Prebends in Babylonia during the Old Babylonian Period (2000-1600 BC)

• Applicant: Professor Dr. Konrad Volk
• Subject Area: Egyptology and Ancient Near Eastern Studies
• Term: from 2014 to 2019
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 259495961

The term "prebend" in Ancient Near Eastern studies designates the right to an income from the temple in return for services in the cult of the gods. According to cuneiform sources from Mesopotamia these services included surveillance and maintenance of temple buildings as well as the preparation and presentation of offerings. The prebendal income for these services could - as far as we know - consist of sustenance fields, surplus raw materials, or remains of offerings. As remuneration of the temple personal involved in the cult prebends are an important element within the temple economy, and prebendaries constitute a notable and influential part of the Mesopotamian society.Relevant evidence - i.e. administrative and legal documents, and to some extent descriptions of rituals - is mainly known from the Old Babylonian period (2000-1600 BC) as well as from Neo-Babylonian and Seleucid times (1st millennium BC). While there are numerous studies on prebends in the later periods, studies on the prebendary system in Old Babylonian times are rare. The most recent comprehensive study focussing on prebends in the Old Babylonian period was published 60 years ago (Cocquerillat 1955). Since then many cuneiform documents have been published and new research approaches have been developed, notably the analysis of the sources according to archives.The aim of the project is a systematic analysis of the prebendary system in the Old Babylonian period on the basis of all published Old Babylonian records while taking into consideration familial and archival relations. The analysis will focus on the importance of prebends for society, law, economy, politics and religion. The starting point will be the city of Nippur, which was over centuries the most important religious centre of southern Mesopotamia. The results from Nippur will be compared with the situation in other cities of Babylonia, especially Sippar, Isin, Larsa, and Ur.The first and most important step consists of the compilation of a prosopography of the prebendaries and their families in Nippur. By means of this prosopography one can assemble knowledge of who could own, alienate, and acquire prebends and under which circumstances; of the families to which the prebendaries belonged; of the people with whom they interacted, e.g. through marriage or trade; of the status prebendaries had within the society, and the factors which defined them as a social group. One will gain fundamental insights in the importance of prebends as merchandise, the nature of the prebendary income, e.g. from sustenance fields, the increasing trade in prebends during periods of politic and economic crisis, and the organization of the prebendal system in the temples.The subject will be investigated under different aspects within the fields of Mesopotamian social history, economic history, history of law, and history of religion. Therefore, the results from this research will be of importance in many respects.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants