1

Foreign Trade

"Let the Dilmun boats be loaded with timber.

Let the Magan boats be loaded sky-high.

Let the magilum boats of Meluhha

Transport gold and silver

And bring them to Nippur for Enlil, king of all the lands."

-"Enki and the world order" (1)

Introduction

The religious poem highlights intensive overseas contacts between foreign lands of Dilmun, Magan, Meluhha (mentioned in the order of moving away from the mouth of the Twin Rivers), and the Land of Sumer being symbolized by Nippur. "Magilum boats" possibly correspond to Indus great cargo ships.

The trade is a multi-functional activity; it refers to both utilitarian and elite consumption. The former can be single-staged (cereals consumed as bread or beer) or multi-staged (partially smelted copper ingots to be transformed into refined copper, alloyedwith tin to be fashioned into bronze items, recycled as scrap metal,and eventually reproduced in another milieu. The latter contains luxury objects, which can remain in the family line for several generations and serve as a status marker or can be buried as grave goods accompanying the owner in his eternal journey.

Commercial instincts are inherent to mankind, and to deny the ingenious inter-tribe exchange between hunter-gatherers in the prehistoric society is to disclaim any contacts with strangers. The earliest evidence of trade is hidden at the dustbins of pristine sedentary communities that conducted barter deals with the neighboring nomadic groups. The initial "fingerprints" of mercantilecontacts can be detected in cultivation of foreign plants and importof tools, items, and materials which had been brought from afar. These trans-cultural links were individual, sporadic, spontaneous, and fragile as the failure in striking a bargain could lead to an all-out clash.

2

Foreign trade is a voluntary pumping over of badly needed commodities from the land of plenty to the island of deficiency. It is part of the human nature that gained momentum with the arrival ofthe Neolithic era. This period created two antagonistic but mutuallydependent lifestyles (of agriculturalists and pastoralists), which were welded by an unbreakable chain of supply and demand.

Some people settled on fertile plains; others continued to wander with their livestock, and still others took control of mineral resources. Each group possessed a unique commodity that it was willing to share with others. The transition to sedentary life led to the accumulation of food surplus–the basic commodity whose value diminishes with time. However, it could be exchanged for what the villagers lacked namely vital raw materials and fancy items. Nomads for whom the movement was the way of life and the time was basically non-existent, established the early contacts. In case of failure, it was at least worth trying. In a momentum of success, thegain was worth taking the risk. On the other hand, the same dissociated vagabonds could wilfully assault passing caravans causing disruption of established routes.

The next stage occurred when advanced village communities discovered the potential of the waterborne trade, both along riverbanks and shorelines. Badly needed commodities could be delivered to the bulk-off points and loaded on boats for further transportation.

The third stage coincided with the Sumerian takeoff when the pristine city-states found themselves involved in the international trade. It was a well-organized exchange of commodities with fixed values between constant partners at an agreed period of time. This exchange was sponsored by a public household that possessed a surplus of agricultural products and manufactured goods earmarked for long-distance markets. The public institution would commission free traders to deliver the merchandise. These agents were entrusted with initial capital, necessary equipment (boats, containers), provisions, and servants for load-off service at the point of destination. The traders were supported by the Sumerian trade Diaspora, permanent settlers in the foreign territories who acted as the middlemen to facilitate the exchange of wares. The

3

fixed profit was delivered to the sponsor organization and redistributed as it thought best.

The so-called Sumerian expansion created a class of merchants,full-time traders who sometimes acted on behalf of the state; they played the crucial role in establishing diplomatic ties between ambitious governments. The life-long journey between the Scylla of high risk and Charybdis of extreme profit would open the window of business opportunities for messengers who gradually transformed intoself-employed entrepreneurs. The government acted not only as the major customer but also as the protector of lucrative trade. The emergence of the Mesopotamian trade Diaspora assumes the existence of stable diplomatic relations between the Sumerian elite and local chieftains.

In the course of the IV millennium, a web of long-distance trade embraced the whole Ancient Near East. This web could channel raw materials such as obsidian (black volcanic glass that provides asharp edge for tools and weapons), ornamental items (lapis lazuli), and manufactured products like chlorite bowls over hundreds of kilometers and dozens of travel days. Numerous intermediaries passedthese and other commodities down the line by from Anatolian highlands to the Indus Valley through Mesopotamia and the Gulf region and from the shores of the Levant to the deserts of the Central Asia via Mesopotamia, Elam, the Iranian Plateau, and Bactria(Afghanistan). The world trade network had never stopped stirring. Although it would be an exaggeration to claim that all these far-offterritories had bilateral relations, the exchange of commodities took place on a regular basis throughout the entire route. Foreign contacts followed a certain dynamics: extending or shrinking at times, they continued to sparkle. Each territory that formed the Ancient Orient possessed its unique resources, social structure of population, and means of transportation to add to the multi-colored picture.

Local rulers who were placed at different stages of power accumulation controlled this wide web of foreign trade. The elite groups needed an external mechanism for channeling prestige commodities and raw materials from the source of abundance to the destination of shortage. The economic bridge of inter-regional trade

4

was built by courageous entrepreneurs who took the risk, setting offalong hazardous itineraries with loads of badly needed goods.

The control of each community’s surplus was in the hands of the VIPs, so the bulk of foreign import served for the elite consumption, bridging the gap between concrete economic environment (skilled workforce, effective management, raw materials, means of transportation, and potential market) and ardent aspirations of the decision makers for a luxurious lifestyle.

The idea of urbanization became possible with the formation ofthe ruling class in the society. This class promoted long-distance trade as a chance of procuring exotic materials to be used as distinct status markers. Intercultural trade fed the elite’s insatiable appetite for power.

