CAE015 Mitannian Mariyannu Chariot

Biblical Era

               '' Mitannian Mariyannu Chariot ''   

Inhoud:

• 10 figuren in 5 standen
•   2 Chariots
•   5 Paarden

Afmeting: 23mm

The kingdom of Mitanni gradually rose to power during the 17th and 16th centuries BCE, and by the first decades of the 15th century was a major power, an achievement often attributed in part to their innovative use of the chariot. However their location (roughly northern Syria today) meant they were on the edges of the spheres of influence of the Hittites, Egyptians and Assyrians, which inevitably meant they were either allied to or fought against all these powers at different times. Mitannian glory was brief. By around 1360 BCE it was a vassal kingdom of the Hittite Empire, contributing warriors to their fight against Egypt, and it eventually disappeared between the Hittites and Assyria. 

The Mitannians are often credited with perfecting the chariot as a weapon of war. They took the heavy, slow chariot of the Sumerians and created a lighter, two-wheeled design pulled by two horses to give it great mobility. The typical chariot had a driver and at least one other warrior, usually an archer. It was used both as a mobile firing platform for the archer and as an impact weapon to charge and disorder an enemy before the crew engaged in hand-to-hand combat. Precious little evidence exists concerning these vehicles, but the model in this set seems a very plausible design. It has two wheels, with the axle towards the rear to allow good manoeuvrability, and cases on either side for bows and arrows. Although as usual no one can say for sure, this model seems perfectly reasonable.