Section 5: Maritime trade of Meluhha (Sarasvati Civilization) seafaring merchants, artisans
Mirror: http://tinyurl.com/h2pzo85
Meluhha and Bronze Age revolution
A Maritime tin route from Hanoi to Haifa has been posited to transport tin which was a critical component to alloy with copper to sustain the Bronze Age revolution. On this route which predated Silk Road by two millennia, the Persian Gulf (Straits of Hormuz), together with the Straits of Malacca, was the critical maritime link. Archaeological reports on sites along the Persian Gulf have cumulatively evidenced the trade and cultural contacts Meluhha (Sarasvati civilization) merchants and artisans (some with settlements in Ancient Near East) had with Ancient Near East and Ancient Far East as active participants in the revolution. The presence of Munda in Austro-asiatic speaker areas of Ancient Far East is well-attested by Austro-asiatic etyma also present in glosses of Indian sprachbund (pace FBJ Kuiper on Munda words in Samskrtam).
Map of Bronze Age sites of eastern India and neighbouring areas: 1. Koldihwa; 2.Khairdih; 3. Chirand; 4. Mahisadal; 5. Pandu Rajar Dhibi; 6.Mehrgarh; 7. Harappa;8. Mohenjo-daro; 9.Ahar; 10. Kayatha; 11.Navdatoli; 12.Inamgaon; 13. Non PaWai; 14. Nong Nor;15. Ban Na Di andBan Chiang; 16. NonNok Tha; 17. Thanh Den; 18. Shizhaishan; 19. Ban Don Ta Phet [After Fig. 8.1 in: Charles Higham, 1996, The Bronze Age of Southeast Asia, Cambridge University Press].
Austroasiatic languages map (in German) from H.-J. Pinnow's Versuch einer historischen Lautlehre der Kharia-Sprache, 1958: map
The Gundestrup cauldron and Pillar of Boatmen are evidence of the Meluhhan contact areas in the Ancient NEar East. So are the hieroglyphs of frog, peacock, elephant, antelopes, heron on Dong Son bronze drums evidenc of the Meluhhan contact areas in the Tin Belt of the Globe in Ancient Far East.
Glyptic art of the Seals from Persian Gulf are a combination of Mesopotamian syles of cylinder seals combined with Indus Script hieroglyphs. Meluhhans had a flourishing tradw with Sumer ca. 2350 BCE. The inscriptions of Persian Gulf cylinder seald and also Dilmun-type stamp seals provide conclusive evidence for the presence of Meluhha merchants/artisans in the Persian Gulf and interacting with Ur and Susa. The trade transactions with Susa are attested by a Susa pot with the cargo of metal implements, tools, weapons. The decipherment of Indus Script hieroglyphs on the Susa pot as metalwork catalogues are presented in:
A Susa pot with Indus Script hieroglyphs is a 'rosetta stone' for Indus Script Corpora of metalwork proclamations http://bharatkalyan97.blogspot.in/2015/10/susa-pot-with-indus-script-hieroglyphs.html
See: http://bharatkalyan97.blogspot.in/2016/06/antithetical-antelopes-indus-script.html The hieroglyphs on the Kuwait Museum gold disc can be read rebus:
See: http://tinyurl.com/hvcmaqd Luca Peyronel, Some Thoughtson Iconographic Relations between the Arabian Gulf and Syria-Mesopotamia during the Middle Bronze Age, Society for Arabian Studies Monographs No.7. Iconographic Relations between the Arabian Gulf and Syria-Mesopotamia during the Middle Bronze Age, Intercultural relations between south and southwest Asia, Studies in commemoration of ECL During Caspers (1934-1996) eds. Eric Olijdam, Richard H Spoor, BAR International Series 1826, 2008, Archaeopress, pp.236-252. An Indus Script seal impression adorns the title page of this monograph no. 7.
kondh ‘young bull’. kũdār ‘turner, brass-worker’. sangaDa 'lathe, brazier' rebus: sangAta 'collection' (of metalwork) koTiya 'rings on neck' rebus: kotiya 'baghlah dhow, cargo boat'. कुटिल kuṭila, katthīl = bronze (8 parts copperand 2 parts tin) dATu ‘cross’ rebus: dhAtu ‘mineral’ gaNDa ‘four’ rebus: kaNDa ‘implements’ dula ‘two’ rebus: dul ‘metal casting’ ayo, aya ‘fish’ rebus: aya ‘iron’ ayas ‘metal’ aya ‘fish’ rebus: ayas ‘metal’ PLUS adaren ‘lid’ rebus: aduru ‘unsmelted metal’ kolmo ‘rice plant’ rebus: kolimi ‘smithy, forge’ muh ‘ingot’ kolom ‘three’ rebus: kolimi ‘smithy, forge’ dula ‘two’ rebus: dul ‘metal casting’ ranku ‘liquid measure’ rebus: ranku ‘tin’ kolmo ‘rice plant’ rebus: kolimi ‘smithy, forge’ karNaka, kanka ‘rim of jar’ rebus: karNI ‘supercargo, engraver, account’.
See: https://www.academia.edu/1898205/Potts_2010_-_Cylinder_seals_and_their_use_in_the_Arabian_Peninsula_AAE_21_ DT Potts, 2010 Cylnder seals and their use in Arabian Peninsula. After presenting the following figures of cylinder seals, DT Potts concludes:
as we move south from Failaka to Bahrain and eastern Saudi Arabia, and then from the central Persian Gulf to south-eastern Arabia, and again when one moves from the UAE to Oman. Stamp seal-using protocols are well known in the Indus Valley and on Bahrain⁄Failaka (Dilmun), and the relatively small number of cylinder seals south of Failaka raises the question of whether an ethnic ⁄linguistic factor might be involved in their frequency and distribution. On Failaka and Bahrain during the Bronze Age, for example, one might hypothesise that local Dilmunites used stamp seals in their own tradition, while ethnic Babylonians, or Dilmunites emulating Babylonian ways, used cylinder seals. The same may have been true in the Oman peninsula, but it seems more likely that cylinder seals there — some of which are almost certainly of local manufacture, to judge by their iconography — reflect emulation of what may have seemed to be a high status instrument of legal administration. Cylinder seals may have been sought after as prestige objects by local east Arabians, and their presence might not necessarily signal the presence of foreigners or the adoption of sealing protocols using the cylinder rather than the stamp seal. The influence of the Harappan and Dilmunite stamp sealing traditions must have been great during the Bronze Age, and the development of an indigenous stamp sealing tradition in Oman at this time may be a reflection of that influence. (Potts, DT, 2010, Cylinder seals and their use in the Arabian Peninsula, Arab arch epig. 2010: 21: 20-40, p.37).
Fig. 5a-f bull-man holding/touching a ‘ritual’ object or a branch; Fig 5c, d bull-man standing ‘above’ an animal; Fig. 5a-f : bull-man holding/touching a ‘ritual’ object or a branch
Fig. 4a b
Fig. 3a Features: god with a naked or garbed attendant behind or before; god holding/touching a crescent-standard; bull-man holding/touching a ‘ritual’ object or a branch Fig. 3b bull-man grasped/touched by a naked male figure Fig. 3b-f bull-man grasping an animal; Fig. 3d bull-man standing ‘above’ an animal; Fig. 3a : bull-man holding/touching a ‘ritual’ object or a branch
Fig. 2 e-f god with a naked or garbed attendant behind or before; Fig. 2c-d god grasping/touching a gazelle
Features Fig. 1c-f: god with a naked or garbed attendant behind or before; Fig. 1d-e god seated on a stool/throne ‘above’ a bull; Fig. 1a-f god drinking through a tube leading to a jar; god holding a cup
Many sites on the Gulf of Khambat, and the site of Lothal evidence that the Sarasvati civilization was involved in trade through the Persian Gulf and beyond through Tigris-Euphrates upto Haifa, Israel in Ancient Near East.
