Position in chronology
CUSAS 03, 0592
Translation — curated editorial
EditorialEditorial entry — translation cited from: CDLI raw catalogue, no published translation. P-number P324004.
Transliteration
1(disz) gum esir2 2(disz) gesz-ib2 1(disz) bugin-bugin 1(disz) ma-sim dabin ki iszkur-illat-ta asz-ta2-qar szu ba-an-ti iti ezem-szu-suen mu szu-suen lugal uri5-ma-ke4 na-ru2-a-mah mu-ne-du3
Scholarly note
Catalogue entry from CDLI (Ur III (ca. 2100-2000 BC)) — CUSAS 03, 0592. No scholarly translation has been published; the transliteration is from the ATF (CDLI's Atf-Friendly format). [year-name] Dated to Šu-Suen y1 — Šu-Suen became king based on canonical year-name formula in the transliteration.
Attribution
Image: Department of Near Eastern Studies, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York, USA (P324004) — Photo via Cuneiform Digital Library Initiative. source
Translation excerpted from CDLI raw catalogue, no published translation. P-number P324004..
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Related sources
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Marks the boundary between proto-writing and writing. We can see signs being used systematically — but not yet phonetically. The leap to recording speech itself comes a few centuries later.
The earliest historical document in human history. Before this, we have lists, accounts, and dedications. Here, for the first time, a ruler tells us what happened — with names, places, and consequences.