Eating and Drinking in the Ancient Near East Proceedings of the 67th Rencontre Assyriologique Internationale, Turin, July 12–16, 2021 Edited by Stefano de Martino, Elena Devecchi and Maurizio Viano dubsar 33 Zaphon Eating and Drinking in the Ancient Near East Proceedings of the 67th Rencontre Assyriologique Internationale, Turin, July 12–16, 2021 Edited by Stefano de Martino, Elena Devecchi and Maurizio Viano dubsar Altorientalistische Publikationen Publications on the Ancient Near East Band 33 Herausgegeben von Kristin Kleber und Kai A. Metzler Eating and Drinking in the Ancient Near East Proceedings of the 67th Rencontre Assyriologique Internationale, Turin, July 12–16, 2021 Edited by Stefano de Martino, Elena Devecchi and Maurizio Viano Zaphon Münster 2024 Illustration on the cover: designed by Maria Letizia Ferri, Department of Historical Studies, University of Torino. Eating and Drinking in the Ancient Near East. Proceedings of the 67th Rencontre Assyriologique Internationale, Turin, July 12–16, 2021 Edited by Stefano de Martino, Elena Devecchi and Maurizio Viano dubsar 33 All the essays published in this volume have undergone a peer-review process. This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 (BY-SA) which means that the text may be used for commercial use, distribution and duplication in all media. For details go to: https://creativecommons.org/ licenses/by-sa/4.0/deed.en. Creative Commons license terms for re-use do not apply to any content (such as graphs, figures, photos, excerpts, etc.) not original to the Open Access publication and further permission may be required from the rights holder. The obligation to research and clear permission lies solely with the party re-using the material. 2024 Zaphon, Enkingweg 36, Münster (www.zaphon.de) Printed in Germany. Printed on acid-free paper. ISBN 978-3-96327-272-1 (book) ISBN 978-3-96327-273-8 (e-book) ISSN 2627-7174 Table of Contents Preface Stefano de Martino / Elena Devecchi / Maurizio Viano ............................... IX 1. Opening Lectures ‘There is no one to set my table’: Gender Aspects in Food and Drink Preparation Cécile Michel................................................................................................... 3 Hittite Foodways: The King as the Provider of his People Theo van den Hout ........................................................................................ 25 2. Food Production Viticulture in 1st Millennium BCE Anatolia: New Archaeobotanical Evidence from Southern Cappadocia and a Regional Overview Lorenzo Castellano........................................................................................ 45 Cooking Practices in a Central Anatolian Site between the 2nd and the 1st Millennium BC: Fires and Pots at Uşaklı Hӧyük Giacomo Casucci .......................................................................................... 57 Dairy Production in SW Iran from the Middle Elamite to the Neo-Elamite Period Francesca Giusto .......................................................................................... 73 “Ferment to Be”: Butter and Cheese Production in the Third Millennium BCE Babylonia Paola Paoletti ................................................................................................ 89 Reviving Food through Mesopotamian Recipes and Archaeological Data: New Methodological Approaches to the Ancient Nutrition Studies Andrea Polcaro / Paolo Braconi ................................................................. 137 Food and Craft Production at Tulūl al-Baqarat, Mound 7: A Typological and Functional Analysis of Fire and Work Installations from Building A Eleonora Quirico ......................................................................................... 151 VI Table of Contents 3. Resource Management Boire et manger d’après la documentation palatiale de Nuzi (14ème s. av. J.-C.): Première partie: les denrées alimentaires Philippe Abrahami / Brigitte Lion ............................................................... 