Archaeologists have uncovered a 3,500-year-old tablet in Turkey which dates back to the 15th century BC.
The message on the 28-gram clay tablet is written in Cuneiform, is one of the oldest forms of writing used across the Middle East and could give more of an insight into life during the Late Bronze Age.
The tablet appears to be a receipt, written in Akkadian cuneiform and describes the sale of a large amount of furniture and can help experts understand the economic structure during ancient times. It is only 1.7 inches by 1.4 inches (4.2 cm by 3.5 cm) and 0.6 inches (1.6 cm) thick and was found during restoration after a huge earthquake outside the ancient city Alalakh.
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"We believe that this tablet, weighing 28 grams, will provide a new perspective in terms of understanding the economic structure and state system of the Late Bronze Age," said Mehmet Ersoy, Turkey's minister of culture and tourism, in a statement , as reported by CNN . Finding artefacts in the aftermath of natural disasters isn't uncommon, and archaeology became a "form of recovery and healing for the community, said excavation leader Dr. Murat Akar.
Archaeologist Dr. Jacob Lauinger, associate professor of Assyriology at the Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore and Zeynep Türker, a doctoral student in Johns Hopkins' Department of Near Eastern Studies, is studying and translating the tablet alongside Dr. Akar within the Department of Archaeology at the Mustafa Kemal University in Turkey.
Their findings will be published in a study, but so far they have managed to reveal the sale of roughly 200 or more wooden tables, chairs and stools. Previously at the same sight tablets have been found with the mention of the production of furniture, but nothing as large as this recent find.
According to CNN, Lauinger said these tablets provide "incredible insights" into the ancient society and economy of Alalakh. "We are literally reading the bookkeeping accounts of an ancient accountant from almost 3,500 years ago!" Now the study team are looking into how this recent tablet slots into the society at the time.
It leaves many questions, including the possible scenarios around why someone would have needed so many pieces of furniture, and the researchers believe it was all made around the same time, rather than in small separate orders. "Was it for some special occasion at Alalakh like a royal marriage? Could it have been for a religious festival? Was Alalakh producing furniture for export? Hopefully, we will be able to start to rule out some of these scenarios and thereby make the case for other ones as having been more likely," Lauinger added.
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