Position in chronology
Tavolette 012
Translation — curated editorial
EditorialEditorial entry — translation cited from: CDLI raw catalogue, no published translation. P-number P131797.
Transliteration
2(gesz'u) 1(u) sa gi gu-nigin2-ba 2(u) 2(disz) sa-ta igi#? 3(u)-bi nu-ub-gar ki lu2-igi-sa6-sa6-ta bi2-du11-ga szu ba-ti giri3 lugal-nig2-lagar-e ga2-nun sza3 e2-da-na mu-kux(KWU147)? iti pa4-u2-e mu ki-masz ba-hul
Scholarly note
Catalogue entry from CDLI (Ur III (ca. 2100-2000 BC)) — Tavolette 012. No scholarly translation has been published; the transliteration is from the ATF (CDLI's Atf-Friendly format).
Attribution
Image: Museo di Antichità di Torino, Turin, Italy (P131797) — Photo via Cuneiform Digital Library Initiative. source
Translation excerpted from CDLI raw catalogue, no published translation. P-number P131797..
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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The earliest historical document in human history.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.