165 Feeding māt Aššur: Barley Supplies as a Means of Governance in the Western Middle Assyrian State Eva Cancik-Kirschbaum / Aron Dornauer .................................................. 177 Economy and Food Production at the Beginning of Urbanization: The Case Study of Jebel al-Mutawwaq Alessandra Caselli / Andrea Polcaro / Juan Ramon Muniz ........................ 197 The Value of Food: Historical, Prosopographical and Quantitative Aspects of the Final Letters and Related Texts from Ebla Palace G (3rd Millennium BC) Amalia Catagnoti / Elisabetta Cianfanelli / Fiammetta Gori / Marco Bonechi ............................................................................................ 215 On the Logistical Probabilities of Maništušu’s ‘Magan’ Campaign John Dayton ................................................................................................ 227 Accounting for Alimentary Items in Third Millennium Southern Mesopotamia: Some Notes on the Role of Waxed Boards in the Historical Development of Early Mesopotamian Bookkeeping Massimo Maiocchi ...................................................................................... 243 Health and Social Crises in 108/107 BC as Recorded in the Late Babylonian Astronomical Diaries Yasuyuki Mitsuma........................................................................................ 253 Yataraya and the Wine: Her Role in the Palace Administration of Mari (1775–1762 BC) Luciana Urbano .......................................................................................... 263 4. Rituality, Banquet and Commensality The Vessels of the Assyrian Royal Banquet: An Archaeological and Iconographic Approach Adonice-A. Baaklini / Margaux Spruyt........................................................ 275 What Fine Ceramics Can Tell Us About Social Drinking in Iron Age Iran Trudy Kawami ............................................................................................. 289 Toasting with the Dead: Funerary Drinking Vessels in Early and Middle Bronze Age Upper Mesopotamian Burials Juliette Mas ................................................................................................. 303 Table of Contents VII Representing Banquets in Ancient Mesopotamia: A Public Affair? Davide Nadali.............................................................................................. 315 Food and Drinks in Ancient Diaeuhi and Colchis Natia Phiphia / Omari Dzadzamia .............................................................. 325 The Iconography of the “Banquet Scene” among the Figurative Documentation from the Second and Third Millennium Levels at Tell Ashara / Terqa (Syria) Paola Poli .................................................................................................... 337 The Assyrian Royal Banquet: A Sociological and Anthropological Approach Ludovico Portuese ....................................................................................... 353 Marzeah in Mesopotamia JoAnn Scurlock ............................................................................................ 365 From Intention to Accomplishment: Secular and Cultic Feasts Provided by the Neo-Assyrian King Zozan Tarhan .............................................................................................. 381 5. Medicine and Literature Desire and Hunger; Women and Food: The Earliest Example of a Universal Conceptual Metaphor in the Sumerian “Love Songs”? Christie Carr ............................................................................................... 397 “Eat and drink, but do not look at my, the king’s, eyes!”: On a Metaphorical Expression in Old Hittite Paola Dardano ............................................................................................ 409 The Potion in the 1st Millennium Assyro-Babylonian Medicine Kiril Mladenov ............................................................................................ 