This introduction is no place for an analysis or review of the diversified information contained in the royal orders, reports and 'varia' of the present volume. Instead, I would like to round off this survey of the Assyrian system of administrative communication with a concrete example showing how the system worked in practice. In want of a well-documented Assyrian sequence of events, I have chosen the best available alternative: the expedition of Cyrus the Younger against Artaxerxes II, described in Xenophon's Anabasis. This narrative pertains to a time three hundred years later than the present correspondence, but most of the ingredients could apply to the reign of Sargon as well. All the data recorded below are taken from Xenophon's story with the exception of the asterisked items, which have been supplied by analogy to the Assyrian practices. Italics indicate messages that can be assumed to have ended up in the royal archives of Persepolis, Susa, Ecbatana, or Babylon.
| Event | Act/Mode of Communication |
|---|---|
| Cyrus assembles troops (I i 6-11) | Cyrus sends orders to commanders of all garrisons to enlist Peloponnesian soldiers (I i 7).Cyrus writes to the King urging that Ionian cities be given to him (i 8). |
| Cyrus launches his expedition (ii 1-3) | Cyrus reports to the King that he is marching against the Pisidians (i 11). Cyrus sends word to Clearchus and Xenias urging them to join him with their forces (ii 1). Informers notify Tissaphernes of the proceedings (ii 4). |
| Tissaphernes realizes Cyrus' plans (ii 4) | Tissaphernes rides posthaste to the King and informs him personally (ii 4). |
| The King starts his counterpreparations (ii 5) | *The King sends orders to his governors to levy their troops and come to the muster. |
| Cyrus marches to Tarsus (ii 5-27) | *Scouts inform Abracomas (governor of Syria) of Cyrus' arrival. |
| Cyrus passes the Ciliciangates (iii 1) | Abracomas writes to the King posthaste. The King summons Abracomas to join his own forces. |
| Cyrus marches at full speed towards the king (v 1-17) | *Mounted scouts inform the King of Cyrus' progress. Orontas writes the King a letter which is intercepted and given to Cyrus (vi 2-4). Cyrus summons the noblest Persians to his tent (vi 3). |
| Cyrus proceeds through Babylonia (vii 1-20) | Deserters from the King come and report to Cyrus (vii 1, 11). Pategyas, arriving on horseback at full speed, reports the King is approaching with a large army ready for battle (viii 1). |
| Battle of Cunaxa (viii 1-29) |
Simo Parpola
Simo Parpola, 'The System in Context', The Correspondence of Sargon II, Part I: Letters from Assyria and the West, SAA 1. Original publication: Helsinki, Helsinki University Press, 1987; online contents: SAAo/SAA01 Project, a sub-project of MOCCI, 2020 [http://oracc.org/saao/saa01/administrativecommunication/systemincontext/]