Local governments throughout the route promoted the cross-cultural trade. By following their narrow interests, they participated in the broadest network connecting lands across the Fertile Crescent and even beyond. The magnets of these contacts werethe complex societies of Egypt, Sumer, and the Indus Valley that offered an ever-growing market for all sorts of ideas, items, and services. Mediators whose welfare depended on the development of friendly relations occupied the key position in the external commerce. Merchants often acted both as emissaries of their rulers and as independent entrepreneurs. Trade agents were supplied with commodities by the public institution and had to bring back the settled quantity of exotic products or raw materials in due time. Outside the jurisdiction of the central agency, merchants could pursue their own luck, making personal profit or suffering private loss. They could extend the borrowed commodity as a short-term loan to other traders or take advantage of their personal property and additional means lent by private investors.

Their activities were protected by diplomatic agreements with local warlords who could benefit from this commerce. Foreign trade had transformed the face of the Western Asia. Many kingdoms mushroomed along the trade routes, deriving their power from cities that had emerged as break-off bulk stations with manufacture centersand travel services. These stations were established for further delivery of sumptuary goods in small quantities, and their workshopsserved for clearing impurities and producing finished goods.

5

The role of the middlemen both in overland delivery and waterborne transportation became decisive. The geographical locationwas crucial. Susa in Elam happened to stay on the crossroads of caravan routes and was exposed to Sumerian influence since the earlyIV millennium. Bahrain was an island that could supply fresh water and anchorage facilities for partners engaged in maritime commerce across the Gulf.

To facilitate the trade, mercantile partners needed the services of a negotiator. One Mesopotamian seal belonged to a personcalled Shu-Ilishu in a local dialect. Defined as a Meluhhan interpreter, he could be a man of mixed origin or even a direct descendant of Indian traders. On his seal, he is hovering in the airmediating between the local ruler and a group of foreign merchants. (2)

The commodity involved in a chain trade could shift many handsbefore reaching its final absorption. Sumerian trade with Dilmun serves a good example. Sumer received copper and timber and supplied(among other things) bitumen and obsidian– immediate trading partners imported all these commodities from other lands.

Sumerian economy was an amalgam composed of two intertwined and competing systems: the public sector versus the private sector. The public economy sprang up on the crest of the "urban wave" of theUruk period. It was run by temple corporations that accumulated a lion’s share of the community’s surplus (staple foodstuffs and manufactured goods). It was produced by the sweat of local population that delivered cheap compulsory labor for completion of contemporary public projects. The significant part of this share wasdrawn in commercial circulation according to the fixed prices established in each individual public household.

The private market flourished in areas uncovered by the clumsypublic sector, as they were considered too complicated or too risky.One of these areas was import-export operations with foreign marketsimplemented by bold entrepreneurs who were ready to take chances. The state authorities needed these people to make the state commerceprofitable. However, merchants rarely appeared on the temple payrolls, being content with the commission fees as a result of a good bargain.

6

Commodities were exchanged by barter or by comparing values against a conventional standard of currency. At the early III millennium, such standard was copper. According to the legal contracts of Shuruppak (the year 2600), there were three mediums of exchange. Deal partners preferred to measure the cost of their commodities in copper; silver was less popular, and barley very unusual. Toward the end of the millennium silver ousted all the other means.

Each sector used its favorite means of exchange. The state sector preferred barley: it was a staple grain, it had several functions, and it was plenty so a large portion of each yield was earmarked for external trade. The private sector stuck to silver since it was a precious, portable, non-perishable, and reusable metal carried in the form of bars, rings, or coils of wire. "Ring money" resembled bedsprings or wire coils. Merchants would wear pieces of silver on demand until the price of the two commodities could be balanced.

It was easily divided into smaller parts to ensure precise weight. We even know the exchange rate of the two "currencies", that is units of weight devoid of monetary value since coins were non-existent: one silver shekel (8.4 gram) during the Ur III period could buy a load of barley (300 liters). Weights were made of hard stone such as hematite and shaped as barrels or wild animals (a reposing duck or a sitting bear).

Sumerian foreign trade was institutionally tuned rather than sporadic, was the result of a team spirit rather than an individual effort and included protective measures to safeguard trading routes,allowing free flow of people, products, and ideas. This trade enterprise aimed at acquiring foreign raw materials and fancy items and creating distant markets for Sumerian surplus goods.

The cross-cultural trade assumed the acquisition of prestigious foreign commodities and their transportation, whole and undamaged, to the metropolis. The state involvement assumed protection of trade routes and striking diplomatic accords with foreign powers to ensure the free communication. Trade agents were interested in finding a variety of resources of the same raw material to escape its dwindling and unstable delivery.

7

The urban development of the early IV millennium was characterized by unheard–of concentration of population in emerging cities. Southern urban settlements rose in close vicinity and maintained commercial links. Such high density of population led to the growing power of administration which supervised digging of a vast network of canals, the production of workshops, severing of bureaucratic accounting and report, and narrowing of market misbalance between demand and supply.

In order to control long-distance trade routes, Sumerians set up settlements deep into foreign territories and entered into friendly relations with local population on the basis of barter exchange. The merchants of the alluvium exported the products of their land (cereals, dates), rivers (fish) and manufactured goods (linen and woolen textiles and leather items). The situation deteriorated in the Jemdet Nasr period. Colonies were under constantpressure of alien tribes and eventually had to be abandoned or faceddestruction. Many former trade routes were locked, and new links andmarkets were established.

The so-called Uruk expansion featured aggressive commercial interference into resource-rich but poorly organized regions with extended land routes into remote areas loosely connected with the centers of power.

The palace of the III millennium inherited from the temple theleading role in the economy. This "public enterprise" ran an enormous industrial complex producing, in particular, wool and textiles. Leading merchants were commissioned by rulers to sell off products of state manufacture. Moreover, casual foreign trade operations were presented in the "royal" propaganda as the tribute from dependent territories to the local deity and its human deputy.

Apart from commercial opportunities, the palace used a military option as a steering-wheel of mercantile policy. The borderconflicts of the early city-states were a light warm-up before the bloody battles of Akkadian emperors who used warfare not only for consolidation of power but also for uncorking blocked trade routes. However, the Akkadian emperors were the first Mesopotamian rulers who realized the necessity of the unification of commercial network;they introduced the uniform system of weights and measures. The

8

second unification, also in the framework of the empire building, was undertaken by the kings of Ur.