419 The Use of Eggs in Mesopotamian Medicine and beyond Jan Tavernier .............................................................................................. 429 Rites, Music, and Banquets: Some Observations on Rituals in Sumerian Divine Journeys Klaus Wagensonner ..................................................................................... 461 6. Philological and Archaeological Researches An Old Babylonian Cylinder Seal from the Museo Orientale Umberto Scerrato: Notes on a Digital Microscopic High Magnification Analysis Romolo Loreto ............................................................................................. 485 VIII Table of Contents The Cuneiform Corpus in its Geographical Setting: Preliminary Results of the Project Geomapping Landscapes of Writing Seraina Nett / Gustav Ryberg Smidt / Carolin Johansson / Rune Rattenborg .......................................................................................... 497 ArCOA Project: The Ancient Near Eastern Collections in Italy from Study to Public Fruition Luca Peyronel / Tatiana Pedrazzi / Stefano Anastasio / Elena Devecchi / Silvana Di Paolo / Stefania Ermidoro / Valentina Oselini / Irene Rossi ..... 507 News from Ashurbanipal’s Library Babette Schnitzlein / Sophie Cohen ............................................................. 549 7. Varia Marad between the Neo-Assyrian and Neo-Babylonian Empires John P. Nielsen ............................................................................................ 563 “Eat and drink, but do not look at my, the king’s, eyes!” On a Metaphorical Expression in Old Hittite Paola Dardano 1. In Hittite the verbs for eating and drinking, together with their synonyms, are attested in some locutions where they have lost their literal value having assumed a metaphorical one.1 Based on examples from Old Hittite historical and legal texts, this paper aims to elucidate some metaphorical expressions comprising the verbs ed-/ad- ‘to eat’ and eku-/aku- ‘to drink’. It is suggested that in the interaction between members of the royal family and/or officials, these expressions served a number of different communicative goals: they had an emphatic purpose, and their use was closely linked to the pragmatic context of interaction as well as to the role of the interlocutor. Phraseological units are fixed expressions (of two or more words) that are idiomatic.2 Fixedness is a crucial notion, which, together with non-compositionality and semantic opacity, has long been considered the defining feature of phraseological units. A lexical item is said to be non-compositional if its global meaning is different from the sum of its individual parts. Moreover, a given sequence is said to be opaque if, from the meaning of the elements that comprise it, one cannot reconstruct its global meaning. In this respect, an expression such as to bite the dust must be viewed as an idiom, a fixed and non-compositional semantic unit. It is important to consider both the literal and the figurative readings of a phraseme: even if one understands all of the words that make up the expression tirer le diable par la queue (lit. ‘pull the devil’s tail’), it is not enough to make it comprehensible. That figurative idioms have a figurative meaning is beyond a doubt. What is important is the role played by metaphor (and metonymy) in the creation and extension of the figurative meaning. 2. In the so-called Political Testament of Ḫattušili I, when the king adopted his grandson Muršili and asked the dignitaries gathered in Kuššara to recognise him I am indebted to the anonymous referee for very helpful comments and criticism that helped me improve this paper. I of course remain solely responsible for the contents. 1 2 See Burger et al., 2007; Granger / Meunier, 2008. 