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This is a diary of astronomical and meteorological phenomena observed during the 2nd month of the years 323-322 BCE. Written in cuneiform inscription, it records the death of Alexander on the 29th day of the lunar month. The author describes...

Written in Babylonian in the cuneiform inscription, this tablet lists the names and dates of several Seleucid kings. After Alexander's death, the Persian Empire fractured. Mesopotamia and Syria became part of the Seleucid Empire, with their...

Babylonian astronomical diaries recorded daily observation of the moon and planets from around the 7th century BCE onward. The diaries for 164-163 BCE contain observations of Halley's comet at its 1st and last visibility. This observation...

This tablet is written in cuneiform inscription and refers to the defeat of the Seleucid king Demetrius II Nicator by the Parthian ruler Mithradates I in 141 BCE. The Parthian ruler is referred to as Arshaka. The text also refers to market...

Fragment of a linen mummy shroud with texts from the Book of the Dead, written in ink. From Thebes, Egypt. 18th Dynasty, circa 1500 BCE.

The so-called proto-Elamite script is still undeciphered. The influence of contemporary Mesopotamian writing and sealing is clear, however. From Susa, Iran. Circa 3000-2800 BCE. Lent by the Musee de Louvre. It is currently housed in the British...

The temples issued workers with daily rations of barley beer, the staple drink of Mesopotamia. The tablet was impressed with five different types of numerical symbol. From Mesopotamia, Iraq. Late Uruk Period, 3100-3000 BCE. (The British Museum...

In this food issue list, "rations" is written by combining a human head a bowl (a triangular object in front of the head). This combination, in later Sumerian texts, means "to eat". The triangular object was the regular representation of...

On this clay tablet, barley appears 4 times, depicted as a single stalk with ears at the top. Emmer wheat is different from barley, by writing numbers with extra strokes. Three different types of numerical symbol were used. From Mesopotamia...

Apprentice scribes learned the writing system through lists of related signs, like this one dealing with place names. The tablet was partially repaired from fragments; there 3 columns of inscriptions on either side. From Jemdet Nasr, Southern...