Barrel Cylinder with Sumerian Inscription

1849 BC - 1843 BC
Clay
Original Site Unknown
12.5 cm diam.
A7467

Oriental Institute Museum

Artifact Description

Barrel Cylinder with Sumerian Inscription

The cuneiform script, like our own alphabet, was used to write many different languages. This barrel cylinder with a cuneiform inscription in the Sumerian language concerns the building of a canal by king Sin-iddinam of Larsa. According to the inscription, the king reinforced the banks of the Tigris River, which then supplied water to the residents of the city.

Suggested Readings

Kramer, Samuel Noah. Cradle of Civilization. Alexandria, VA: Time-Life Books, 1967.

Kramer, Samuel Noah. The Sumerians: Their History, Culture, and Character. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1963.

Roaf, Michael. Cultural Atlas of Mesopotamia and the Ancient Near East. New York: Facts on File, 1990.

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