Position in chronology
MVN 13, 174
Translation — curated editorial
EditorialEditorial entry — translation cited from: CDLI raw catalogue, no published translation. P-number P116946.
Transliteration
3(gesz2) sze gur ki ensi2 gu2-du8-a-ta 1(gesz2) 3(u) 4(asz) 1(barig) 3(ban2) gur ki ensi2 asz2-nun-ta sza3-gal ansze! u3 sze-ba giri3-se3-ga ba-ba mu#? [...] x [iti ki-siki-nin-a]-zu [...] [...] [mu szu-suen lugal uri5-ma]-ke4 ma#-da za-ab-sza-li mu#-hul
Scholarly note
Catalogue entry from CDLI (Ur III (ca. 2100-2000 BC)) — MVN 13, 174. 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: Free Library of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA (P116946) — Photo via Cuneiform Digital Library Initiative. source
Translation excerpted from CDLI raw catalogue, no published translation. P-number P116946..
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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The earliest historical document in human history.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.