Cuneiform tablet:
list of magical stones
This artifact is a great example of a cuneiform tablet,
which is some of the earliest forms of writing. The Cuneiform tablet: list of
magical stones is one of a group of stones from the mid- to late 1st millennium
B.C. and came from the Mesopotamia region (Spar et al., 2005). Used by medical
professionals, the Cuneiform tablet listed 303 different types of stones that
can be used to treat certain medical conditions. It served as a reference book
for the medical professionals of that time, documenting each of the conditions treated,
and what type of stone was used. The tablet also provided a way to organize a
lot of information that had been gained over the years and document it for future
generations. One thing I found very impressive was how neatly organized the 3-column
text appeared with the edges and lines being straight and evenly spaced.
The Cuneiform tablet was made from clay and the symbols was
formed by pressing a wedge-shaped tool into the soft clay and allowing the clay
to dry (Spar et al., 2005).
The function of the artifact in today’s world is to provide a
view into the medical knowledge and practices of the time as well as provide an
example of the writing style.
To me the content relates to the form by grouping several
types of stones that all treat similar medical conditions. Kind of like an early
Excel file. Although the article states that the “very few of the stones listed
can be identified” in today’s language, it is still quite amazing that this was
used a form on communication (Spar et al., 2005).
Cuneiform tablet:
caravan account
Another artifact I chose to discuss is also a clay Cuneiform
tablet called the Cuneiform tablet: caravan account. It dates from 20th–19th
century B.C and is from Middle Bronze Age–Old Assyrian Trading Colony period (Spar
& Ira, 1988). After a fire destroyed
the city of Kültepe in 1836 B.C.. This tablet was found among thousands of
other similar tablets and helped show the daily life of civilizations back then.
This artifact help document business transitions of caravans
that were traveling to Kültepe from Assyria in northern Mesopotamia (Spar &
Ira, 1988). Using a simple form of cuneiform writing, similar tablets were used
to keep track of social interactions, political history, marriages, and other
records.
To create these tablets the merchants used Mesopotamian
tools brought with them on their journey. This particular tablet was used to
keep track of income and expenses for things like silver, clothing, donkeys,
and other equipment. Like other cuneiform tablets, it was also made of clay and
great care was used when creating it. The final balance that was pressed in the
tablet was “1 mina and 50 shekels of silver” which “is slightly more than the
actual total calculated from the figures provided (1 mina, 48 5/6 shekels)” (Spar
& Ira, 1988). Given the volume of trade that was going on at the time this
is quite impressive. One thing that keeps coming to mind as I am writing this
blog is what happens if an error is pressed into the tablet and needs to be
corrected later. I can only imagine the look on the accountant’s or scribe’s
face when they realize this. It is not like there is a delete key or whiteout
to fix it.
Like the List of Magical Stones tablet, the Caravan Account tablet content relates to the form by grouping together many different accounts in order to keep track of income and expenses. In today’s world the tablet gives us a better insight of culture and practices of the Old Assyrian Trading Colony (Spar & Ira, 1988).
Graffito of a cargo boat on pyramid Ku. 1
Near the Sudanese town of El-Kurru there is graffito of a
cargo boat located inside a pyramid. It is unclear exactly when it was craved
into blocks 5 and 6, but the pyramid was built in 325 BCE. and collapsed in 9th
or 10th century CE (Williams, 2019). Comparisons with other graffiti in nearby
pyramids in the Nile Valley suggest that it was most likely created toward the
end of this period.
Like the cargo boat above, most of graffiti found in the
pyramid are detailed images of boats although a few of the others are of animals
like camels (Williams, 2019). The size, construction detail, and high number of
boat graffiti is most likely because the Christians pilgrims that visited the pyramids
traveled by boat.
The purpose and goal of graffiti like this was perhaps
because of the importance of boats to the people. Highlighting things like rudder
shape, mast placement, internal layout (cabins), and keel shape indicted that the
artists took great care in documenting these details for the future (Williams,
2019). These images provide us a view into the civilization and the day-to-day
life of the merchants and sailors back then. Because of artifacts like this we have
a better insight into the transportation system that eventually evolved into what
we have today. This is just another example of the communication process and how
a simple drawing on a wall provides information over thousands of years.
References
Spar, & Ira. (1988). Cuneiform tablet: Caravan
account | Old Assyrian trading colony | Middle bronze age–old Assyrian trading
colony | The Metropolitan Museum of Art. The Metropolitan Museum of
Art. https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/325851
Spar, Ira, & Lambert, W. G. (2005). Cuneiform
tablet: List of magical stones | Achaemenid or seleucid | Achaemenid or
seleucid | The Metropolitan Museum of Art. The Metropolitan Museum of
Art. https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/321680
Williams, B. B. (2019). Graffito P9.
Object – Boat, Type 3 [Photograph ]. Kelsey Museum of
Archaeology. https://exhibitions.kelsey.lsa.umich.edu/graffiti-el-kurru/pyramid_graffiti.php#pg
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