Most of commercial transactions were struck near at hand as merchants utilized friendly ties with their colleagues from neighboring cities. However, some fearless entrepreneurs ventured more risky journeys setting up mutually beneficial relations with alien chieftains. In the Sumerian poem "Enmerkar and the Lord of Aratta", the emissary of the Uruk ruler acts as a broker, assisting in exchanging foreign luxury items for local agricultural production: "Choose from the troops as a messenger one who is eloquent of speech and endowed with endurance". (3)

A trade network was supported by a number of routes: most of the cities lay at the riverbanks or along feeder canals. These "liquid thoroughfares" of commerce were navigated by rafts, coracles, and river boats. Each respectable city had a quay–a bustling shopping center with a special walled quarter for the residence of foreign merchants. Unwelcome guests at the city premises; they were well-received in the suburbs. An official clerk dubbed "the innkeeper of the harbor" was appointed to see to their accommodation and allegedly to spy on them.

The temples and the docks were ingredients of magic glue that combined various spheres of the urban life. Local markets sprang up around ceremonial centers and city gates while foreign markets were focused at the quay.

At initial stages, international trade covered mostly luxury wares destined for elite consumption. Chlorite vessels, produced in Iranian workshops, decorated the homes of influential people both onthe alluvial plain of Sumer and in the Indus valley. The demand was so intense that an additional enterprise, based on imported raw material, was lauched on Tarut isdland in the Gulf. The style was the same, no matter of the place of manufacture, as it was a prestige item designed to please representatives of different cultures.

Table 6. Location of resources: Ancient Middle East

Uruk expansion

9

The grab for power of the Sumerian elite presupposed acquisition of exotic goods for themselves and their gods. The resources of these materials were located in far-off lands; the geography of trade was expanding. Some of these natural reserves layin God-forgotten regions controlled by hostile tribes and affected by harsh physical and climatic conditions. The winding paths across the steep mountain slopes in Badakhshan province of Bactria (Afghanistan) were reachable only three months a year. Lapis lazuli,a semiprecious gemstone of magic blue color, applied in jewelry as beads or supplements to figurines; stones of the poorer quality inlaid with vein of different hues were put aside for seals.

Sumerian merchants tapped into international exchange traffic fishing for high quality timber, base and precious metals, and semiprecious stones.

Uruk-style settlements housed not only traders but also craftsmen, among them metalworkers engaged in refinement of silver and copper smelting. During the so-called Uruk expansion, (Uruk in this context refers to the period rather than the city) considerablepart of Sumerian population was moving into new homes in neighboringlands. Newcomers developed several patterns of living which reflected their determination and purpose. Some of these residence areas were founded on virgin soil (Habuba Kabira South on middle Euphrates) and enclosed by fortification walls. Others were set up atop totally destructed sites (Tell Hamoukar, north Syria). We can imply a violent confrontation between old-timers and newcomers. Still others encapsulated into existing local villages (Hacinebe, southern Turkey) occupying a separate quarter. Sumerians deliberately distanced themselves from indigenous citizens. Sumerianinfluence was so overwhelming that not infrequently indigenous artists and architects introduced "foreign" motifs into their monumental buildings and wall paintings.

The location of Sumerian "colonies" was not accidental. They cropped up at bulk-breaking points or production centers or at the junctions of river routes with overland communication tracks supporting traffic of metals, high quality timber, precious stones, and elite finished goods.

Civil administrators who relied upon a team of bureaucrats ranthe newly founded "colonies". The city layouts expose the existence

10

of the master plan. Strong mud brick walls with protruding towers and fortified gates encircled them. The "colonies" encompassed cultic-administrative, industrial, and densely populated residentialareas. Their public buildings were oriented to the cardinal points according to the tripartite floor plan. Mud-brick columns and walls were balanced by niched and buttressed facades and decorated with cone mosaics arranged in recognizable shapes. Even the shape and dimension of mud bricks copied the patterns of southern Mesopotamia.Their domestic buildings with such features as "middle hall" house and a walled courtyard also imitated homeland conventions.

Their trade operations were based on familiar record-keeping technology which included cylinder seals, clay balls and tokens, andnumerical tablets. The fact that they never used lexical tablets canlink the collapse of the Uruk expansion to the end of the Uruk period. In spite of the fact that "colonists" lived at the backyard of the Sumerian world, they tried to maintain the metropolitan life-style in the "barbarian" environment.

Most of southern emigrants were cultural outcasts. They grew their own cereals, supplying farmers with fired clay sickles. They raised their own livestock. They weaved their own clothes providing weavers with ceramic spindle whorls. They imported blocks of bitumento waterproof their houses and boats. They produced their own pots and pans, often thrown on the wheel, applying specific decorative techniques (burnishing, incising). They sealed their wares with impressed mushroom-shaped jar stoppers. They balanced their merchandise on crucified-groomed stone weights.

New settlers kept their cultural affinity with homeland; they were very traditional in their culinary preferences. Most of them consumed the meat of small cattle while Anatolian population ate almost equal amounts of pigs, cattle, sheep, and goats. (4) Even their trash they discarded on separate collecting points. Their favorite drinks were beer and wine.

The Uruk expansion is a geo-political term describing the emergence of the Sumerian trade Diaspora outside Lower Mesopotamia throughout the Uruk period. The "expansion" penetrated into neighboring territories of western Iran, north Syria, and southeast Anatolia; it continued (in different locations) nearly six centuries. Mesopotamian traders attempted to tap into supply routes

11

and divert as much traffic of valuable goods as possible toward their homeland. To achieve this goal, they occupied strategic spots along major caravan routes and waterways or at river crossing points. This advancement actually fuelled the Sumerian "take-off".

It is easier to present this economic network in a negative rather than in a positive way. It didn’t result in any military, political, religious, or even economic control over resource-rich territories. The trade between Sumerian implanted "colonies" and local traders was based on what both sides considered as fair play. Anyway, no traces of brutal exploitation of mineral wealth or woodland of the "depended territories" have been found. This accounts to the fact that these residential areas had survived so long.

