event · evt_battle_of_qarqar
Battle of Qarqar and Levantine coalition against Shalmaneser III
The Kurkh Monolith describes Shalmaneser III fighting a coalition including Damascus, Hamath, and Ahab the Israelite.
What is the evidence?
observation
The Kurkh Monolith describes Shalmaneser III fighting a coalition including Damascus, Hamath, and Ahab the Israelite.proposed causes
The inscription and named coalition are secure; battle outcome and numerical detail are less certain.
Inspect the sources →Review and provenance
Specialist reviewer: not recorded. Review date: not recorded.
Dataset workflow: proposed. This is separate from specialist review.
Confidence describes the stated assessment; it does not certify expert approval. How review works.
Chronology
Dating intervals may describe uncertainty or phases; their width alone does not establish event duration.
853 BCE
Precision: approximate range
Chronology model: best current range
very highThe inscription and named coalition are secure; battle outcome and numerical detail are less certain.
- informs · provides primary evidence
Assyrian Rulers of the Early First Millennium BC II (858-745 BC) — A. Kirk Grayson (1996)Critical text edition.
Locator: RIMA 3 A.0.102.2, Qarqar passage - informs · locates
Kurkh Monolith of Shalmaneser III (BM 118884) — The British MuseumProvides object identity.
Locator: BM 118884 - informs · contextualizes
Neo-Assyrian and Israelite History in the Ninth Century: The Role of Shalmaneser III — K. Lawson Younger Jr. (2007)Provides outcome and geopolitical caution.
Locator: historical analysis
Interpretation and caveats
A major coalition conflict demonstrating ninth-century Israel's participation in Syrian geopolitics; Assyrian army numbers and claimed outcome remain royal rhetoric.
Event context
Classification
Event type: military conflict
Evidence layer: historical
Timeline role: cross regional context
People and places
Locations: Aramean and Syrian connections, Mediterranean and Assyrian connections, Aramean and Syrian connections, Mediterranean and Assyrian connections
Participants: Kingdom of Israel, Aramean polities and communities, Neo-Assyrian imperial actors
Why it matters to the timeline
The battle directly connects the kingdom of Israel to Aramean/Syrian coalitions and Assyrian westward expansion.
Alternative interpretations
- A decisive Assyrian victory as the inscription claims.
- A coalition strategic success that temporarily checked Assyrian advance.
Research notes
- Critical text edition. Role: provides primary evidence. Locator: RIMA 3 A.0.102.2, Qarqar passage.
- Provides object identity. Role: locates. Locator: BM 118884.
- Provides outcome and geopolitical caution. Role: contextualizes. Locator: historical analysis.
Evidence and sources
- informs · provides primary evidence
Assyrian Rulers of the Early First Millennium BC II (858-745 BC) — A. Kirk Grayson (1996)Critical text edition.
Locator: RIMA 3 A.0.102.2, Qarqar passage - informs · locates
Kurkh Monolith of Shalmaneser III (BM 118884) — The British MuseumProvides object identity.
Locator: BM 118884 - informs · contextualizes
Neo-Assyrian and Israelite History in the Ninth Century: The Role of Shalmaneser III — K. Lawson Younger Jr. (2007)Provides outcome and geopolitical caution.
Locator: historical analysis
Referenced records
- Aramean and Syrian connections · entity
- Mediterranean and Assyrian connections · entity
- Kingdom of Israel · entity
- Neo-Assyrian imperial actors · entity
- Aramean polities and communities · entity