This is a remarkable square seal from Ur, with cuneiform script together with a bison/bull/ox hieroglyph. This may be called Gadd Seal 1 of Ur since this was the first item on the Plates of figures included in Gadd's paper. Assigned to the pre-Sargonic period, this is perhaps a seal of a Meluhha (Indus) merchant. Gadd lists 18 seals from Ur and sites in Babylonia, witn Indus-type writing system. Gadd Seal No. 2 is of circular shape with a button boss, perhaps of Persian Gulf origin (perhaps belongs to a Meluhha merchant in Bahrain). This seal plus seal nos. 3,4,5,15,16,17 have Indus script motifs and hieroglyphs. Seal no. 6 is cylindrical and Sumerian with hieroglyphs of zebu, scorpion, and other Indus Script hieroglyphs. Seal no. 7 has kuTi, 'tree' Indus Script hieroglyph (which signifies rebus kuThi 'smelter'). Seal no. 8 is Sumerian and perhaps relates to a Bahrain merchant who holds a goat (mlekh 'goat' rebus: milakkhu 'copper'), an Indus script hieroglyph. Seals 9,10,11, 12,13,14 are perhaps from Bahrain of a Meluhha merchant. Seal no. 15 was found with carnelian, steatite and copper beads in a Sargonid period grave, and is a Persian Gulf seal attributable to contacts with Sarasvati riverbasin (Gujarat carnelian in particular). Seal No. 16,17,18 are clearly those of Meluhha merchants in Bahrain. Seals found at Kish, Gawra and Asmar are of Indus Script corpora. Briggs Buchanan assigns Seal nos. 2,3,4,5 and 16 to Indus seal type I, a type which includes circular seals but with Indus script on the obverse. Seal no. 15 is categorised in type II as a crude Indus script imitation while seal no. 16 is categorised in type III as Persian Gulf Bahrain seal of the type found in Lothal and also Failaka. This tablet assigned to 10th year of Gungunum of Larsa (1923 BCE) is stamped by an Indus Script seal of type III in Buchanan classification of Persian Gulf seals.
Hieroglyph: *śrētrī ʻ ladder ʼ. [Cf. śrētr̥ -- ʻ one who has recourse to ʼ MBh. -- See śrití -- . -- √śri ]
Seṭṭhitta
Seṭṭhitta (nt.) [abstr. fr. seṭṭhi] the office of treasurer or (wholesale) merchant Si. 92.
The glyphics are:
Semantics: ‘group of animals/quadrupeds’: paśu ‘animal’ (RV), pasaramu, pasalamu = an animal, a beast, a brute, quadruped (Te.) Rebus: pasra ‘smithy’ (Santali)
Glyph: ‘six’: bhaṭa ‘six’. Rebus: bhaṭa ‘furnace’.
Glyph (the only inscription on the Mohenjo-daro seal m417): ‘warrior’: bhaṭa. Rebus: bhaṭa ‘furnace’. Thus, this glyph is a semantic determinant of the message: ‘furnace’. It appears that the six heads of ‘animal’ glyphs are related to ‘furnace’ work.
Stamp seals with figures and animals as Indus Script hieroglyphs
220a
220b
220c,d,e
220f,g
cat.no. 218
cat. no. 221
A bun-ingot flanked by two goats: mlekh 'goat' rebus: milakkhu 'copper' dula 'pair' rebus: dul 'metal casting' PLUS muh
Yale tablet. Bull's head (bucranium) between two seated figures drinking from two vessels through straws. YBC. 5447; dia. c. 2.5 cm. Possibly from Ur. Buchanan, studies Landsberger, 1965, p. 204; A seal impression was found on an inscribed tablet (called Yale tablet) dated to the tenth year of Gungunum, King of Larsa, in southern Babylonia--that is, 1923 B.C. according to the most commonly accepted ('middle') chronology of the period. The design in the impression closely matches that in a stamp seal found on the Failaka island in the Persian Gulf, west of the delta of the Shatt al Arab, which is formed by the confluence of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers.
karaṇḍa 'duck' (Sanskrit) karaṛa 'a very large aquatic bird' (Sindhi) Rebus: करडा [karaḍā] Hard from alloy--iron, silver &c. (Marathi) kaNDa 'divisions' rebus: kaNDa 'implements' muh 'face' rebus: muhA 'quantity of smelted metal taken out of a furnace';'ingot' kaNDa 'water' rebus: kaNDA 'implements' kanda 'fire-altar' meD 'body' rebus: meD 'iron' karNaka 'spread legs' rebus: karNI 'supercargo'. dula 'pair' rebus: dul 'metal casting' dhAV 'strand' rebus: dhAv 'mineral, dhAtu'
Failaka seal. The Yale tablet is dated to ca. the second half of the twentieth century B.C.... Trade3 on the Persian gulf was in existence well before that time-- about 2350 B.C.-- when Sargon, the first Akkadian king referred to ships from or destined for Melukhkha, Magan and Tilmun (Dilmun) at his wharves. in the Third Dynasty of Ur (around 2000), when trade apparently was centred at Magan. It is even better documented on other tablets from Ur (from about 1900 and from about 1800), belonging to various kings of Larsa. At this time the trade was centered at Tilmun... Cuneiform inscriptions naming Inzak, the god of Tilmun, were found on Failaka and, a long time ago, one on Bahrein... Failaka can be equated with Tilmun, or at least was an important part of it. (Briggs Buchanan, A dated seal impression connecting Babylonia and ancient India, Archaeology, Vol. 20, No.2, 1967, pp. 104-107).
