Position in chronology
CST 878
Translation · reference
ExperimentalSource: CDLI raw catalogue, no published translation. P-number P108385.
Why it matters
Transliteration
1(disz) ig taskarin gid2-bi 1(disz) kusz3 4(disz) [szu]-si dagal-bi 1(disz) kusz3 ki bu3-u2-a-ta e-lah5-a sagi szu ba-ti e2 sag-da-na nibru [x] iti masz-[...] mu [us2-sa] ha-[ar-szi ba-hul]
Scholarly note
Catalogue entry from CDLI (Ur III (ca. 2100-2000 BC)) — CST 878. No scholarly translation has been published; the transliteration is from the ATF (CDLI's Atf-Friendly format). [year-name] Dated to Šulgi y27 — Year after: Harši destroyed based on canonical year-name formula in the transliteration.
Attribution
Image: John Rylands Library, University of Manchester, Manchester, UK (P108385) — Photo via Cuneiform Digital Library Initiative. source
Translation excerpted from CDLI raw catalogue, no published translation. P-number P108385..
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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The earliest historical document in human history.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.