The Date of Šuruppak Sale Document

Abstract

For a long time the date of the Šuruppak tablets has been the subject of controversy. However, since R. D. Biggs concluded that these tablets can be placed in the EDIIIa Period, his proposal seems to be widely accepted today.
This paper will reexamine this view and argue that the Šuruppak tablets actually belong to a different period. To substantiate this view, we will investigate the usage of ku₃-luh-ha in the Šuruppak sale documents and royal inscriptions and administrative documents of the other cities. The term ku₃-luh-ha is used in the time between Entemena and Uruinimgina, rulers of Lagaš in the EDIIIb Period. This fact leads to the conclusion that the date of the Šuruppak sale documents belong to the second half of the EDlllb Period.
This paper will also investigate the order of the person attesting in bal-PN, the date system of Šuruppak sale documents. The persons are classified into two groups according to the material for payment, urudu group and ku₃-luh-ha group. It is possible to assume that the one proceeds the other.