Neo-Sumerian Economic Texts

The goal of this class is to provide an overview of various genres of economic and administrative texts from the Neo-Sumerian (or so-called "Ur III") period, ca. 2112–2004 BC, with the bulk of preserved textual material spanning from the latter part of Shulgi's reign to the early years of Ibbi-Sin (ca. 2064–2025). Emphasis will be made on the technical aspects of reading and interpreting individual documents (signs, vocabulary, format, etc.) as well as on the utilization of the documents to reconstruct a coherent and comprehensive picture of Sumerian government, society, and economy.