dula 'pair' rebus: dul 'metal casting' karaṇḍa 'duck' (Sanskrit) karaṛa 'a very large aquatic bird' (Sindhi) Rebus: करडा [karaḍā] Hard from alloy--iron, silver &c. (Marathi) kolmo 'rice plant' rebus:kolimi 'smithy, forge' kuTi 'tree' rebus: kuThi 'smelter' muh 'face' rebus: muhA 'quantity of smelted metal taken out of a furnace';'ingot' kaNDa 'water' rebus: kaNDA 'implements' kanda 'fire-altar' meD 'body' rebus: meD 'iron' karNaka 'spread legs' rebus: karNI 'supercargo'.dhAV 'strand' rebus: dhAv 'mineral, dhAtu'
Cuneiform sign SAG
Dilmun seals from Saar
See map of Mesopotamia sites (http://www-oi.uchicago.edu/OI/INFO/MAP/SITE/ANE_Site_Maps.html)
Hieroglyph on an Elamite cylinder seal (See illustration embedded)
Hieroglyph components on the head-gear of the person on cylinder seal impression are: twig, crucible, buffalo horns: kuThI 'badari ziziphus jojoba' twig Rebus: kuThi 'smelter'; koThAri 'crucible' Rebus: koThAri 'treasurer'; tattAru 'buffalo horn' Rebus: ṭhã̄ṭhāro 'brassworker'.
This hieroglyph multiplex ligatures head of an antelope to a snake: nAga 'snake' Rebus: nAga 'lead' ranku 'antelope' Rebus: ranku 'tin'. tuttināgamu is a Prakritam gloss meaning 'pewter, zinc'. A comparable alloy may be indicated by the hieroglyph-multiplex of antelope-snake: rankunAga, perhaps a type of zinc or lead alloy.
This mkultiplx is flanked by 1. kolom 'rice plant' Rebus: kolimi 'smithy, forge'; 2. kuTi 'tree' Rebus: kuThi 'smeter'. Thus the message is that the warehouse of cast metal alloy metal implements is complemented by a smelter and a smithy/forge -- part of the metalwork repertoire.
All these hieroglyhphs/hieroglyph-multiplexes are read as metalwork catalogue items in Prakritam which had tadbhava, tatsama identified in Samskritam in Indian sprachbund (speech union).
Dilmun seals
http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/works-of-art/1984.175.15/
http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/works-of-art/1984.175.13/
Gulf seal with bucranium (top center), anthropomorph (left), grid, and scorpion (right), as well as bird (Kjærum 1983: 37). karaṇḍa 'duck' (Sanskrit) karaṛa 'a very large aquatic bird' (Sindhi) Rebus: करडा [karaḍā] Hard from alloy--iron, silver &c. (Marathi) bicha 'scorpiion' rebus: bicha 'haematite ore' kaNDa 'divisions' rebus: kaNDa 'implements' muh 'face' rebus: muhA 'quantity of smelted metal taken out of a furnace';'ingot' kaNDa 'arrow' rebus: kaNDA 'implements' kanda 'fire-altar' meD 'body' rebus: meD 'iron' karNaka 'spread legs' rebus: karNI 'supercargo'.
Some hieroglyphs which recur on Ancient Near seals and their Meluhha rebus readings:
bull-man, bull ḍangar 'bull' read rebus ḍhangar 'blacksmith'; ṭagara 'ram' Rebus: damgar 'merchant' (Akkadian) ṭhakkura, ‘idol’, ṭhākur ʻ blacksmith ʼ, ṭhākur m. ʻmaster’.ḍhangar ‘blacksmith’.
meṭ sole of foot, footstep, footprint (Ko.); meṭṭu step, stair, treading, slipper (Te.)(DEDR 1557). dula ‘pair’.
