'After 2000 BCE the royal capital …

The royal capital of Mari flourished after 2000 BCE. Mari is situated much further upstream on the Euphrates; rather than on the fertile southern plain. Some communities in the kingdom of Mari had both farmers and pastoralists. Most of its territory was used for pasturing sheep and goats. Exchange of materials was the norm between herders and farmers. But access or denial of access to water resources often led to conflict between herders and farmers. Nomadic communities of the western desert often came to the prosperous agricultural heartland. Some of them also worked as harvest laborers or hired soldiers. Some of them became prosperous and settled down. A few gained power to establish their own rule. Akkadians, Amorites, Assyrians and Aramaeans were examples of such herders.