the whole kingdom of Ahasuerus, even the Mordecai's people. He reigned for twenty-one years (B.C. Multi-Version Concordance Ahasu-e'rus (30 Occurrences). 5. Bigtha. Susa - Wikipedia 123, 1933, van Oppen de Rutter, Branko F., "THE SUSA MARRIAGES A HISTORIOGRAPHICAL NOTE", Ancient Society, vol. Florence Malbran-Labat, "Les inscriptions royales de Suse: briques de l'poque palo-lamite l 'empire no-lamite", Paris 1995. /hebrew/1896a.htm - 5k, 903. Susa III (31002700BC) is also known as the 'Proto-Elamite' period. Abu Musa agreed to Siyah's plan. (2.) 9:1. 146-152, Aug 1904, R. de Mecquenem, "Excavations at Susa (Persia), 19301931", Antiquity, vol. She and her cousin Mordecai persuaded the king to cancel an order for the extermination of Jews in his realm, plotted by the king's chief minister, Haman. 2, pp. /hebrew/904.htm - 6k, 1896a. The city was at least temporarily ruled by the rulers of the Elymais with Kamnaskires II Nikephoros minting coins there. Besides, recent researches show that Hebrew word for Ahasuerus is readily formed from the Persian name of Xerxes, the name Xerxes being only a Greek corruption of the Persian. Louvre Museum, reference Sb 2425. Rather, only partial and selective borrowing took place, that was adapted to Susa's needs. Alexandria, the Septuagint version made here, 199. Ahasuerus reigned over the vast empire of Persia, and Esther, the adopted daughter of a Jew named Mordecai, was Queen. [69] Ahasuerus generally is portrayed as vacillating, lacking in character, and easily swayed. His finds showed Susa to be the most important center of Elamite civilization, which was effectively discovered by the French mission at Susa. He was, therefore, accepted as a great king before having to prove himself so in any way. He ordered his men to give the Hellespont three hundred lashes and to sink a pair of shackles into the sea. Mordecai | Encyclopedia.com Vincent Scheil, "Inscriptions of Achmnides Suse. Alamoth, 288. [13] The excavations that were conducted in Susa brought many artistic and historical artifacts back to France. At this point, the Greeks, who had abandoned Athens and most of the countryside, had gathered their forces off the coast of the mainland at Aegina and in the Peloponnese and their navy was anchored in the straits of Salamis. Two settlements named by archaeologists the Acropolis (7 ha) and the Apadana (6.3 ha), would later merge to form Susa proper (18 ha). [15][16][17][18] To supplement the original publications of De Mecquenem the archives of his excavation have now been put online thanks to a grant from the Shelby White Levy Program. 48, no. Bizzetha -- a eunuch of Ahasuerus 967, 968. Soon after as the sun came up one morning, the sentries on the walls saw a man in a Persian officer's uniform covered in blood lying on the ground before the main gate. This dramatic scene is from the Old Testament of the Bible. Transliteration: Hege Short Definition: Hegai. [87], Following their entry into the city, the Muslims killed all of the Persian nobles. [4] The modern Iranian town of Shush is located on the site of ancient Susa. (credit: Wikimedia Commons), Sign up for The Jerusalem Post Premium Plus for just $5, Upgrade your reading experience with an ad-free environment and exclusive content. What a total change of mood!' /hebrew/2726.htm - 6k, 3752. World History Publishing is a non-profit company registered in the United Kingdom. The husband of Esther, most probably Xerxes. For only $5 per month you can become a member and support our mission to engage people with cultural heritage and to improve history education worldwide. (WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS), Esther 9:20Mordecai wrote these things, and sent letters to all the Jews who were in all the provinces of the king Ahasuerus, both near and far,(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS), Esther 10:1King Ahasuerus laid a tribute on the land, and on the islands of the sea. Dec 28, 2022 Many of us are familiar with King Xerxes in the Bible. Susa is mentioned in the Ketuvim of the Hebrew Bible by the name Shushan, mainly in the Book of Esther, but also once each in the books of Ezra (Ezra 4:9), Nehemiah (Nehemiah 1:1) and Daniel (Daniel 8:2). However, we can read the Jewish sources, and