Rebus: dul 'metal casting'
1. kula '
al-Sindi 1994: no. 17 barad, balad 'ox' rebus: bharat 'alloy of pewter, copper, tin' kaNDa 'water' rebus: kaNDa 'implements'
al-Sindi 1994: no. 18 meD 'foot' rebus: meD 'iron' med 'copper' (Slavic) barad, balad' ox' rebus: bharat 'alloy of pewter, copper, tin'
al-Sindi 1994: no. 19 barad, balad' ox' rebus: bharat 'alloy of pewter, copper, tin'
Kjærum 1983: no. 185
Kjærum 1983: no. 186
al-Sindi 1994: no. 23 kolmo 'rice plant' rebus: kolimi 'smithy, forge' barad, balad 'ox' rebus: bharat 'alloy of pewter, copper, tin'
al-Sindi 1994: no. 24
al-Sindi 1994: no. 57 bichi 'scorpion' rebus: bichi 'haematite ore'
Kjærum 1983: no. 212 [ karaḍū or ṅkaraḍēṃ ] n A kid. कराडूं (p. 137) [ karāḍūṃ ] n (Commonly करडूं ) Akid. (Marathi) Rebus: करडा (p. 137) [ karaḍā ] 'hard alloy' (Marathi)
Kjærum 1983: no. 81 [ karaḍū or ṅkaraḍēṃ ] n A kid. कराडूं (p. 137) [ karāḍūṃ ] n (Commonly करडूं ) Akid. (Marathi) Rebus: करडा (p. 137) [ karaḍā ] 'hard alloy' (Marathi) dula 'pair' rebus: dul 'metal casting'
Kjærum 1983: no. 274 [ karaḍū or ṅkaraḍēṃ ] n A kid. कराडूं (p. 137) [ karāḍūṃ ] n (Commonly करडूं ) Akid. (Marathi) Rebus: करडा (p. 137) [ karaḍā ] 'hard alloy' (Marathi) barad, balad 'ox' rebus: bharat 'alloy of pewter, copper, tin'
Until now only one single seaal has been discovered (in 2004) which comes from a non-Dilmun cultural environment. It is a cylinder seal with a cuneiform inscription that refers to "Ab-gina, sailor from a huge ship, the son of Ur-Abba" (F. Rahman). This seal provides further evidence of the existing contacts between Dilmun and ancient Mesopotamia at the end of the 3rd- beginning of the 2nd millennium BCE.
A minor fragment of a globularly shaped metal sheet may represent a fragment of a vessel. 
Blades are technologically more demanding than awls and fish-hooks. A few complete pieces and some major fragments seem to represent knives and perhaps razors.
Metal awls are made from thin copper rods of circular or rectangular section. Most of them have both ends pointed. A handful of pieces have simple handles from bird and mammal bones. These awls may have been used for various purposes. Large amounts of shells at the site may indicate that the awls could have served to open and take out the flesh from the shells of bivalves and gastropods.
Two tanged arrowheads have been found. 
From among other utensils, needles with eyes and a pair of tweezers have been uncovered. 
Collection of copper fish-hooks.
Besides vessels, steatite was used for the production of stamp seals and small personal ornaments (pendants). Sherds of broken vessels were further used also as tools (e.g. polishers).
Typical globular bowl with incised decoration (dotted-circles).
Small carnelian bead (pointing to link with Gujarat as the possible source of carnelian).
Net sinker (left) and limestone lid (above). The local limestone was also used for the production of working slabs, grinders and grindstones (below).Pearls were recovered from heavy residue fractions of the soil samples processed by water flotation. They almost exclusively occur in contexts dominated by mother-of-pearl shells.
Stamp seal cut from shell nacre layers (above). Pendant made from a strombus shell (left). Semi-product made from an oyster shell (right).
