Position in chronology
JMEOS 12, 43 3494
Translation — curated editorial
EditorialEditorial entry — translation cited from: CDLI raw catalogue, no published translation. P-number P112316.
Transliteration
3(barig) 4(ban2) la2 1(disz) sila3 sze szesz-a-ni giri3 hu-wa-wa e2-szu-tum szabra us2-sa si-ga iti nesag mu amar-suen lugal-[e] sza-asz-su2-ru-um mu#-hul
Scholarly note
Catalogue entry from CDLI (Ur III (ca. 2100-2000 BC)) — JMEOS 12, 43 3494. No scholarly translation has been published; the transliteration is from the ATF (CDLI's Atf-Friendly format). [year-name] Dated to Amar-Suen y1 — Amar-Suen became king based on canonical year-name formula in the transliteration.
Attribution
Image: Manchester Museum, University of Manchester, Manchester, UK (P112316) — Photo via Cuneiform Digital Library Initiative. source
Translation excerpted from CDLI raw catalogue, no published translation. P-number P112316..
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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The earliest historical document in human history.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.