Barrel Cylinder with Sumerian Inscription
1849 BC - 1843 BC
Clay
Original Site Unknown
12.5 cm diam.
A7467
Clay
Original Site Unknown
12.5 cm diam.
A7467
Oriental Institute Museum
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.