The appearance of new foreign settlements was by no means violation of the existing political status quo. Southern traders were involved in local economic patchwork, fishing for indigenous orimported products that could be of great value back home.

The Sumerian heartland was lacking plenty of natural resourceswhich could eventually slow down its economic progress. In particular, production of tools and weapons heavily depended on metal imports. Furthermore, the internal competition between southern urban leaders led to acquiring of prestige goods for the decoration of temples and also for raising personal self-esteem.

The economic impact was restricted to acquisition of extravagant goods ("noble" metals and semi-precious stones) as well as bulk trade in a number of raw materials (building stone, fine timbers, and base metals). The driving force behind the scenes was the elite consumption, which led to the consolidation of power. Thisconsumption was based on an ardent desire of the Sumerian elite to immortalize the life-style and social benefits of the metropolitan high society.

The Uruk expansion marked a daring attempt to superimpose a revolutionary model of well-calculated trade on a traditional down-the-line pattern of foreign commerce based on beaten tracks and river crossing points. Southern traders managed to gain control overconventional trade routes, forming a closed circuit of inter-dependency between the well-greased economies of the Land of Sumer

12

and emerging complex societies of foreign territories. Due to the lack of military coercion, this impact could not be accomplished without diplomatic agreements with local chieftains. (This statementcannot be accepted without reservations presented in Unit 8 section "The Origin of the War" where a military shade would cast a serious doubt on allegedly peaceful commercial activity).

Both parties donated their expertise to the mutual benefit. Foreign trade had transformed modest cultic and industrial peripheral centers into full-fledged cities. It also forced Sumerianproducers to change their economic priorities, shifting from cultivating flax mostly for local market to herding wool-bearing sheep earmarked for alien consumption. Part of the foreign exchange included the slave trade, especially in females being engaged at wool manufacture. The finished product was bartered for other necessities; its low cost price made such commerce a real bargain.

The very existence of newcomers depended on friendly relationswith aboriginal population; they had to share their profits with local authorities who could willfully shut the faucet.

The industrious settlers copied the urban landscape of their homeland in town planning and administrative practices, transformingthe once neglected place into an advanced location where wheeled vehicles were moving along paved main streets and water was channeled through ceramic pipes. The same architectural principles were applied for construction of temples and elite residences. Sumerian craftsmen developed wheel-made mass-produced pottery vital for redistribution economy, and boat-building which was essential for waterborne transportation.

As a rule, these "colonies" were close to major peripheral production centers. They were established in locations where Sumerians had vested economic interests. Many settlements had existed for centuries, having acquired the status of expatriate communities. "Colonists" enjoyed the privilege of incentive: their counterparts didn’t play such an active role in the long-distance trade. Anyway, we are unaware of any foreign outposts in southern Mesopotamia.

The moderate economic exploitation of the alien market was softened by the minimum political interference in the life of

13

indigenous population. The power was in the hands of local chieftains while Sumerian merchants acted as middlemen in the long-distance exchange of native commodities to the metropolitan goods. The status of foreign traders was fully protected by diplomatic agreements between decision-makers from both sides. Though the relations were based on equal exchange, Uruk representatives were more mature in negotiations and had more resources, so they managed to make very profitable bargains. It might be that a rapid growth ofthe "colonies" (some of them became medium-sized cities) and their material prosperity together with cultural arrogance eventually madecracks in the concrete of mutual relations, lowering "colonists" to the unwelcome status in the eyes of district rulers. (This statementcannot be proved except mentioning the fact that the population of southern enclaves could exist sustaining their cultural isolation for many generations (150 years in Habuba Kabira or 400 years in Tepe Hacinebe) without mixing with alien residents.

There is no easy way to explain the almost synchronic Sumerianwithdrawal as it wasn’t accompanied by any visible collapse in military, economic, or ecological terms. In some cases, local elitesreturned to former traditions in construction and art; sometimes, local urban population downsized to village communities; otherwise, it was wiped out by new waves of nomadic immigrants. Certain settlements even outlived the collapse of the Uruk expansion. Tell Hamoukar, in north-eastern Syria, grew from 13 to 102 hectares and continued flourishing.

Even friendly relations with local elites and fair play between lifelong partners couldn’t protect against alien invaders orsmooth over internal conflicts. However, the trade contacts between Sumer and the periphery were going on even after the dismantling of southern colonies-only this time, the alien elites would provide thewholesale control of the flow of goods passing through their territory.

Uruk expansion ended in the middle of the song. We are challenged with inconclusive evidence. Some colonies were deliberately destroyed, others were abandoned. The cause can be an enormous political crisis in Sumer which disrupted the trade links. It can't be ruled out that at least part of Mesopotamian "colonists"

14

intermarried with local population and became assimilated. In this case there should be no need in expatriation.

The Gulf trade

Long distance trade preceded the state formation. The boat models inserted among grave goods and Ubaid ceramics dispersed in fishing villages along the Gulf coastline serve conspicuous evidencefor early contacts between Mesopotamia and its maritime neighbors. No less eloquent are slabs of bitumen. These slabs with reed impressions on the obverse and barnacles on the reverse were hacked away from waterproof covering of reed boats employed in coastal voyages. Throughout Mesopotamian history, this smelly black substance was applied as a recyclable material for maintenance of watercraft: it was periodically chipped off, refined, heated, and reused. Bitumen applied for caulking was mixed with chopped reed andminerals. A regular boat would consume several tons of coating. Smooth clay models often possess raised prows and sterns, and a flatbottom. Some samples are pierced to show holes for rigging and have a circular socket in the hull's bottom amidships for the mast to demonstrate their sailing potential.

