The Uses of Writing

The poem about Enmerkar, one of the earliest rulers of Uruk, is where the Mesopotamians themselves located the origin of writing. Uruk was not just any city in their tradition — it was the city, often called simply “The City.” The epic tells of a time when trade did not yet exist. Enmerkar wanted lapis lazuli and precious metals to beautify a temple, so he sent a messenger to the chief of Aratta, a distant land. The journey was brutal: the messenger travelled by the stars at night and by the sun by day, crossing mountain range after mountain range. The people of Susa, a city below the mountains, saluted him, but from his great height they looked like tiny mice. Five, six, seven mountain ranges he crossed — and still the chief of Aratta would not part with the lapis lazuli or silver. Back and forth the messenger went, carrying threats and promises, until he grew weary of mouth and mixed up all his messages. At that point Enmerkar formed a clay tablet in his hand and wrote the words down — for in those days, there had been no writing of words on clay. …