410 Paola Dardano as the legal heir to the throne, the king’s purpose was to guarantee the prosperity of the royal family and thus of the Hittite state. The king says “If you keep the father’s word, you will [eat bread] and drink water”, i.e. “you will be healthy, prosperous”: KUB 1.16+ III 28–32 – CTH 6 28 … ma-a-an at-ta-aš ut-tar pa-aḫ-⸤ḫa-aš⸥-ta 29 [NINDA-an e-ez-za-a]š-ši wa-a-tar-ra e-ku-uš-ši ma-a-an LÚma-ya-a[nd]a-ta[r] 30 [kar-di-it-]ti nu-za UD-an II-ŠU III-ŠU e-it nu-za a-ar-š[i-i-ya-a]ḫ-ḫu!-ut 31 [ma-a-an(-ma ?) LÚ]ŠU.GI-tar-ra kar-di-it-ti nu-za ni-in-ki-iḫ-ḫ[u-ut ] 32 [Ú-UL (?) at-ta-aš-š]a ut-tar pé-e-eš-ši-ya If you keep your father’s word, you [will eat bread] and drink water. When the prime of young adulthood is [within] you, then eat two or three times a day, and tr[ea]t yourself. [But when] old age is within you, drink your fill, [do not] set aside [(your) father’s] word!3 A little later in the same text we read the fixed phrase ‘to eat bread (and) drink water’. The dignitaries were repeatedly urged to respect what the king said; if they ignored his words, they would perish: KUB 1.16+ III 46–49 – CTH 6 46 [šu-me-eš-ma la-]ba?-ar-na-aš LUGAL.GAL ud-da-a-ar-me-et pa-aḫḫa-aš-nu-ut-te-en 47 [ma-a-na-a]t pa-aḫ-ḫa-aš-du-ma nu URUḪa-at-tu-ša-aš ša-ra-a ar-ta KUR-še-me-et-ta 48 [wa-ar-a]š-nu-ut-te-ni NINDA-an az-za-aš-te-ni wa-a-tar-ra e-ku-utte-ni ma-a-an 49 [Ú-UL-m]a pa-aḫ-ḫa-aš-du-ma KUR-e-še-me-et ta-me-u-ma-an ki-iša-ri [You] (my subjects) must keep my words, those of [L]abarna, the Great King. [As long as] you keep [them], Ḫattuša will stand tall, and you will set your land [at peace]. You will eat bread and drink water. But if you [do not] keep them, your land will fall under foreign control.4 The formula ‘to eat bread (and) drink water’ is also attested in the Old Hittite text KUB 36.110. It should be stressed that only in this passage do the direct objects in the accusative show the enclitic possessive pronouns (-šan and -šet, respecBoth here and in the subsequent passages of the Testament, Beckman (2003: 81) interprets the formula as exhorting a “Spartan lifestyle”, and translates: “You must eat (only) bread and drink (only) water”. I do not agree with this interpretation, but prefer to read it as ‘to be safe and sound’. On the ‘Political Testament’ of Ḫattušili I, see also Goedegebuure, 2006. 4 See also KUB 1.16+ III 33–39. 3 “Eat and drink, but do not look at my, the king’s, eyes!” 411 tively). As in the previous example, the formula probably signifies the munificence of the king in offering his subjects sustenance. However, the text is corrupt and interpretation remains uncertain. The force of the imperfective verb form akkuške- in line 7´ compared to eku- in line 6´ also remains obscure: KUB 36.110 Vo 5´–7´ – CTH 820.1 5´ [ -]ta-aš-ši LUGAL-aš NINDA-ša-an a-du-e?[-ni] 6´ [wa-a-ta]r?-še-ta a-ku-e-ni na-aš-ta GAL GUŠKIN!-a[š] 7´ [GEŠT]IN?-na-an pár-ku-in ak-ku-uš-ke-e-wa-ni … of the king his bread we will ea[t.] We will drink his [wat]er?. From (lit. of) a gold cup we will begin to drink pure [win]e? (Hoffner, 2010: 131– 132) 3. We will now consider other passages in which the phraseme ‘eat (and) drink’ can be interpreted in a different way. In his Testament, Ḫattušili I establishes Muršili as heir to the throne, and provides rules of conduct that are intended to consolidate the royal family and the Hittite state. Ḫattušili had initially chosen Labarna, his sister’s son, to be the heir to the throne, but as Labarna behaved badly towards him, he revoked appointing him as his successor. In the end Ḫattušili assigns him a house, land and animals and says, “Now he should eat and drink!”. If Labarna plans any evil against the king, he must stay in his house, i.e. he is no longer allowed to come to Ḫattuša and attend the court. It is important to note that both verbs ed- ‘to eat’ and eku- ‘to drink’ are in the imperfective form (azzikkeand akkuške-, respectively) and no direct object is given: KUB 1.16+ II 31–36 – CTH 6 31 DUMU-mi la-ba-ar-ni É?[-i]r? pé-eḫ-ḫ[u-un A.