Position in chronology
ARET 03, 234
About this tablet
A fragment of an administrative account from the palace archives of Ebla in western Syria, written around 2400–2300 BCE. It records the disbursement of luxury goods — copper-and-gold bracelets and various garments and belts — to a named individual, Za-a-ru, and to his agent. Thousands of such textile-and-metal distribution records survive from Ebla, documenting how the palace used fine clothing and jewelry as payment, reward, and diplomatic gift. Even in its broken state, this piece shows the standard bookkeeping formula of one of the earliest great archives outside Mesopotamia proper.
Plain-language summary by the engine — meant as a doorway into the literal translation below.
Written in modern English
This is a palace ledger entry: three bracelets made of copper and gold were handed over as a consignment to a man named Za-a-ru. He also received one gu-dùl cloak and at least one other item, now lost in the break. When the text resumes, it lists two NI-NI textiles, two fine garments, and two multicolored belts issued to his agent, followed by one guzitum textile and one aktum garment for someone whose name is broken away. The rest of the tablet is lost.
A modern paraphrase of the literal translation — same content, contemporary voice.
Translation — our engine
Our engine3 bracelets of copper (and) gold, — consignment (šu-du8) — (for) Za-a-ru; 1 gu-dùl cloak, 1 [...] (Break) [...] 2 NI-NI textiles, 2 fine garments, 2 multicolored belt-garments: (for) his agent (maškim); 1 guzitum textile, 1 aktum garment [...] (text breaks off)
Our translation engine — Fable 5. Reads the photo, translates the cuneiform, and writes a plain-language interpretation. See methodology for limits.
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Transliteration
3(asz@c) gu2-li-lum _a-gar5-gar5 ku3-sig17_ _szu-du8_ za-a-ru12 1(asz@c) _gu-dul3_ 1[...] [...] 2(asz@c) TUG2-NI#-NI 2(asz@c) _SAL_ 2(asz@c) _|IB2+n(DISZ@t)| dar tug2_ _maszkim_-su3 1(asz@c) gu-zi-dum 1(asz@c) _aktum_ [...]
Scholarly note
Catalogue entry from CDLI (Ebla (ca. 2350-2250 BC)) — ARET 03, 234. This record has no stored scholarly English translation; the existence of published translations has not been checked; the transliteration is from the ATF (CDLI's Atf-Friendly format).
Attribution
Image: National Museum of Syria, Idlib, Syria (P242426) — Photo via Cuneiform Digital Library Initiative. source
Translation excerpted from engine:claude-fable-5 (2026-07-12/v7-evolved).
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