The Arena of Tiglath-Pileser III's Campaign Against Sarduri II (743 Bc)

In 743 B.C., Tiglath-pileser III led a victorious march against Sarduri of Urartu and his vassals. A comparison of the four extant Assyrian relations of that campaign yields a clear picture of its geographical arena. Unfortunately, Waldemar Belck, in 1904, utterly confused this picture by his identifications of two battlegrounds, Kistam and Halpi, with modern Ku?tam and Halfeti. These were uncritically followed by generations of scholars, and can still be found in serious publications . This paper, based on Assyrian and Urar?ian records, as well as on the study of the natural relief and road connections of the region in question , proposes a different reconstruction of Tiglath -pileser line of advance and of the battlegrounds along it.