Written in cuneiform, this invoice is inscribed on a clay tablet dating back to the 15th century BCE, approximately 3,500 years ago.
Archaeologists recently discovered a clay tablet inscribed with one of the oldest invoices in the world in southern Turkey.
Written in cuneiform, the clay tablet dates back to the 15th century BCE, making it about 3,500 years old, and records a large purchase of furniture, according to IFLScience on July 23.
Akkadian text inscribed on a clay tablet discovered at Eski Alalah, Hatay Province, Turkey – (Photo: IHA).
Turkey’s Minister of Culture and Tourism, Mehmet Ersoy, stated that the research team discovered this remarkable artifact in the Eski Alalah area of Hatay Province. Also known as Accana Hill, this ancient site is located in the ancient city of Alalah, where workers were cleaning up after an earthquake and accidentally found the “clay invoice”.
Cuneiform is the oldest writing system in the world, developed around 5,500 years ago and used throughout ancient Mesopotamia for about 3,000 years. The texts inscribed on clay tablets were used by cultures such as Babylon, Assyria, and Sumer, each with its own language.
According to Minister Ersoy, the newly discovered invoice appears to be written in Akkadian – a language from the cuneiform writing system that was used by the ancient inhabitants of Mesopotamia.
The Akkadian Empire lasted for over a century, with its capital located at an undisclosed site along the Euphrates River. Its now-extinct dialect is the oldest among Semitic languages, which include Hebrew and Arabic.
Linguists are currently decoding the aforementioned text. The initial lines of the text record a large purchase of chairs, tables, and stools, along with the identities of the buyer and seller.
“We believe this clay tablet, weighing 28g, will provide a new perspective to better understand the economic structure and state system of the Late Bronze Age,” Minister Ersoy said.
In 2018, researchers found a clay tablet documenting a customer’s complaint about the unsatisfactory quality of copper he had purchased.
| According to IFLScience, scholars often struggle to decode messages in ancient scripts, but the task of interpreting each cuneiform symbol may become significantly easier thanks to the development of an artificial intelligence system capable of translating Akkadian and other languages with 97% accuracy. However, understanding each line remains a challenge. |