ŠÀ-še me-e]k-ki 32 pé-eḫ-ḫu-un GU4ḪI.A-še me-e[k-k]i pé-eḫ-ḫu-u[n UDUḪI.A-še me-ek-k]i pé-eḫ-ḫu-un 33 nu az-zi-ik-ki-id-du [a]k-[k]u-uš-ki-[i]d-d[u ma-a-na-aš aš-šu-uš] 34 na-aš-ta ša-ra-a ú-iš-⸢ki⸣-[i]t-ta-ru ma-a-a[n-ma-aš pu-ug-ga-a]n-za 35 ti-i-e-ez-zi na-aš-ma ku-uš-du[-wa-a-t]a ku-it-k[i na-aš-ma ḫar-nam-] ma ku-it-ki 36 na-aš-kán ša-ra-a le-e ú-iš[-k]i-it-ta n[a-aš É-ri-iš-ši e-eš-]du5 I have now given my son Labarna a hou[s]e. I have given him [arable land] in plenty. I have given him cattle in plenty. I have given [him sheep in plenty]. He shall continue to eat and drink (his fill). [As long as he is on his best behaviour], he shall come up from time to time (to Ḫattuša to visit). But if he begins [to cause trouble(?)], or (if he spreads) any slander, [or] The Akkadian version is very badly damaged at this point: only the precative li-ku-ul (I 32) from akālu(m) ‘to eat’ is preserved. This form corresponds to the Hittite phrase “he should eat” (in exile). 5 412 Paola Dardano and […], he will not be permitted to come up (again), but [shall remain on his own estate] (Beckman, 2003: 79–80). In the same text, there is a good example of the use of azzikke- and akkuške- as opposed to ‘eat bread (and) drink water’ shortly after. Ḫattušili’s daughter had also turned against her father, but Ḫattušili managed to assert his power over her. He has banished her and prohibits her from returning to court.6 He has assigned her a property in the countryside and forbids her to enter Ḫattuša with the words, “A house has been allotted to her in the country, now she shall eat and drink!”: KUB 1.16+ III 16–25 – CTH 6 16 [ ]x at-ta-aš ut-tar pé-e-eš-ši-i-e-et MEŠ URU ḪA-AT-TI e-eš-ḫ]ar-ši-mi-it e-ku-ut-ta ki-nu17 [nu A-NA DUMU na-aš 18 [URU-az kat-ta u-i-ya-an-za ma-]⸤a⸥-na-aš pár-nam-ma ú-iz-zi nu-kán É-ir-me-et 19 [wa-aḫ-nu-uz-zi ma-a-na-aš UR]UḪa-⸢at⸣-tu-ši-ma ú-iz-zi 20 [nu a-pu-u-un da-a-an e-d]i? na-a-i ut-ne-e-še 21 [É-it tág-ga-aš-š]a-an nu az-zi-ik-ki-id-du 22 [ak-ku-uš-ki-id- ]du —————————————————————————— 23 [šu-me-eš-ma-an i-da-a-lu le-]e i-ya-at-te-ni a-pa-a-aš i-da-a-lu i-e-et 24 [ú-uk i-da-a-lu EGIR-]pa? Ú-UL i-ya-am-mi a-pa-a-aš-mu-za at-ta-an 25 [Ú-UL ḫal-za-iš ] ú-ga-an-za DUMU.MUNUSTI Ú-UL ḫal-zi-iḫ-ḫi She has rejected (her) father’s word and has drunk [their blood, i.e. of the citizens of Ḫattuša]. Now she [has been banished from the city]. If she were to come to my household, [she would surely disrupt] my household. [If she] were to come to Ḫattuša, she would cause [it] to revolt [once more. A house has been allotted(?)] to her in the country – now (she shall stay there, and) she shall eat (and) [drink]. (§) [You] shall not do [her any harm]. She did (me) harm, but I shall not do (her) [harm in return]. She [would not call] me father, so I shall not call her daughter (Beckman, 2003: 81). The ‘eat (and) drink’ formula is also found in other texts of the Old Hittite tradition. A very similar passage occurs in an annalistic text dated to Muršili I that illustrates a military campaign against the Hurrians in eastern and southern Anatolia.7 Although the text is corrupt, the king is probably speaking to his subjects: KUB 31.64 (+) 64a + KBo 3.55 II 18´–20´ – CTH 12 18´ …. ḫal-ma-aš-š[u-it-ti-mi] LUGAL-aš a-aš-šu-me-et [ ] 19´ [me-e]k-ki ki-it-ta a[z-zi-ik-ki-it-te-en ak-]ku-uš-kit9-te-en [ ] 6 7 On this episode see Gilan, 2020. See de Martino, 2003: 168–171. “Eat and drink, but do not look at my, the king’s, eyes!” 413 20´ [DAM]MEŠ-KU-NU DUMUMEŠ-KU-NU ḫ[u-uš-nu-ut-te-en …] … [on/in] my throne [ ] my, the king’s, wealth lies [in ab]undance. E[at (and) d]rink! K[eep alive] your [wife] (and) your children! Shortly after, the same wording is repeated: KUB 31.64 (+) 64a + KBo 3.55 II 27´´–29´ – CTH 12 27´ … LUGAL-aš a-aš-šu-me-et] 28´ me-ek-ki ki-⸤it⸥-ta az-zi-ik-ki-it-te-en ak-ku-uš-kit9-te-en DAMMEŠKU-NU DUMUMEŠ-KU-NU] 29´ ḫu-uš-nu-ut-tén [My, the king's,] wealth lies in abundance. Eat (and) drink! K[eep alive your wife (and) your children!] It is also interesting to compare a passage from an Old Hittite legal