Description:

Ancient Near East, Old Babylon, ca. 18th century BCE. A hand-built cuneiform tablet letter from a man named Belsunu, rectangular in form and rounded along the peripheries. The obverse side of th letter contains fourteen rows of cuneiform script, formed by impressing a sharpened reed or wooden stick into the still-wet clay before firing in a kiln. The reverse does display two rows of illegible text, though the remaining surface area does not exhibit any writing. Cuneiform was a generally pictographic style of writing in its infancy, though it became a more abstract style of letter-based script around the 3rd millennium BCE. Lucite display stand for photography purposes only. Size: 2.125" W x 3.375" H (5.4 cm x 8.6 cm).

This tablet represents a letter written by a person identified as Belsunu. Here Belsunu is addressing his supervisor concerning troops or workers, though to what extent is difficult to determine. The translation is a bit vague and incomplete due to the extensive loss of the reverse side.

Provenance: private East Coast, USA collection

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#132501

  • Condition: Repaired from several pieces, with adhesive residue along break lines, and losses along verso. Surface wear commensurate with age, fading to impressed script, small nicks along peripheries, with areas of roughness on both faces, otherwise very good. Light earthen deposits throughout.

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April 26, 2018 7:00 AM MDT
Louisville, CO, US

Artemis Fine Arts

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