Sumerian City-States under Temple Economies (c. 3500–2000 BCE)

1. Earliest Uruk temple precincts expand at Uruk

   Jan 1, 4000 BCELabels: Uruk, Eanna precinct

   • Uruk Period
   • Eanna

2. Proto-cuneiform emerges for institutional accounting

   Jan 1, 3350 BCELabels: Proto-cuneiform, Uruk

   • Proto cuneiform
   • Met Museum

3. Uruk III–Jemdet Nasr administrative ration lists proliferate

   Jan 1, 3100 BCELabels: Jemdet Nasr, Administrative tablets

   • Jemdet Nasr
   • BM Tablet

4. Land grants recorded in Jemdet Nasr administration

   Jan 1, 3000 BCELabels: Jemdet Nasr, Land grants

   • Met Tablet
   • Jemdet Nasr

5. Eanna precinct functions as major sacred-administrative hub

   Jan 1, 3000 BCELabels: Eanna precinct, Uruk

   • Eanna
   • Uruk Period

6. Jemdet Nasr archives document grain and goods redistribution

   Jan 1, 2900 BCELabels: Jemdet Nasr, Grain accounts

   • Jemdet Nasr
   • BM Tablet

7. Early Dynastic city-states consolidate temple households

   Jan 1, 2900 BCELabels: Early Dynastic, Temple households

   • Economy Sumer
   • Uruk Period

8. Reform texts of Urukagina address institutional abuses

   Jan 1, 2350 BCELabels: Urukagina, Lagash

   • Ningirsu
   • Akkadian Empire

9. Akkadian conquest reduces autonomy of Sumerian city-states

   Jan 1, 2334 BCELabels: Sargon of, Akkadian Empire

   • Akkadian Empire

10. Ur III dynasty founded; Neo-Sumerian state recentralizes institutions

    Jan 1, 2112 BCELabels: Ur III, Neo-Sumerian state

    • Ur III

11. Shulgi institutionalizes the bala rotation system

    Jan 1, 2094 BCELabels: Shulgi, Bala system

    • Ur III

12. Ur III ration accounts exemplify redistributive provisioning

    Jan 1, 2028 BCELabels: Ur III, Ration accounts

    • Met Museum
    • Ur III

13. Elamite sack of Ur ends Ur III political order

    Jan 1, 2004 BCELabels: Elamite sack, Ur

    • Ibbi Sin
    • Kindattu