Scholars fuss with their own construction of history

Worrying Duplications.

- The ubiquitous king of Babylon, Merodach-baladan, was already giving trouble to Assyria in the days of Tiglath-pileser III (c.744-727 BC). He then becomes a complete thorn in Sargon's side for the latter's first 12 years of reign (c.721-710). He then resurfaces at the time of Sennacherib, who defeats him in his first campaign and then, finally, in his fourth campaign (c.704-700). Kings can reign over long periods of time, but this Merodach-baladan seems greatly to have overstayed his welcome.

And

- Whilst it is not difficult to believe, for instance, that Sargon might have sent his 'son' on certain campaigns and then claimed the credit himself, it may be less easy to believe that Sargon destroyed the Chaldean king Merodach-baladan's city of Dur-Yakin, and then that Sennacherib did the same only a few years later. Thus Eric Aitchison [15]: "The city of Dur Iakin is destroyed twice according to the detailed records of Sargon and Sennacherib. Sargon records its destruction in his year 13 whilst Sennacherib records it in his campaign one".

Eponym Irregularity.

This factor, in the case of Sargon/Sennacherib, was pointed out by Professor Newton, as quoted by conventionalist defender, Carl Olaf Jonsson [16]:

... the king Sargon II is believed from other evidence to have reigned only 17 years, but the number of limmu listed for his reign is 32, according to Mr Couture (private communication); I have not verified this number independently. Thus we must allow the possibility that there are gaps in the list.

Jonsson then proceeds to take Professor Newton to task for this conclusion:

Such a conclusion rests upon the erroneous assumption that the Eponym Canon indicates that kings regularly held the eponymy in their first regnal year. But an examination of the Eponym Chronicle as well as other contemporary documents clearly demonstrates that this is not intended by the Canon. It is certainly true that in the earlier periods the kings held the eponymy in their first or second regnal years, but in later times they deviated from this practice. For example, Shalmaneser V (726-21 BC) held the eponymy in his fourth regnal year.

.... Shalmaneser's successor, Sargon II, held the eponymy in his third regnal year.
.... But the greatest departure from the earlier 'rule' is listed for Sennacherib, Sargon's successor [sic], who held the eponymy in his eighteenth year! ....

Sennacherib's eponymy in his eighteenth year is certainly a huge departure from Assyrian tradition. Perhaps easier to believe that, in the context of this paper, this was Sennacherib's second eponymy; his first being in (Sargon's) Year 3.

Clear Statements Contravened.

There is the problem that Sennacherib, with reference to his third campaign in the west, mentions that he had already been receiving tribute from king Hezekiah of Judah prior to that. Yet Sennacherib's two previous campaigns (first and second) were nowhere near Judah in the west; but were waged in the east [17]. So one wonders when had the king of Assyria managed initially to enforce his supremacy over Hezekiah?

Similarly, Sennacherib claims to have employed Manneans as slave labourers, even though he is thought never to have campaigned against this people. Russell queries this [18]:

Sennacherib says, "The people of Chaldea, the Aramaeans, the Manneans ... who had not submitted to the yoke, I removed from hither, and made them carry the basket and mold bricks". Where did Sennacherib find these workers? His first and only campaign at this point had been directed against the south. There he encountered Chaldeans and Aramaeans .... he does not, however, mention Manneans ... among the enemy .... he apparently never campaigned in Mannea at all. ... the best way [sic] to account for the captives from Mannea ... this early in Sennacherib's reign is to assume that they were left over from the reign of Sargon II, who did campaign in these areas.

SOURCE: Sargon Is Sennacherib, Damien Mackey, 2001, Internet (http://www.specialtyinterests.net/sargon.html#ei)