secular historical sources, (archeology, ancient texts, modern scholarship) to try to find the best answer implied by the Jewish sources. Cite This Work a eunuch of Ahasuerus. [citation needed], Another important settlement in the area is Chogha Bonut, which was discovered in 1976. Especially in the royal city large, well-equipped peristyle houses have been excavated. Queen Esther's Story and Jewish Purim Holiday - Learn Religions 22325, 1970, Roman Ghirshman, Suse au tournant du III au II millenaire avant notre ere, Arts Asiatiques, vol. She decided to focus her energies, not on the mistress, but on Artaynte' s mother who she blamed for not raising a proper daughter (and, perhaps, because she had guessed that Artaynte was Xerxes' second choice in a mistress). Purim and The Persian Period - Jewish History [37], King-priest with bow fighting enemies, with horned temple in the center. [28], The founding of Susa corresponded with the abandonment of nearby villages. There, he started a lavish construction project to build a new palace and began work on a monumental Hall of a Hundred Columns. Who Was Queen Esther - Story, History, and Significance - Crosswalk Esther, wife of the King of Persia, is pointing accusingly at Haman, a treacherous friend of the King. [11] Jacques de Morgan, after visiting the site in 1891, conducted major excavations from 1897 until 1911. [68] Nabonidus was staying in the city at the time and soon fled to the capital, Babylon, which he had not visited in years. 5, iss. In the Sumerian period, Susa was the capital of a state called Susiana (uan), which occupied approximately the same territory of modern Khzestn Province centered on the Karun River. . Karkas. 3550, 1928. [26], In urban history, Susa is one of the oldest-known settlements of the region. When King Ahasuerus had his wife, Queen Vashti, executed for failing to follow his orders, he arranged a beauty pageant to find a new queen.A Jewish girl, Esther, found favor in his eyes and became the new queen, though she refused to divulge her . 11, pp. 2727 . Mardonius' motives, it seems, were personal, as he hoped to rule the conquered nation as Satrap following Xerxes' victory. 28, pp. 13, pp. 1175BC, the Elamites under Shutruk-Nahhunte plundered the original stele bearing the Code of Hammurabi and took it to Susa. [92], Glazed clay vase: Vase with palmtrees, 8th9th centuries. Marie-Joseph Steve, Hermann Gasche, "L'Acropole de Suse. Mordecai came before the king; for Esther had told what he was to her. Image description. [32] Susa I style was very much a product of the past and of influences from contemporary ceramic industries in the mountains of western Iran. The vessels found are eloquent testimony to the artistic and technical achievements of their makers, and they hold clues about the organization of the society that commissioned them. The man of the house was none other than the king of the greatest empire in the world of his day. [54][56] Indus script numbering convention per Asko Parpola. In the LXX. [7][8] Among his finds was a jar containing a around 110 coins, the earliest of which was dated to 697-98 AD. This makes people uncertain whether the king who is called Ahasuerus in the Book of Esther be the same with him whom the Greeks call Xerxes, or with Artaxerxes ///christianbookshelf.org/yonge/the chosen people/lesson xiv the wall rebuilt.htm, Index of Subjects. 17985, 1928, Woolley, C. Leonard, "The Painted Pottery of Susa", Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland, no. He is depicted as one of the few kings in history who ruled over the entire earth. The city forms the setting of The Persians (472BC), an Athenian tragedy by the ancient Greek playwright Aeschylus that is the oldest surviving play in the history of theatre. Susa is further mentioned in the Book of Jubilees (8:21 & 9:2) as one of the places within the inheritance of Shem and his eldest son Elam; and in 8:1, "Susan" is also named as the son (or daughter, in some translations) of Elam. ). 