Nazi-Maruttash

Nazi-Maruttaš, typically inscribed Na-zi-Ma-ru-ut-ta-aš or mNa-zi-Múru-taš, Maruttaš (a Kassite god synonymous with Ninurta) protects him, was a Kassite king of Babylon c. 1307–1282 BC (short chronology) and self-proclaimed šar kiššati, or "King of the World", according to the votive inscription pictured. He was the 23rd of the dynasty, the son and successor of Kurigalzu II, and reigned for twenty six years. His reign can be seen as the peak of the Kassite Dynasty, exemplified by his successful military campaigns against Assyria and Elam, the glyptic style of cylinder seals, the literature inspired by him (Hemerology for Nazi-Maruttaš), and his appearance in the period piece Ludlul bēl nēmeqi, which was set during his reign. Conflict with Assyria Nazi-Maruttaš faced a growing threat from the ascendancy of Assyria under Arik-den-ili and his successor Adad-Nīrāri I. The containment of Assyria was conducted through a strategy of flank attacks supported by his agents, eastern hillmen such as the Gutians, in a protracted war, avoiding a full frontal assault. Under Arik-den-ili, he seems to have had the upper hand, because Adad-Nīrāri, who styles himself "King of the Universe", later recounts that "my father could not rectify the calamities inflicted by the army of the king of the Kassite land" in a contemporary Assyrian epic.