Ankara Üniversitesi Dil ve Tarih-Coğrafya Fakültesi Dergisi (Jan 2017)
Tablet Containers in Old Assyrian Texts and Archaeological Examples From Kültepe
Abstract
In the period between 1974-1719 B.C., also known as the Period of Assyrian Trading Colonies, the Assyrian traders were involved in intensive trading activities in Anatolian cities with permission of local administrators and support of the Assyrian State. The old city of Kanesh located near Kayseri was the most important Anatolian center of this international trade. The traders coming from Assyria to Anatolia with commercial purposes made a lot of profit as a result of their activities. In order to secure their commercial venture they prepared commercial and juridical documents made of clay. Protection or secure transportation of this type of records, which could be compared to commercial papers in modern economic literature, was an important subject for traders. In this work we will try to make a contribution to this subject, by evaluating the tablets and archaeological findings in published and unpublished texts.