A rare painting on a ceramic disk displays a two-masted boat (the researcher sees it as a bipod mast) whose upright poles are slightly slanted toward each other. The vessel has a crescent-shapedhull. (5)

This shape is often encountered in sacred and ceremonial boatsof later periods that are manned by two sailors: one punting at the front while the other paddling or steering at the back. These vessels, that conventionally carry a shrine or officials engaged in ritual activities, wear eloquent names like "the ibex of the deep" or "the ornament of the current". (6)

Boats were designed for various applications. A narrow and sleek silver model from Ur (the year 2500) is a canoe-shaped riverboat with wooden seats and paddles: it is born for speed and fit for hunting or warfare. (7)

At the turn of the III and II millennia, many boats were made of timber. The Babylonian encyclopedic dictionary HAR-RA=hubullu lists about 125 terms for watercraft (8) including wooden parts suggesting that wooden plank construction had been an established

15

tradition. Local pine supplied these planks, sewn to each other by ropes, while other sections and accessories were provided by juniper, date palm, poplar, and willow. Prestigious vessels demandedcedar and other imported lumber from the Amanus region, Elam, and the Gulf.

At the time when Sumerian colonies in the east and west were struggling for their survival, at the time when temple administrators at Uruk engaged in compiling early records of incoming and out-coming goods, a new inspiration for cross-cultural trade sprang up in the south.

At the dawn of seafaring, Sumerian sailors didn’t dare to ply high waves preferring to sail in the shallow and calm waters along the eastern coast of the Gulf. Their geographical vision was radically blurred. Some of Sumerian legends are staged in distant lands; however, their outlandish descriptions are borrowed from dreams rather than travel logs. Ur-Nanshe, the governor of Lagash, boasted in the year 2520: "The ships of Dilmun brought him wood as atribute from foreign lands". (9)The ruler imagines that this maritime power with far-reaching contacts with unknown territories pays him duties in fine timber as the price for peace and protection.

The only foreign sea land that they heard of was Dilmun which was hidden somewhere between the marshlands of Sumer and the mountains of Oman. Its washed-away contours transformed it into a pure and sacred place full of miracles and treasures. For Sumerians,it was their Paradise, a hideout of the only mortal couple who had survived the fury and rage of the Flood, and miraculously, an entrepot of foreign trade with an entrance securely guarded by a customs officer.

Dilmun was initially associated with the eastern Arabian coastand offshore islands such as Tarut, where a stone workshop of the early III millennium was identified; it specialized in the manufacture of priced chlorite vases.

Archaic texts of Uruk disclose early contacts with Dilmun, a strip of land across the Lower Sea (the Persian Gulf), where the suninvariably rises. A Dilmun date is a fruit of a prized date palm raised overseas. Glorified for its prettiness and sweet taste, it

16

was often compared to a beautiful woman. A Dilmun axe is a specific item forged from imported copper. A Dilmun tax-collector is a local official who would impose duties on traders shipping foreign commodities into his hometown. Dilmun was also renowned for its pearls, metaphorically called "fish eyes", though its well-being wasbased on trade in copper.

Though the area of Dilmun is devoid of copper deposits, copiesare found in abundance in the neighboring Oman. Its mountains are the birthplace of a legendary Copper Mount of Sumerian literature. We can imply that even at this early date bun-shaped metal ingots from South Arabia were delivered to Sumer. This luxurious commodity was earmarked for "public institutions" and VIPs. Besides decoratingtemples and elite residences, the red-orange metal also served as a means of exchange.

Magan was much richer in natural resources. It boasted of its onions but its trade focused on export of copper and diorite. Besides, both countries abounded in overseas wares from Meluhha which sent high quality timber and an assemblage of finished goods: carnelian beads and ivory objects (boxes, combs, figurines, and furniture decorations).

All these overseas territories were familiar to Mesopotamians on behalf of their ports in coastal settlements and on islands. Dilmun was Sumer's nearest trade partner in the Lower Sea; it embraced the western littoral from modern Kuwait to the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia, the Bahrain archipelago, and the islands of Tarut and Failaka. Magan, next in line, occupied the Oman Peninsula including the coastlines of the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman, and the nearby islands, such as Umm-an-Nar. Meluhha, the "end of the world" destination, spread along the eastern seaboard ofthe Gulf of Oman and the Arabian Sea from Sutkagen-Dor on the Makrancoast to Lothal in the Gulf of Cambay.

Lothal was a large production center which specialized in making beads and ivory objects as well as metal working and pottery.Located not far from the river mouth and the seaboard, it featured alarge brick basin which functioned as a dock for sea-going vessels. This basin was connected to the river through its inlet channel and to the gulf via its outlet channel with a sluice gate.

17

The Persian Gulf is a long and narrow branch of the Indian Ocean. It doesn’t scare industrious travelers with high waves and devastating storms, providing a relatively comfortable and brief voyage. The coastal strip of mainland was studded with small fishingvillages which offered shelters where boats could be repaired, and travelers were able to replenish their victuals and conduct small trade.

Traveling in the Gulf was seasonal. Mariners set sail in late winter and spring catching the prevailing winds. Those who were familiar with a pattern of monsoons could proceed further to India and come back in October.

Sea craft needed much cargo capacity. Ships having displacement of 60 GUR (18 tons) and 120 GUR (36 tons) were not unusual. The former had 13.5 m length and the latter 16 m at the waterline. (10) With an average speed of 1.75 knots per hour and a sailing day of 12 hours, 480 km (259 nautical miles) from the head of the Gulf to Bahrain can be covered in 12 days. The entire one-waytrip to Um-nar-Mar island off the coast of Magan, which is distanced702 nautical miles from Ur, may take 33 days.

Bahrain’s main harbor at Qala’at al-Bahrain became a transshipment point of cross-cultural trade; it attracted people of all walks of life growing into an urban settlement. On the down side, its agricultural output lagged far behind the pace of population explosion. Sumerian goods well matched the needs of the burgeoning city, flooding local markets with cereals, woolen textiles and garments, sesame and linseed oils, leather goods, and fine ceramics. Besides, Mesopotamian traders would deliver merchandise (such as silver and bitumen) imported from elsewhere. Cereals were the main export product sent in bulk. Sources speak about individual shipments of 21,000-24,000 liters, while wool-another sizeable commodity-was delivered in quantities up to two tons. Textiles served as a luxury. They were sent by piece in small amounts of 15-70 items (11).