Source. http://www.kuwaitarchaeology.org/gallery/al-khidr-finds-2.html Kuwaiti-Slovak Archaeological Mission
Failaka Island is located approximately 20 km northeast of Kuwait City. The island has a shallow surface measuring 12 km in length and 6 km width. The island proved to be an ideal location for human settlements, because of the wealth of natural resources, including harbours, fresh water, and fertile soil. It was also a strategic maritime commercial route that linked the northern side of the Gulf to the southern side. Studies show that traces of human settlement can be found on Failaka dating back to as early as the end of the 3rd millennium BC and extended through most of the 20th century CE.
Failaka was first known as Agarum, the land of Enzak, the great god of Dilmun civilisation according to Sumerian cuneiform texts found on the island. Dilmun was the leading commercial hub for its powerful neighbours in their need to exchange processed goods for raw materials. Sailing the Arabian Gulf was by far the most convenient trade route at a time as transportation over land meant a much longer and more hazardous journey. As part of Dilmun, Failaka became a hub for the activities which radiated around Dilmun (Bahrain) from the end of the 3rd millennium to the mid-1st millennium BCE.
The cities of Sumer in Mesopotamia, the Harappan people from the Indus Valley, the inhabitants of Magan and the Iranian hinterland have left many archaeological traces of their encounters on Failaka Island. More speculative is the ongoing debate among academics on whether Failaka might be the mythical Eden: the place where Sumerian hero Gilgamesh almost unraveled the secret of immortality; the paradise later described in the Bible.
As a result of changes in the balance of political powers in the region towards the end of the 2nd millennium BCE and beginning of 1st millennium BCE, the importance of Failaka began to decline.
Studies indicate that Alexander the Great received reports from missions sent to explore the Arabian shoreline of the Gulf. The reports referenced two islands, one located approximately 120 stadia (almost 19 km) from an estuary; the second island located a complete day and night sailing journey with proper climate conditions. As the historian Aryan stated, “Alexander the Great ordered that the nearer island be named “Ikaros” (now Failaka) and the distant island as “Tylos” (now the Kingdom of Bahrain). Ikaros was described by the explorers as an island covered with rich vegetation and a shelter for numerous wild animals, considered sacred by the inhabitants who dedicate them to their local goddess.
After the collapse of the great empires in western Asia (Greek, Persian, Roman), the first centuries of the Christian era brought new settlers to Failaka. The island became a secure home for a Christian community, possibly Nestorian, until the 9th century CE. At Al- Qusur, in the centre of the island, archaeologists have uncovered two churches, built at an undetermined date, around which a large settlement grew. Its name may have changed again at that time, to Ramatha.
Failaka was continuously inhabited throughout the Islamic period until the 1990s. Excavations on the Island began in 1958 and continue today. Many archaeological expeditions have worked on Failaka and it is considered one of the key sources of knowledge about civilisations emerging from within the Gulf region.
Brochure at http://darmuseum.org.kw/dai/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/Loans-From-KNM-Brochure.pdf
Failaka geography
The Dilmun temple on Failaka, Kuwait
Failaka (also transcribed as Failakah or Faylakah, and locally known by the names Feileche, Feiliche or Feliche), in antiquity known as Ikaros was mentioned by the Geographer Strabo in ca. 25 AD and later by Arrian. It is the second biggest offshore island of Kuwait situated at the entrance to Kuwait Bay ca. 16 – 17 km far from Ras Al-Ardh in Salmiya and ca. 12 km from Ras As-Sabbiya. It blocks access to the Bay opposite the mouths of the Tigris and Euphrates (Shatt Al-Arab). Failaka has attracted the attention of researchers since 1957 when Danish archaeologists first had the opportunity to study material from the island received from a member of the British political representation to Kuwait. According to the results of up-to-date archaeological research, the ancient history of Failaka goes back to the beginning of the second millennium BC – to the Bronze Age when the Dilmun cultural phenomenon occupied the western shoreline and islands of the Arabian Gulf.
The Dilmun monuments are the most significant antiquities of the history of Failaka and Kuwait. Major Bronze Age sites on Failaka are located on its south-west (Tell Sa’ad/F3; F6; G3), north-west (Al-Khidr) and north-east (Al-Awazim) coasts, one perhaps even being located in the south-east (Al-Sed Al-Aaliy/Matitah) part of the island [6,14]. During the Bronze Age the temple of the god Inzak, tutelary god of Dilmun, existed on Failaka as it is mentioned in the cuneiform and Proto-Aramaic inscriptions on vessel fragments, Dilmun stamp seals and slabs from excavations [5]. In F6, the French excavations revealed buildings interpreted as a tower temple and palace [8].