text. In the Telipinu Edict we read that Ḫuzziya became king, but he had a brother-in-law, Telipinu, whom he feared as a rival and so planned to kill once he – Ḫuzziya – was on the throne. Telipinu learned of the plot, drove off the would-be murderers, and ascended the throne himself. He then felt that he had to be rid of Ḫuzziya’s five brothers. According to the usual practice, they were sent away from court and were confined to houses that Telipinu had given them: KBo 3.1++ II 13–15 – CTH 19 13 V Š[E]ŠMEŠ-ŠU nu-uš-ma-aš ÉMEŠ tág-ga-aš-ta pa-a-an-du-wa-az aša-an-du 14 nu-wa-[z]a az-zi-ik-kán-du ak-ku-uš-kán-du i-da-a-lu-ma-aš-ma-aškán le-e ku[-iš-ki] 15 tág-ga-aš-ši nu tar-ši-ki-mi a-pé-e-wa-mu i-da-lu i-e-ir ú-ga-wa-ru-uš ⸢ḪUL-lu⸣ [Ú-UL i-ya-mi] Five (were) his (i.e., Ḫuzziya’s) br[ot]hers and he assigned houses to them (saying): “Let them go (and) live! Let them each eat (and) drink! May nob[ody] do harm them!”. And I declare: “They did evil to me, but I [will not do] evil to them”. The formula ‘eat (and) drink’ probably denotes the banishment of Ḫuzziya and his brothers. They are not condemned to death, but a certain location (unknown to us) is assigned to them as punishment. The same episode is described in the annalistic text KBo 12.8 (with the parallel KBo 12.9), which offers a first-person account of Telipinu. Here the “eat (and) drink” formula does not occur, but there is little doubt that parnaš=šmaš tarna- ‘leave in their homes’ conveys the same meaning: KBo 12.8 Vo IV 20´–23´ – CTH 20.A 20´ mḪu-uz-zi-ya-aš-š[a-an? Ù ŠEŠMEŠ-ŠU? 21´ pár-na-aš-ma-aš tar-na-aḫ[-ḫu-un pa-an-du-wa-az] 22´ a-ša-an-du ḪUL-l[(u-ma-w)a-aš-ma-aš-kán le-e] 414 Paola Dardano 23´ ku-iš-ki ták-ki[(-e-eš-zi)] Ḫuzziya [and his brothers] I lea[ve] in their homes: “[They should go] (and) they should stay (lit. be) (there), but [no] one should h[(arm)] them”. It is worth noting that the formula, together with the prohibition to look at the king’s eyes (i.e., not to visit the king), occurs in a royal edict and probably refers to the banishment of Ḫattušili’s daughter. A woman called the daughter is sent away from the capital Ḫattuša, and it is a mark of the king’s leniency that she is merely banished. She is given fields and herds so that she can support herself, but she is forbidden from returning to court: KBo 3.24+KBo 53.275+ Ro 10΄–18΄ 10΄ fTa-wa-n[a-an-na 11΄ at-ta-aš-š[a(-) 12΄ ut-ni-ya-an-d[a13΄ ú-ga DUMU.MUNUSTI[ 14΄ da-aḫ-ḫu-un DUMU.M[UNUS? 15΄ ša-na-aš-ta URUḪa-a[t-tu16΄ ú-⸢e⸣ -em!- ya na-at-ta x[ 17΄ az-zi-ki-i ak-ku-uš-ki-ya URUḪa-a[t-tu-ši-ma LUGAL-wa-aš (?)] 18΄ ša-a-ku-wa le-e a-⸢ú⸣-u[t-ti 10΄ Tawana[nna 11΄ [an]d [the words] of the father 12΄ [the] population [ 13΄ and I (my) daughter [ 14΄ I took. [The dau]ghter [ 15΄ and them [in] Ḫa[ttuša 16΄ find! Not… [ 17΄ “Eat and drink! In Ḫa[ttuša 18΄ do not look at the eyes [of the king]! This fragment probably refers to the preventive measures that Ḫattušili made regarding his daughter in the Testament.8 The daughter was banished from court, but her personal safety and well-being were guaranteed. She was provided with a small estate stocked with cattle and sheep outside the capital, but she was not allowed to return to Ḫattuša. This was done in a spirit of reconciliation that Ḫattušili wanted to encourage all his subjects to adopt. This text is an old Hittite decree, which has been handed down in a New Hittite copy, but probably goes back to the time of Muršili I.9 In the same text the author anecdotally describes an episode at the royal court in which he himself took part. 8 9 See above, KUB 1.16+ III 16–25. On the new joins see Marazzi, 2019–2020. “Eat and drink, but do not look at my, the king’s, eyes!” 415 The prince of the city of Purušḫanda rebelled against Ḫattuša and was – as is figuratively described – “put into the hand (of the Hittite king)” by the gods (KBo 3.28 II 6΄–7΄), i.e., was defeated. We do not know anything about his fate or punishment, but the family of the rebellious prince was treated with mercy and was not harmed. His wife and sisters were spared, and the king addressed them with the solemn formula: “Go, eat and drink, but do not look at my, the king’s, eyes!”