ABSTRACT
In the history of the Near East, the energetic entrance of the Hittites among the major players in the area happened during the reigns of two kings, Hattusili I and Mursili I. Within fifty years (ca. 1650-1600), these two kings created a strong state, campaigned in the Syro-Mesopotamian lowlands, thus ending two major kingdoms of the time (Yamhad and Babylonia) and began a profound re-organisation of the entire area. Central Anatolia clearly moved from the political fragmentation attested in the Old Assyrian sources (until ca. 1750 bc) to the unified state of Hattusili (around 1650 bc). However, evidence on this political transformation is sparse and varied in terms of types and origins.