Kjærum 1983: no. 193
Peyronel 2000: no. 4.14 Bull-man holding a crescent standard
Kjærum 1983: no. 208
Kjærum 1983: no. 121
Kjærum 1983: no. 122
al-Sindi 1994: no. 254
Kjærum 1983: no. 274
Kjærum 1983: no. 93
Kjærum 1983: no. 70
Kjærum 1983: no. 248
Kjærum 1983: no. 249
Kjærum 1983: no. 261
Kjærum 1983: no. 51
al-Sindi 1994: no. 115
Pair of forked stakes, kids kaNDa 'divisions' rebus:kaNDa 'implements'
al-Sindi 1994: no. 116
Rectangle with divided squares, kids
kaNDa 'divisions' rebus: kaNDa 'implements'
al-Sindi 1994: no. 117
standard PLUS crucible PLUS sun PLUS rectangle with divided squares, antelopes, bull PLUS trouh
Kjærum 1983: no. 115
Kjærum 1983: no. 116
Kjærum 1983: no. 141 (Same as 115?)
Kjærum 1983: no. 163
Kjærum 1983: no. 165
Kjærum 1983: no. 166
Kjærum 1983: no. 167
Kjærum 1983: no. 168
Research Notes--The Middle Asian Interaction Sphere (Gregory Possehl, 2007, Expedition, Vol. 49, No. 1, Spring 2007)
The Copper Hoards of Northern India Paul Yule, 1997, Copper hoards of northern India, Expedition, Vol. 39, No. 1, Spring 1997)
The Indus Civilization and Dilmun, the Sumerian Paradise Land Samuel Noah Kramer, 1964, Expedition, Vol. 6, No. 3, Spring 1964)
The Mythical Massacre at Mohenjo-daro (George F. Dales, 1964, Expedition, Vol. 6, No. 3, Spring 1964)
Shipping and Maritime Trade of the Indus People (S. R. Rao, 1965, Expedition,Vol.7, No. 3, Spring 1965)
The Ganga-Yamuna Basin in the First Millennium B.C. (Vimala S. Begley, Expedition Volume 9, Number 1 Fall 1966)
South Asia's Earliest Writing--Still Undeciphered (George F. Dales, Expedition Volume 9, Number 4 Summer 1967)
The Early Bronze Age of Iran as Seen from Tepe Yahya (C. C. Lamberg-Karlovsky and Philip L. Kohl, Expedition Volume 13, Number 3 - 4 Spring/Summer 1971)
Aspects of Elamite Art and Archaeology (Edith Porada, Expedition Volume 13, Number 3 - 4 Spring/Summer 1971)
Pika Ghosh Expedition Volume 42, Number 3 Winter 2000
The Multiple Landscapes of Vijayanagara--From the Mythic and the Ritual to the Kingly and the Common
Alexandra Mack Expedition Volume 46, Number 2 Summer 2004
Re-Orienting Yoga
Sarah Strauss Expedition Volume 46, Number 3 Winter 2004
Mirror: http://tinyurl.com/oapwlyo
'Twisted rope' which is identified as an Indus Script hieroglyph is signified on the following 14 artifacts of Ancient Near East, dated from ca. 2400 to 1650 BCE:
Bogazkoy seal impression with 'twisted rope' hieroglyph (Fig. 13) eruvai 'kite' dula 'pair' eraka 'wing' Rebus: eruvai dul 'copper cast metal' eraka'moltencast' PLUS dhāu 'strand of rope' Rebus: dhāv 'red ore' (ferrite) ti-dhāu 'three strands' Rebus: ti-dhāv 'three ferrite ores: magnetite, hematite, laterite'.
Hieroglyph: श्येन m. a hawk , falcon , eagle , any bird of prey (esp. the eagle that brings down सोम to man) RV. (Monier-Williams). This words is expanded in the expression: aśáni f. ʻ thunderbolt ʼRebus: P آهن āhan, s.m. (9th) Iron. Sing. and Pl. آهن ګر āhan gar, s.m. (5th) A smith, a blacksmith. Pl. آهن ګران āhan-garān. آهن ربا āhan-rubā, s.f. (6th) The magnet or loadstone. (E.) Sing. and Pl.); (W.) Pl. آهن رباوي āhan-rubāwī. See اوسپنه .
