In relation to Syria, the ruler of Byblos held the title "king" in the Mari Archive.

However, Abishemu belongs to a sequence of rulers who held the Egyptian title Haty-aa of Kepny (ḥꜣty-ʻ n Kpny), indicating they served as "governors" for the great king of Egypt during the late 12th Dynasty and early 13th Dynasty.

His reign may correspond to the second half of the Middle Bronze II, when Byblos may have recognized the Great King of Egypt as its overlord, using the title Haty-aa and adopting Egyptian style as opposed to the Syrian style dominated by Yamhad and Qatna.

Transcribed:[1] mry Ḥr-š·f ḥꜣty-ʻ n Kpny ʼb-šmw wḥm ʻnḫ [...]f Kwkwn śꜣ Rwqq mꜣʻ ḫrw Translated: Beloved of Herishef, Haty-aa of Byblos (Governor), Ib-shemu, repeating life, his [father], Kukun, son of Ruqqa/Luqqa, justified (deceased).

Wehem ankh (wHm ʻnḫ) literally means "repeating life", an expression used in Ancient Egypt in various contexts, also as an epithet applied to the deceased from the Middle Kingdom onwards.