A digital representation of the University of Minnesota's cuneiform inscriptions, dating from the late 3rd and early 2nd millenia BCE. Includes pictures, transliterations, translations, and commentary.

DIGITAL LIBRARY Work in Progress Publications About CDLI Project Associates and Staff Related Projects Communications Method & Conventions Tools & Sundries Copyright &copy Cuneiform Digital Library Initiative Last Modified Berlin Mirror ...

A short essay on cuneiform, one of the earliest writing systems devised. Developed by the Sumerians in Mesopotamia as a picture writing, cuneiform eventually developed into a more abstract, wedge-shaped syllabary.

Cuneiform numbers Cuneiform numbers were written using a combination of just two signs: a vertical wedge for '1' and a corner wedge for '10'. Handwriting varied as much in Old Babylonian times as it does now but the basic system of numbers is illustrated below. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 30 40 50 60 Some common variants are for 4 for 7 for 8. Occasionally, 19 was written ...