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Complaint tablet to Ea-nāṣir

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A long, rectangular tablet of sand-coloured clay, inscribed all over with cuneiform text.
Tablet on display in the British Museum.

The complaint tablet to Ea-nāṣir (UET V 81)[1][2] is a clay tablet that was sent to ancient Ur, written c. 1750 BCE. It is a complaint to a merchant named Ea-nasir from a customer named Nanni. Written in Akkadian cuneiform, it is considered to be the oldest known written complaint. It is currently kept in the British Museum.[3]

Ea-nasir travelled to Dilmun to buy copper and returned to sell it in Mesopotamia. On one particular occasion, he had agreed to sell copper ingots to Nanni. Nanni sent his servant with the money to complete the transaction.[4] The copper was considered by Nanni to be sub-standard[5] and not accepted.

In response, Nanni created the cuneiform letter for delivery to Ea-nasir. Inscribed on it is a complaint to Ea-nasir about a copper delivery of the incorrect grade, and issues with another delivery;[6] Nanni also complained that his servant (who handled the transaction) had been treated rudely. He stated that, at the time of writing, he had not accepted the copper, but had paid the money for it.

Description

The tablet is 116 millimetres (4+9⁄16 in) high, 50 mm (1+15⁄16 in) wide, 26 mm (1 in) thick, and slightly damaged.[6]

Acquisition

Illustration of the interior of an old Babylonian house found in the ruins of Ur, which may have been the residence of Ea-nasir

The tablet was discovered and acquired by Sir Leonard Woolley, leading a joint expedition of the University of Pennsylvania and the British Museum from 1922 to 1934 in the Sumerian city of Ur.[6][7]

Other tablets

Other tablets have been found in the ruins believed to be Ea-nasir's dwelling. These include a letter from a man named Arbituram who complained he had not received his copper yet, while another says he was tired of receiving bad copper.[8][9]

References

  1. ^ Figulla, H.H.; Martin, W.J., eds. (1953). Letters and Business Documents of the Old Babylonian Period. Ur Excavations: Texts. Vol. V. London, UK: British Museum Press. p. 5, Pl. XIV.
  2. ^ E Frahm. "Commentary on Uncertain (CCP 7.2.u18)". doi:10079/7wm382r. {{cite web}}: Check |doi= value (help)
  3. ^ Hyken, Shep (23 April 2015). "Oldest customer service complaint discovered: A lesson from ancient Babylon". Forbes. Retrieved 7 February 2017.
  4. ^ Crawford, Harriet (July 2015). "Sir Leonard Woolley and Ur of the Chaldees". The Bible and Interpretation. University of Arizona.
  5. ^ Oppenheim, A. Leo (1967). Letters from Mesopotamia: Official business and private letters on clay tablets from two millennia. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press. pp. 82–83. ISBN 978-0226631905.
  6. ^ a b c "tablet". British Museum. object W 1953-0411-71.
  7. ^ "Sir Leonard Woolley". Biography. British Museum. Collections online.
  8. ^ Killgrove, Kristina (11 May 2018). "Meet the worst businessman of the 18th century BCE". Forbes. Retrieved 22 July 2020.
  9. ^ Leemans (1960), pp. 48–54.

Further Reading

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