260 Marius and Sulla period, because it incorporated various religious shrines together with the royal residence More than 20,000 cuneiform tablets were uncovered at Mari, most dated to the Old Babylonian Period Although the language of most texts is Akkadian (east Semitic), northwest Semitic grammar and syntax show up in proper names and in various constructions The archive consists mostly of palatial and provincial administrative texts, letters, and treaties, demonstrating the political value of writing in this period It is one of the major sources of information on how the great Assyrian king Shamshi-Adad I organized his empire in northern Mesopotamia In addition, Mari has the largest number of Mesopotamian prophetic texts These were letters from prophets, often to the king, claiming direct messages from deities The city of Mari likely originated from the very start of the Early Dynastic I Period (beginning of third millennium b.c.e.) It prospered rapidly due to its strategic location along the trade route connecting Mesopotamia with Syria The archaeological evidence found for the Early Dynastic III Period (c 2600–2350 b.c.e.) shows Mari’s indebtedness to much of Sumerian culture Short inscriptions from this period refer to Ansud as the king of Mari, a name that may also appear in the Sumerian King List During c 2250–2000 b.c.e., the title shakkanakku (Akkadian for “governor”) was used for the rulers of Mari, a term that may allude to a time of foreign control, when Mari’s rulers were the deputies of other kings This seems to have been a period of great power, when the city underwent extensive renovation The final century before Mari’s destruction is much clarified by the written record Yahdun-Lim, who derived from the Sim’alite stock of the Amorites, ruled as king over Mari He was assassinated in a palace coup, and his successor, Sumu-Yaman, died shortly after In 1796 b.c.e the Assyrian ruler Shamshi-Adad I conquered Mari and installed his younger son, YasmahAdad, upon Mari’s throne Zimri-Lim, a descendant of Yahdun-Lim, fled to Yamhad (Aleppo), whose king Yarim-Lim was his father-in-law Shamshi-Adad died in 1782 b.c.e., and Zimri-Lim reclaimed the throne of Mari He established strong ties with Aleppo and Babylon, faithfully supporting Hammurabi’s expansionistic conquests Hammurabi, however, eventually turned against Mari: The city was conquered in 1761 b.c.e., and within the next two years its riches, removed to Babylon and its palace burned Although Mari continued to be inhabited as a small town, Hammurabi’s destruction marked its end as a major political center See also Akkad; Assyria; Babylon, early period; Damascus and Aleppo; Ebla; Fertile Crescent; Sumer Further reading: Margueron, Jean-Claude “Mari: A Portrait in Art of a Mesopotamian City-State.” In Civilizations of the Ancient Near East, Vol 2, edited by Jack M Sasson, 885–889 New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1995; Young, Gordon D., ed Mari in Retrospect: Fifty Years of Mari and Mari Studies Winona Lake, IN: Eisenbrauns, 1992 John Zhu-En Wee Marius and Sulla After the bloody revolt of the Gracchi, two emblematic figures concentrated the political destiny of the Roman Republic The Senate initiated several foreign wars in order to withdraw the attention from the internal conflicts that had shaken the stability of the urbs Gaius Marius (157–86 b.c.e.), born in Arpinus into a plebeian family, began his public career during the war against Jugurtha, where he won the support of the popular party because of his military victories, and was elected consul in 107 b.c.e From 113 b.c.e the Romans had been facing various defeats against such Germanic tribes as the Cimbri and Teutons that were heading into Italy Marius commanded the army, and the Senate allowed his consulship to be renewed for three consecutive years In 100 b.c.e Marius was elected to the consulship for the sixth time, and by then he had forged a political alliance with Saturninus, the tribune of the plebs, who promoted a law in order to continue the Gracchan reforms on land distribution The proposal included an extension of the privilege to the members of the populus who had served the army: Spoils of war and landparcels would constitute an appropriate payment for their service However, the Senate immediately rejected the law, and Marius could not stand by the proposal; he had to suppress the arising rebellions instead Suspected by all—since the aristocracy took him as an unfaithful partner and the plebs regarded him as a potential traitor—Marius left for the East He was called back to Rome in 91 b.c.e when Italic allies had started to rise up because of the profound differences existing between Rome and the conquered cities The Italic war lasted for three years, and Marius managed to appease the rebellion Marius had come back to the urbs and seemed to have recovered part of his prestige While Rome was focused on the reorganization of its territory, the East was preparing to separate from