3, pp. 24, no. In July 2015, it was inscribed on the list of World Heritage Sites by UNESCO. This doesnt mean the story is real, but it gives a chronological anchor for when it should have taken place, he said. [76] Susa is rich in Greek inscriptions,[citation needed] perhaps indicating a significant number of Greeks living in the city. Instead, Haman was hanged, and the Jews were given permission to destroy their enemies. The city was subsequently conquered by the neo-Sumerian Third Dynasty of Ur and held until Ur finally collapsed at the hands of the Elamites under Kindattu in ca. Books This Ahasuerus is probably Xerxes of history, (. The most probable opinion is that the name here designates Astyages, the grandfather of Cyrus. leader serving under. The Ziggurat at Chogha Zanbil was built by Elamite king Untash-Napirisha circa 1300 BC. See below, and DARIUS I. Susa recovered following its capture and remained a regional center of more than 400 hectares in size. Xerxes I (l. 519-465, r. 486-465 BCE), also known as Xerxes the Great, was the king of the Persian Achaemenid Empire. Prior to Xerxes' departure for the Hellespont, a bad omen in the form of an eclipse appeared in the sky but Xerxes, assured by his diviners that it meant nothing, proceeded with his plans. Siyah, a Persian general who had defected to Muslim side, claimed that by converting to Islam he had turned his back on Zoroastrianism and was thus a dajjal. Others are coarse cooking-type jars and bowls with simple bands painted on them and were probably the grave goods of the sites of humbler citizens as well as adolescents and, perhaps, children. Transliteration: Karkas Phonetic Spelling: (kar-kas') Short Definition: Carkas. [67], It is probable that Cyrus negotiated with the Babylonian generals to obtain a compromise on their part and therefore avoid an armed confrontation. Persian King Xerxes thought to be Biblical Ahasuerus While he clearly respected Artemisia and thanked her for her advice, he chose the majority opinion and committed to the naval engagement. "Babylonia from Cyrus to Xerxes", in, Waters, Matt, "CYRUS AND SUSA", Revue d'Assyriologie et d'archologie Orientale, vol.102, pp.11518, 2008, Unvala, J. M., "The Palace of Darius the Great and the Apadna of Artaxerxes II in Susa", Bulletin of the School of Oriental Studies, University of London, vol.5, no.2, pp.22932, 1929, Kent, Roland G., "The Record of Darius's Palace at Susa", Journal of the American Oriental Society, vol. [54][55], Impression of an Indus cylinder seal discovered in Susa, in strata dated to 26001700 BC. Look at all these people but not one of them will still be alive in a hundred years' time'(VII.45-46). Ahasuerus, Ahasu-e'rus. The Louvre, Work in the granaries, Susa II, Louvre. (WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS), Esther 8:10He wrote in the name of King Ahasuerus, and sealed it with the king's ring, and sent letters by courier on horseback, riding on royal horses that were bread from swift steeds. 2541, 2014, Robert J. Wenke, Elymeans, Parthians, and the Evolution of Empires in Southwestern Iran, Journal of the American Oriental Society, vol. Found in the tell of the Susa acropolis. He then returned to his building projects and designs for greater, grander, monuments to commemorate his reign and distinguish him from his father. //anonymous/mother stories from the old testament/esther before the king.htm, Esther's Venture And what a glimpse into their heart-emptiness and degradation of sacred ties is given in the fact that Esther the queen had not seen Ahasuerus for a month //maclaren/expositions of holy scripture g/esthers venture.htm, The Restoration. The spread of Uruk material is not evidence of Uruk domination; it could be local choice". They had just finished bridging the straits when a violent storm erupted which completely smashed and destroyed everything. 