Bel-bani or Bēl-bāni, inscribed ^mdEN''-ba-ni'', “the Lord is the creator,” was the king of

Assyria Assyria ( Neo-Assyrian cuneiform: , romanized: ''māt Aššur''; syc, ܐܬܘܪ, ʾāthor) was a major ancient Mesopotamian civilization which existed as a city-state at times controlling regional territories in the indigenous lands of the A ...

from 1700 to 1691 BC and was the first ruler of what was later to be called the dynasty of the Adasides. His reign marks the inauguration of a new historical phase following the turmoil of the competing claims of the seven usurpers who preceded him. He was the 48th king to appear on the Assyrian King List and reigned for ten years.

Biography

He was the son of Adasi, the last of the seven monarchs who were “sons of nobody,” i.e. unrelated to previous kings, and who had competed for the throne over a period of six years. He was to be revered by later monarchs, notably

Esarhaddon Esarhaddon, also spelled Essarhaddon, Assarhaddon and Ashurhaddon ( Neo-Assyrian cuneiform: , also , meaning " Ashur has given me a brother"; Biblical Hebrew: ''ʾĒsar-Ḥaddōn'') was the king of the Neo-Assyrian Empire from the death of hi ...

(681–669 BC) but also his second and third sons

Shamash-shum-ukin Shamash-shum-ukin ( Neo-Assyrian cuneiform: or , meaning "Shamash has established the name"), was king of Babylon as a vassal of the Neo-Assyrian Empire from 668 BC to his death in 648. Born into the Assyrian royal family, Shamash-shum-ukin was ...

and

Ashurbanipal Ashurbanipal ( Neo-Assyrian cuneiform: , meaning " Ashur is the creator of the heir") was the king of the Neo-Assyrian Empire from 669 BCE to his death in 631. He is generally remembered as the last great king of Assyria. Inheriting the throne a ...

, for restoring stability and founding a dynasty which endured and where he assumed semi-mythical status as their ancestor figure. Esarhaddon described himself as "a lasting offspring (''liplippi dārû'') of Belu-bani the son of Adasi, precious scion of Baltil (''pir'i'' BAL.TIL ''sûquru'')." Baltil, the “city of wisdom,” was the name of the ancient precincts of the god Ašshu in the innermost part of the city of

Assur Aššur (; Sumerian: AN.ŠAR2KI, Assyrian cuneiform: ''Aš-šurKI'', "City of God Aššur"; syr, ܐܫܘܪ ''Āšūr''; Old Persian ''Aθur'', fa, آشور: ''Āšūr''; he, אַשּׁוּר, ', ar, اشور), also known as Ashur and Qal'a ...

. He was succeeded by Libaya, which the Assyrian King List gives as his son, although Landsberger has suggested that he was in fact his brother.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bel-bani 17th-century BC Assyrian kings