Sumerian Clay Tablet Recording Sheep Transactions
Sumerian Clay Tablet Recording Sheep Transactions
Place of OriginIraq, Puzriš-Dagan (modern Drehem)
Date2037 BCE
Dimensions1 9/16 × 1 5/16 × 1/2 in. (4 × 3.3 × 1.2 cm)
MediumClay
ClassificationUtilitarian Objects
Credit LineMuseum Purchase
Object number
1913.506
Not on View
Collections
Published References- Decorative Arts
Langdon, S., "Miscellanea Assyriaca," Babyloniaca, 7, 1922-1923, p. 77, n. 9.
Van der Meiroop, Marc, "Cuneiform Tablets from The Toledo Museum of Art," Revue d'Assyriologie, no. 1, 1985, p. 18, repr. p. 26. “Babyloniaca 07, 077 09 Artifact Entry.” (2001) 2024. Cuneiform Digital Library Initiative (CDLI). August 15, 2024. https://cdli.ucla.edu/P104767. http://bdtns.filol.csic.es/catalogo_directo_new.php?numBDTS=003749 https://oracc.museum.upenn.edu/epsd2/P104767 Sallaberger, Walther, Der kultische Kalender der Ur III-Zeit, Berlin, De Gruyter, 1993, p. 153, n. 734, T 50a.
Label TextThis administrative tablet, written in Sumerian cuneiform, comes from Puzriš-Dagan (modern Drehem) and dates to the Ur III period (ca. 2100–2000 BCE). It documents the allocation of livestock, including sheep, ewes, and goats, for various purposes such as religious offerings, taxation, and provisions for the military. The text mentions a messenger named Aradmu, a scribe named Nūr-Adad, and references the month of the barley harvest during the reign of Bur-Sin (year 9). The Ur III dynasty maintained detailed records of economic transactions, reflecting the highly organized administrative system of ancient Mesopotamia.about 2040 BCE
Old Akkadian period (ca. 2340–2200 BCE)
about 2040 BCE
Ur III Period (about 2100-2000 BCE)
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