Eanna District Temple Records and Proto-Accounting — Uruk Period (c.4000–3100 BCE)

1. Uruk begins rapid urban growth

   Jan 1, 4000 BCELabels: Uruk city, Southern Mesopotamia

   • Uruk Period
   • WorldHistory

2. Eanna precinct becomes major institutional hub

   Jan 1, 3500 BCELabels: Eanna precinct, Inanna cult

   • Uruk Period
   • Proto cuneiform

3. Counting tokens and sealed bullae support accounting

   Jan 1, 3400 BCELabels: Clay tokens, Bullae

   • Proto cuneiform
   • Met Museum

4. Uruk IV proto-cuneiform begins at Eanna

   Jan 1, 3350 BCELabels: Proto-cuneiform, Eanna precinct

   • CDLI Periods
   • Proto cuneiform

5. Numerical tablets emerge for institutional tallies

   Jan 1, 3300 BCELabels: Numerical tablets

   • Proto cuneiform
   • Uruk Period

6. Ration lists formalize redistribution practices

   Jan 1, 3300 BCELabels: Ration lists, Temple economy

   • Proto cuneiform
   • Met Museum

7. Impressed wedges and stylus speed up recordkeeping

   Jan 1, 3250 BCELabels: Stylus marks, Cuneiform wedges

   • Met Museum
   • Proto cuneiform

8. Administrative seals reinforce authority and control

   Jan 1, 3250 BCELabels: Cylinder seals, Administrative seals

   • Met Museum
   • Uruk Period

9. Uruk III expands and reforms written administration

   Jan 1, 3200 BCELabels: Uruk III, Proto-writing

   • CDLI Periods
   • Proto cuneiform

10. Eanna building changes accompany wider shifts

    Jan 1, 3100 BCELabels: Eanna architecture, Institutional change

    • Uruk Period
    • Proto cuneiform

11. Jemdet Nasr era carries proto-writing into new contexts

    Jan 1, 3100 BCELabels: Jemdet Nasr, Administrative tablets

    • Jemdet Nasr
    • Art Mesopotamia

12. Early Dynastic cuneiform supersedes proto-cuneiform

    Jan 1, 2900 BCELabels: Early Dynastic, Cuneiform

    • Proto cuneiform
    • Sumer Chronology