3000 - 323 BC, 2nd Edition, Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike. Esther is chosen to fulfill this role due to her beauty. [48] Previous to the era of Elamites, the Akkadian language was responsible for most or all of the text used in ancient documents. Susa (/sus/ SOO-s; Middle Elamite: , romanized:uen;[1] Middle and Neo-Elamite: , romanized:uun;[1] Neo-Elamite and Achaemenid Elamite: , romanized:uan;[2] Achaemenid Elamite: , romanized:ua;[2] Persian: u [u]; Hebrew: n; Greek: Sosa; Syriac: u;[3] Middle Persian: S or s; Old Persian: ) was an ancient city in the lower Zagros Mountains about 250km (160mi) east of the Tigris, between the Karkheh and Dez Rivers in Iran. [47] This was mainly due to the fact of Susa's location on Iran's South Eastern region, closer to the city of Babylon and cities in Mesopotamia. In historic literature, Susa appears in the very earliest Sumerian records: for example, it is described as one of the places obedient to Inanna, patron deity of Uruk, in Enmerkar and the Lord of Aratta. Xerxes, however, appeared not to notice a problem and continued to do as he pleased; because of this, some scholars mark his reign as the beginning of the decline of the Achaemenid Empire. It, therefore, fell to his son to carry out his father's wishes and, in amassing an army of such size and strength, Xerxes felt confident of his success in achieving what the great Darius had been unable to realize but would wind up failing just as his father had. 16970, 1900, V. Scheil , "Excavations Made by the French in Susa and Babylonia, 1902-1903", The Biblical World, vol. Alexander the Great, his visit to Jerusalem, 263, 325. [6], In 1851, some modest excavation was done by William Loftus, accompanied by Fenwick Williams, who identified it as Susa. These artifacts filled multiple halls in the Museum of the Louvre throughout the late 1890s and early 1900s. When people want to tell a story of an arrogant ruler, they talk about Xerxes.. 2, pp. `I was reflecting on things and it occurred to me how short the sum total of human life is, which made me feel compassion. By the time Xerxes ascended to the throne, the Persian Empire was at the height of its might and reached from India down toEthiopia and parts of Sudan as in the story of Esther Ahasuerus is said to have ruled over 127 provinces from India (Hodu) to Kush, generally taken to be the Upper Nile Valley region. (WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS), Esther 3:7In the first month, which is the month Nisan, in the twelfth year of King Ahasuerus, they cast Pur, that is, the lot, before Haman from day to day, and from month to month, and chose the twelfth month, which is the month Adar. It was in this city that the annual Persian New Year festival took place during the spring equinox with plenty of pageantry and splendor, similar to that described at the banquet in the story of Esther with soldiers, courtiers and subject people coming to greet the king and bring him gifts and offerings, notedBloch. See below, and DARIUS I. The Battle of Salamis, which followed, was a disaster for the Persian fleet and cost Xerxes dearly. The most probable opinion is that the name here designates Astyages, the grandfather of Cyrus. ESTHER ESTHER (Heb. 36, no. Winged sphinx from the palace of Darius the Great at Susa. 224231, 1975, D. Canal, La haute terrase de l'Acropole de Suse, Palorient, vol. Xerxes I ( Old Persian: Xayr also Khshayrsha; [3] Greek: Xrxs; c. 518 - August 465 BC) was a Persian ruler who served as the fourth King of Kings of the Achaemenid Empire, reigning from 486 BC until his assassination in 465 BC. The names of Xerxes main wives are known, said Bloch, and there is none recorded thought to be Esther, though of course, he added, one such name could have been among his secondary wives. Nothing is known of a king named Ahasuerus from secular sources, and the names of all the Persian kings from this time period are known. The tombs of their ancient and recent kings I devastated, I exposed to the sun, and I carried away their bones toward the land of Ashur. A tablet unearthed in 1854 by Austen Henry Layard in Nineveh reveals Ashurbanipal as an "avenger", seeking retribution for the humiliations that the Elamites had inflicted on the Mesopotamians over the centuries: "Susa, the great holy city, abode of their gods, seat of their mysteries, I conquered. Sources: Encyclopaedia Judaica. (WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS), Esther 1:10On the seventh day, when the heart of the king was merry with wine, he commanded Mehuman, Biztha, Harbona, Bigtha, and Abagtha, Zethar, and Carcass, the seven eunuchs who served in the presence of Ahasuerus the king,(WEB KJV JPS ASV BBE DBY WBS YLT NAS), Esther 1:15"What shall we do to the queen Vashti according to law, because she has not done the bidding of the King Ahasuerus by the eunuchs?