Haradum (modern Khirbit ed-Diniye, Iraq) was an ancient Near East city on the middle Euphrates about 90 kilometers southeast of Mari.

History

While the site of Haradum was occupied earlier, being mentioned in texts from Mari, ^[1] it did not grow into a proper town until the 18th century BC under the control of the First Dynasty of Babylon. The earliest dated record is from the 26th year of King Samsu-iluna of Babylon. Tablets from the reign of Abi-eshuh, Ammi-ditana, Ammi-saduqa, and Samsu-Ditana have also been found at Haradum. The town of Haradum was destroyed during the reign of Samsu-Ditana.

Haradum is noted for being one of the earliest examples of a planned city, with a square layout and straight streets. ^[2]

Archaeology

The site of Haradum is small, about 1.5 hectares in area. It was excavated for six seasons in the 1980s by a team from the Délégation Archéologique Française en Iraq led by Christine Kepinski-Lecomte. The work was a salvage operation in response to dam construction. ^[3][4][5][6]