Position in chronology
AnOr 07, 054
Translation · reference
ExperimentalSource: CDLI raw catalogue, no published translation. P-number P101349.
Why it matters
Transliteration
1(u) 1(disz) udu [...] siki-bi 1(u) [...] 2(u) 1(disz) udu [...] 3(u) 7(disz) udu bar-[...] 1(u) masz [...] zi-ga didli 2(gesz2) 3(u) udu [...] 1(u) 4(disz) sila4 e3-[...] 5(u) la2 1(disz) masz2 kiszib3 da-gi-[...] ki nam-ha-ni-ta zi-ga mu us2-sa an-sza-an ba-hul
Scholarly note
Catalogue entry from CDLI (Ur III (ca. 2100-2000 BC)) — AnOr 07, 054. No scholarly translation has been published; the transliteration is from the ATF (CDLI's Atf-Friendly format). [year-name] Dated to Šulgi y36 — Year after: Anšan destroyed based on canonical year-name formula in the transliteration.
Attribution
Image: Montserrat Museum, Barcelona, Spain (P101349) — Photo via Cuneiform Digital Library Initiative. source
Translation excerpted from CDLI raw catalogue, no published translation. P-number P101349..
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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The earliest historical document in human history.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.