One of the earliest Syrian kingdoms, whose archive of 20,000 cuneiform tablets revealed a sophisticated Bronze Age civilization rivalling Egypt and Mesopotamia.
Destroyed c. 1600 BCE by a Hittite king (attributed to Mursili I, possibly Hattusili I), who razed the city; Ebla never recovered as a major power, though small-scale occupation continued at the site (Mardikh IV) until its ultimate abandonment, with the final destruction marking the end of Ebla as a significant political and economic centre.
The atlas holds 3 border frames for Ebla — the shape you scrub through changes in 3000 BC · 2000 BC · 1650 BC.
Matthiae's comprehensive updated account of Ebla's archaeology and history by the site's lead excavator, superseding his 1980 classic.
Standard narrative history of the ancient Near East setting third-millennium Syrian kingdoms like Ebla against Mesopotamian and Egyptian powers.