Position in chronology
CUSAS 16, 298
Translation — curated editorial
EditorialEditorial entry — translation cited from: CDLI raw catalogue, no published translation. P-number P416206.
Transliteration
1(disz) amar masz-da3-nita2 en-lil2 lugal kux(KWU636)-ra sza3 mu-kux(DU)-ra-ta u4 2(u) 9(disz)-kam ki in-ta-e3-a-ta ba-zi giri3 nanna-ma-ba dub-sar iti sze-sag11-ku5 mu szu-suen lugal uri5-ma-ke4 ma-da za-ab-sza-li mu-hul 1(disz) masz-da3
Scholarly note
Catalogue entry from CDLI (Ur III (ca. 2100-2000 BC)) — CUSAS 16, 298. 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: Columbia University Library, New York, New York, USA (P416206) — Photo via Cuneiform Digital Library Initiative. source
Translation excerpted from CDLI raw catalogue, no published translation. P-number P416206..
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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The earliest historical document in human history.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.