By the Ur III period, Sumerian sailors managed to establish direct trade relations with Magan through its western coastal entrepots such as the island Umm-an-Nar whose residents traded in copper, diorite, fine timbers, and red ochre.

18

The imperial age led to trade wars; some of them occurred in Magan. Both Manishtusu and Naram-Sin sent troops there in a treasurehunt; their victories paved the way to quarrying diorite from local hills to be shipped as booty to Agade. These campaigns look more like raiding expeditions for highly-priced commodity in the Gilgamesh style than even a short-term military occupation of a dependent territory. At peaceful times, Magan boats sailed upstream the Euphrates to reach the capital city of the Akkadian empire. The contacts with Magan were lost at the turn of the III and II millennia. In the Old Babylonian period, the maritime foreign trade was limited to the near abroad, Bahrain and Failaka. Bahrain owed its role to a unique strategic position: it was an island (almost invulnerable for military attacks) at the close approach to the littoral; it had lavish supplies of fresh water and was renowned forits dates and pearls.

However impressive had been the achievements of Mesopotamian seamen, they had to fade in front of the genuine superstar of international trade that came from Meluhha or the Indus valley civilization whose maritime network embraced the Baluchistan coast, the mouth of the Indus River and the Gulf of Cambay. Here, by the middle of the III millennium, a new urban complex society with a strong call for commerce had emerged. Indus authorities established production centers where craftsmen were engaged in the manufacture of specific luxury goods: etched carnelian beads, ivory articles, orsea shell items. Indus mariners were the first to break through the bottleneck of the Strait of Hormuz from the Arabian Sea, reaching the hospitable harbors of the Persian Gulf where they discovered fantastic business opportunities.

Ancient navigation was affected by the behavior of monsoon winds in the Indian Ocean: these seasonal winds periodically reversetheir direction, blowing northeast from winter to spring and southwest from summer to autumn. According to rare drawings and sealimages, Indus seafarers would sail in single-masted plank-built cargo vessels with upturned prows and flat angular sterns or symmetrically raised and curved bows and sterns. This watercraft wasrigged with two steering oars or side rudders at the stern and a square sail made of palm leaf or cotton cloth. A cabin was located in the middle of a hull.

19

Indus traders found in Sumer an extensive and fast-growing market for their merchandise: fine timbers, carnelian beads, ivory combs and figurines, lamps and cosmetic palettes from conch shell, gold dust and base metals (copper, lead). They took pains establishing the trade settlement in far-off Shortugai (in Badakshanmountains of northern Afghanistan) to monopolize export of lapis lazuli and tin to Mesopotamia. In Magan, they participated in the copper trade. In Dilmun, they introduced Harappan stone cubical weights. In Sumer, they put up a village for foreign guests. It is hard to tell what they were after except that they had vested interests in long-distance commerce. They were fascinated by the lands across the Gulf and planned to stay there for good.

When this spot appears in documents, it is located in Ur III Lagash province, not far from a port town of Gu'aba. The villagers are fully assimilated residents who carry Mesopotamian names-all except one called Meluhha-according to the name of the village and the country of his ancestors. They engaged in cereal cultivation andstored grain in a local granary. They paid barley taxes and sold thesurplus to state officials. There was a Meluhha garden devoted to atemple of a Sumerian goddess.

Harappan merchants were involved both in Mesopotamian economy and social life. A man with an Akkadian name is called a "holder of a Meluhha ship". (12) Another man with an unusual name Lu-Sunzida ("a man of a just buffalo cow") was an Indus trader who had to pay ten shekels of silver as a compensation for a broken tooth. (13) Perhaps, in the course of a brawl that broke up in a tavern!

However, merchants of Dilmun and Magan dreamed of taking a grip on the Gulf trade and attempted to break the monopoly of Harappan traders. By the time of Sargon, the harbor of his capital indiscriminately hosted vessels from Meluhha, Magan, and Dilmun. An inscription on a statue of Sargon donated to Enlil runs: "Ships fromMeluhha, Magan, and dilmun made fast at the dock of Akkad". (14) In the Ur III period, the relations with Magan seemed to overshadow theother partners, and toward the end of the Sumerian empire we hear nothing of Meluhhan watercraft. In the early II millennium, Dilmun managed to lay its hands on this lucrative trade, becoming the largest entrepot of the region putting an end to the Mesopotamian mercantile romance with the world outside the Persian Gulf.

20

By wheel and wind: watercraft and road vehicles

The wheel belongs to a long list of unpatented discoveries that have revolutionized our life. The invention of the wheel has drastically facilitated transportation of bulky and heavy objects, especially on an even surface and within short distances. As you remember, the alluvial plain featured both factors: it was as even as a table and was dotted with settlements. The early wheeled vehicles could travel along paved streets in the cities and dirt roads in the countryside. However, their primary function was to serve spiritual rather than practical needs.

The chronic lack of hard timber minimizes the chance that thisinvention occurred on Mesopotamian soil. Specifically, southern floodplain should be excluded as a suitable testing ground for a long series of experiments that had surely preceded this magnificentdiscovery. In addition, its completed form hides numerous improvements that had forerun its application. The idea must have been imported from abroad. Due to the high cost of wood and an obvious connection with the foreign trade, the use of the wheeled transport in Sumer was limited to temple households, particularly for conveying sculptures of gods or their human actors in ceremonialprocessions.

The early traces of the wheeled transport in the form of a four-wheeled wagon appear among archaic pictographic signs of Uruk, placing the introduction of this vehicle around the mid-IV millennium.

To avoid cracking, the wooden wheel up to 1meter in diameter featured a composite disc made of three planks clamped by two crosspieces and rimmed with leather tires or copper studs. In the center, there was a round hole for an axle, which rotated together with the two wheels. The axle was attached to the wheel with a linchpin. On the wagon, there was a roofed superstructure, a throne covered by an arched tilt for a seated divine statue or its human image.

An ox or a pair of oxen drew a heavy wagon mainly made of wood; their slow ride added solemnity to the ceremony. A pole-and yoke harness provided the draught; a driver who would pull a line connected to a nose ring corrected it.