. In this passage, the expression ‘eat (and) drink’ can be read as a formula of banishment: the female relatives of the rebellious prince are not put to death, but cannot be admitted into the king’s presence, i.e., they cannot ‘look at the king’s eyes’:10 KBo 3.28++ II 6΄–9΄– CTH 9.6 6΄ … šu-mu DINGIRDIDLI DUMU URUPu-r[u-uš-ḫa-an-du-um-na-an] 7΄ ki-iš-ri-mi da-i-ir LUGAL-uš A-NA DAM-ŠU ne-ga-aš-š[a]-aš-ša 8΄ i-it-te-en az-zi-kit9-te-en ak-ku-uš-kit9-te-en LUGAL-wa-ša 9΄ ša-a-⸢ku⸣-wa-me-et le-e uš-te-ni The gods put the prince of Pur[ušḫanda] into my hand and I, the king, said to his wife and his sisters: “Go, eat and drink, but do not look at my, the king’s, eyes!” From this it can be concluded that the victorious ruler pardoned the female relatives of the prince, but banished them as their presence could no longer be tolerated. This text strengthens the hypothesis that the phrase ‘eat (and) drink’ is a formula for banishment. The wife and sisters of the rebellious prince are allowed to live, but they are abandoned to their fate and can no longer take part in the life of the court. 4. Our results can be tentatively summarised as follows. The phraseme ‘eat (and) drink’ has a twofold purpose. When the two verbs take the suffix -ške-, are in the imperative form and are absolute (that is, they are not accompanied by any direct object, but refer solely to the subject), we have a banishment formula. The king is solemnly speaking to high dignitaries or members of the royal family: ‘eat and drink’ thus means ‘you are alive, your life is saved’, i.e., ‘you are not sentenced to death, but you are banished from court’. On the other hand, if the two verbs have an object in the accusative, i.e., ‘eat bread’ and ‘drink water’, the expression should be taken more literally: it means ‘to stay alive, be safe and sound’. We can therefore conclude that it is not the lexical choice, but the morphosyntactic structure that allows us to distinguish between the two formulas. As shown in Table 1, there is conclusive evidence that the metaphorical use ‘eat (and) drink’ is distinct from the non-metaphorical ‘eat bread (and) drink water’: On šakuwa auš- as a loan translation from Akk. ēn(ē) X amāru(m) ‘to visit’, lit. ‘to see the eyes (of someone)’, see Dardano, 2010. 10 416 Paola Dardano Table 1 imperative -ške-suffix KBo 3.1++ II 14 KBo 3.28 II 8´ KUB 1.16+ II 33 KUB 1.16+ III 21–22 KUB 31.64++ II 19´ KBo 3.24+ Ro 17´ + + + + + + + + + + + + no direct object + + + + + + KUB 1.16+ III 29 KUB 1.16+ III 34 KUB 1.16+ III 48 KUB 36.100 Vo 5´–6´ – – – – – – – – – – – – metaphorical use azzikkeakkuškenon-metaphorical use NINDA ed- + watar eku- 5. This analysis has demonstrated the varied phraseology associated with verbs for eating and drinking. In particular, it has highlighted the major role played by metaphor in the creation and extension of new phrasal patterns. What makes these idioms stand out from other phrasemes is their high degree of idiomaticity, which manifests itself in semantic opacity in addition to a distinct figurative element. It is clear from these remarks that phraseology can be a springboard for stimulating further study. Indeed, there is a close connection between culture and phraseology. This is best revealed by proverbs and fully idiomatic set phrases, as they tend to rely heavily on images, traditions and habits that are characteristic of a given culture. Phraseology can be seen as the linguistic repository of a number of culturally specific traditions. Phrasemes revealing cultural models that belong to a group provide information about the values that that culture upholds. In doing so, they also express the rules that govern social behaviour in a specific culture. 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