21

The Early Dynastic period, characterized by a dominant role ofcivilian governors, marked numerous changes in application and structure of the wheeled transport. The composite disc wheel was getting smaller; it was made of two boards fashioned as half circlesand rimmed with protruding copper nails. The axle became fixed to the wagon floor, allowing faster rotation of wheels. Lubricants likeanimal fats and vegetable oils lessened the friction between wheels and an axle. The wagon lost its superstructure; it featured a rectangular box with high front screen, low side screens, and a seatfor a driver. A team of four donkeys pulled the vehicle. The conventional draught system was invented for oxen having short necksand broad shoulders. The harness of donkeys had to be supported by aband tied to their throats. It didn’t allow the animals to run in full swing, pulling the wagon by their long necks rather than by narrow shoulders. The yoke made possible to move forward, prevented backward movement and made turning neither fast nor safe.

The main drawbacks of the wheeled vehicles were heavy weight, low speed, and poor maneuvering. The solution was found in liberating the wheels to allow free rotation. Later, some sections of the wheel were cut out to lighten its weight.

Trade routes, which were basically dirt roads trustworthy onlyin dry season, were straightened and widened in the age of empires for both commercial and military purposes. The maintenance of roads was of royal concern, and several kings added road building to the list of their achievements: "The year when ... the king put the roadfrom below to above in order" (15)

The Ur III emperor Shulgi boasted about establishing road innswhere his messengers could repose after a long day journey. He also claimed that he had planted forests along the highways.

Overland traffic on donkeys was headed to permanent transshipment points (such as Mari on the Euphrates and Nineveh on the Tigris) where goods were reloaded on boats.

A military modification of a four-wheeled wagon was used at battlefields but, taking into consideration its faults, it was unlikely to strike a decisive blow against the enemy. It was probably used for carrying weapons and chief officers closer to the front line. Later, during victory parades, it contributed to the

22

prestige of military commanders. Its two-wheeled version probably served for fast courier communication and for hunting, especially ona prearranged route within a confined area.

Further developments of the wheeled vehicle that actually transformed it into the chariot, namely the introduction of spoked wheels and the use of horse as a draft animal, had made real difference on a battlefield. However, these innovations lie beyond the chronological frame of this research. Sumerian and Akkadian warswere won and lost on foot.

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….

Distant water transportation was preferable over overland delivery since it was shorter, safer, and cheaper. Bulk travel on land could not be sustained without beasts of burden, vast food supplies, strong convoy, and a valuable commodity whose price could outweigh all the odds of a painful journey. Besides, it was much easier to ambush traders on a narrow winding path in the hilly countryside than to hijack sailors on a wide river struggling with aturbulent current.

An average river boat could carry 1-11 GUR of burden (300-3300kilograms). Just to lift the highest amount one has to hire 110 porters or 37 donkeys. Taking the distance into the account, the river delivery was unbeatable. A downstream trip from Hacinebe to Uruk (1360 kilometers) could take 39-45 days making 30-35 kilometersa day. The problem was a return trip when boats should be towed 10-20 kilometers a day depending on a number of haulers. The journey could spread for 68-136 days. (16)

The traditional vessels that plied the waterways of Mesopotamia were the coracle, a circular skin boat, and the reed-bundle boat or raft with or without a sail. The coracle featured animal hides stretched over a wooden frame; it served as a ferryboatin calm waters of low reaches of the Twin Rivers. Circular boats haddifferent sizes and cargo capacity. While sailing downstream, they were paddled. However, the upstream movement was impossible due to an unfavorable wind. On arriving to the final destination, the boat was dismantled, its wooden parts sold and the hides kept ready for the reverse overland trip. The reed-bundle boat was coated with

23

bitumen and used for downstream floating. On the way back, a team ofprofessional barge haulers towed it.

For the sake of low-wave coastal seafaring in the Gulf, which could be performed in any weather, crescent-like reed-bundle boats and boat-shaped log rafts were applied. They had a flat bottom, a symmetrically curved bow and stern, a single square sail secured by ropes, and were adorned with an animal or bird figurehead. They wereoperated by a two-man crew: a seated man at a stern was paddling while a standing sailor at the bow was punting with a wooden pole. The same watercraft without a sail served for traffic along the rivers; not accidentally, early Sumerian scribes chose its symbol asa pictograph for a vessel.

In the III millennium, watercraft had undergone far-reaching modifications. Wooden plank-built boats made their appearance both for river transportation and coastal seafaring. Some river vessels were rigged with a sail. The largest boats had a crew of a dozen sailors. The craft usually belonged to public enterprises and was rented by captains who carried responsibility for the safe delivery of goods.

The importance of water transport can be illustrated by the following example that sheds light on contemporary political arrangements. When Uruk, his capital city, was suffering from famine, the last Sumerian emperor Ibbi-Sin sent his authorized representative Ishbi-Erra to buy grain in western provinces not affected by the crop failure. On completing the mission, the agent claimed that he was unable to dispatch grain for the lack of suitable boats. As Ibbi-Sin couldn’t meet this challenge, Ishbi-Erratook advantage of the situation and proclaimed himself the alternative king. The great empire had been split for the lack of river craft!

Conclusion

The footsteps of trade are difficult to trace; the archeological context is rather patchy and the written record is hardly reliable until mid-III millennium. We can assume that mutual trade interests existed in the Near East from the rise of early cities, that the curve of urbanization led to the emergence of permanent commercial contacts, and that the military leadership

24

eventually managed to take the upper hand in the multi-cultural exchange. The reasons for this include the typical Mesopotamian pottery in a number of fishing villages on the Gulf shore, a set of Sumerian administrative tools in an Anatolian city, a local functionary at Uruk receiving taxes from overseas commerce, and the fabulous grave goods from foreign lands in the "royal" cemetery of Ur.

This modest evidence of trade doesn’t allow us to jump to conclusions towards the total volume of commerce. We can only assumethat trade contacts were mutually profitable.

The cross-cultural trade inevitably led to the emergence of numerous complex societies. Nevertheless, this process was neither straight-forward nor synchronic. On the initial stage, Sumer could not perform solo. The southern authorities created a network of urban settlements in foreign lands, which acted as middlemen responsible for acquiring sumptuous resources or raw materials in exchange for locally produced or imported goods.

The Uruk expansion flourished as a result of organized trade: accumulation of merchandise in central depots, its delivery to pre-arranged destinations, and well-calculated profit. On the other hand, foreign trade assisted the concentration of power as the Sumerian elite took control of the labor pool, agricultural surpluses, manufactured items, uninterrupted flow of goods, and resources.

The cross-cultural trade assumed the acquisition of prestigious foreign commodities and their transportation, whole and undamaged, to the metropolis. The state involvement was confined to protection of trade routes and striking diplomatic accords with foreign powers to ensure the free communication. Apart from economicproliferation, the diplomacy advanced reconnaissance in the anticipation of future wars.

The early entrepreneurs of the organized trade were probably messengers sent to establish friendly relations with powerful chiefs. The hymn to the goddess Nanshe (17) testifies that those traders were sometimes crooked; it condemns those who play an unfairgame faking weights and measures.

25

Ancient Mesopotamian economies didn’t recognize "money" as either the universal substitute for commodities or as a conventionalmeans of payment. Since there was no universal standard, different commodities functioned as the money equivalent, e.g. barley, copper,or silver. Toward the end of the Sumerian civilization, this role was often played by silver. Bartered goods were defined in terms of silver value and safely exchanged though the precious metal itself rarely switched hands. "Ring money" resembled bedsprings or wire coils; it was weighted in silver shekels.

Although the price cannot usually be enforced on trade partners, ancient Near Eastern law codes would supply recommended exchange rates of basic commodities. "The Laws of Eshnunna" (18) confirm that one shekel (8 gr of silver) could alternatively buy 300liters of barley, 40 liters of bitumen, 3 liters of oil or 3 kilograms of wool, 1.5 liters of lard or unrefined copper, or 1 kilogram of salt.

International trade had enriched the elite and fermented political ideas for the empire building. Civilizations had emerged on both sides of ancient routes.

The demand was not universal at all times. Conch shells were alucrative raw material collected along the coasts of the Indian Ocean but no further than the Gulf of Oman. They were imported into Mesopotamia for production of conch pouring vessels, which probably served for ritual libations. The peak of their making falls on two centuries, between the years 2600 and 2400. The market was so flexible that it accepted various imitations of the product made in carved stone, silver, and electrum. Though shell had not ceased to be delivered at later periods, its application was reoriented to glyptic arts, small sculpture, and jewelry. Moreover, toward the endof the millennium, seal cutters put an end to the use of shell shifting to harder materials. The prized item continued to be produced for cosmetic vessels. (19)

The import of a luxury item could achieve such extent that it might switch to necessity. Though texts of the Early Dynastic period register individual shipments up to 100 kilograms, contemporary annals five hundred years later refer to huge cargo ships being able to carry eighteen tons. (20) As a result, during the age of empires, copper became an industrial metal designed for

26

production of tools, utensils, and weapons. Even farmers were no longer content with flint blades for their sickles demanding the copper ones instead.

In various Gulf ports, foreign sailors would caulk their vessels with Mesopotamian bitumen. Foreign trade was beneficial for both sides.

Endnotes:

(1) 'Enki and the World Order: translation' (lines 123-130) at

http://www-etcsl.orient.ox.ac.uk/section1/tr113.htm

(2) An interpreter's seal is presented in "Shu-Ilishu's Cylinder Seal" at Possehl, G.L."Shu-Elishu's Cylinder Seal", p. 43 at http://www.penn.museum/documents/publications/expedition/PDFs/48-1/What%20in%20the%20World.pdf

(3) "Enmerkar and the Lord of Aratta: translation" lines 69-104 at

http://www-etcsl.orient.ox.ac.uk/section1/tr1823.htm

(4) Aubet, M.E. "Commerce and Colonization in the Ancient Near East", p. 173 footnote 2. Cambridge University Press, New York, 2013.

(5) Carter, R.A. "Watercraft" in "A Companion to the Archeology ofthe Ancient Near East", vol.1, p. 351. Wiley-Blackwell, 2012, published online. DOI: 10.1002/9781444360790

(6) Carter, R.A., p. 360.

(7) Carter, R.A., p. 359.

(8) Makela, T.T. "Ships and Shipbuilding in Mesopotamia". Texas A&M University, 2002, pp. 72-73 at http://nautarch.tamu.edu/pdf-files/Makela-MA2002.pdf

(9) Rice, M. "Archaeology of the Arabiab Gulf", p. 269. Routledge, New York, 1994.

(10) Carter, R.A., p. 361.

27

(11) Edens, Ch. "Dynamics of Trade in the Ancient Mesopotamian "World System". American Anthropologist, New Series, vol. 94, no.1 (Mar., 1992), p. 127.

(12) Boivin, N. "Archaeological, Linguistic, and Historical Sourceson Ancient Seafaring" in "The Evolution of Human Population in Arabia", p. 263. Springer, London, 2009.

(13) Parpola,S & others. "The Meluhha Village" at Journal of the Economic and Social History of the Orient, vol. 20, No. 2 (May, 1977), p. 160.

(14) Englund,R. "Exotic Fruit", p. 87 at http://cdli.ucla.edu/staff/englund/publications/englund1983b.pdf

(15) Ur-Nammu’s year formula in Sigrist, M., Damerow, P. "Mesopotamian Year Names" at

http://cdli.ucla.edu/tools/yearnames/HTML/T6K1.htm

(16) Carter, P. "The Sumerians and the Gulf" in "The Sumerian World", p. 589. Routledge, New York, 2013.

(17) "A Hymn to Nanshe: translation", lines 137-153 at

http://www-etcsl.orient.ox.ac.uk/section4/tr4141.htm

(18) "The Laws of Eshnunna", pp. 44-45. Edited by Reven Yaron. The Magnes Press, The Hebrew University: Jerusalem, 1988.

(19) Edens, Ch, pp. 123-125.

(20) Edens, Ch, p. 125.