Fig. 1 First cylinder seal-impressed jar from Taip 1, Turkmenistan
Fig. 2 Hematite cylinder seal of Old Syria ca. 1820-1730 BCE
Fig. 3 Hematite seal. Old Syria. ca. 1720-1650 BCE
Fig. 4 Cylinder seal modern impression. Mitanni. 2nd millennium BCE
Fig. 5 Cylinder seal modern impression. Old Syria. ca. 1720-1650 BCE
Fig. 6 Cylinder seal. Mitanni. 2nd millennium BCE
Fig. 7 Stone cylinder seal. Old Syria ca. 1720-1650 BCE
Fig. 8 Hematite cylinder seal. Old Syria. ca. early 2nd millennium BCE
Fig. 9 Fragment of an Iranian Chlorite Vase. 2500-2400 BCE
Fig.10 Shahdad standard. ca. 2400 BCE Line drawing
Fig.13 Bogazkoy Seal impression ca. 18th cent. BCE
Hieroglyph: bica 'scorpion' Rebus: bica 'hematite' (Fig.4)
Hieroglyph: karaNDava 'aquatic bird' Rebus: karaDa 'hard alloy'. (Fig.7)
Daimabad seal. Rim of jar hieroglyph. karNI 'rim of jar' Rebus: karNI 'supercargo', karNIka 'scribe'.
Decipherment of Indus Script hieroglyphs:
http://bharatkalyan97.blogspot.in/2015/10/indus-script-hieroglyph-twisted-rope-on.html
Sea-faring Meluhhan business in Mesopotamia
It is commonly understood that Meluhhan were sea-faring merchants from the Sarasvati-Sindhu civilization. What was the business of the Meluhhan Ur-Lamma and others in Meluhhan villages in Mesopotamia, in a seaport of Guabba with a temple for Ninmar? Meluhhan bronze is hinted in a text: bronze (uruda) with the Meluhhan village: 6 ma-na uruda me-luh-ha.
Here is a remarkable account by Prof. PS Vermaak on the business of Meluhhan villages in Mesopotamia:
“The Meluhhan granaries. The Meluhhan village was known for its granaries (i-dub e-duru me-luh-ha) and the large amounts of royal barley that were delivered to the town of Girsu. When one calculates the amounts delivered by the Meluhhan granaries in comparison to other regions, towns or villages it was surprisingly high. It cannot exactly be determined why they delivered more barley (up to three times more) than most of the other granaries. It might be that the Meluhhan granaries had a larger region under their premises or perhaps they had to deliver more to the Girsu authorities due to their foreign origin, but this is pure speculation at this stage. There are, however, two t0065ts dating from the sixth year of Amar-Sin (AS 6-vii) and the eighth year of Shu-Sin (SS 8) respectively (from Girsu) where the Meluhhan granary was the only deliverer of the royal barley and it seems that the various granaries had separate monthly instalments to pay (text ASJ 03 152 107). The Meluhhan garden. Some references can be found to the Meluhhan garden (kiri me-luh-ha) in the Neo-Sumerian period, but no more specific details can be derived from these texts except to note that they were connected to the temple of Ninmar. However, several types of Meluhhan artefacts have been identified which probably made up the Meluhhan garden, especially the ab-ba me-luh-ha which is a sort o Meluhhan wood, or the ab-ba could refer to some kind of water feature in a garden…The Meluhhan temples. Two temples have been connected to the Meluhhan village in Ur III Girsu, namely those of the gods’ Nanshe and Nin-mar. In a text where a number of scribes (dub-sar-me) are listed it has been summarized in three interesting lines, namely shu-nigin 6 gurush, arad Nanshe-me, ugula me-luhha (A total of 6 men, servants of the god, Nanshe, while the overseer is a Meluhhan) which definitely seems to connect the Meluhhan village with the temple of Nanshe. This text relates to the temple of Nanshe and the Meluhhan official, which is a good illustration of the Meluhhan s being incorporated into the society of southern Mesopotamia. Another text suggests that the Meluhhans worked in the temple of Nanshe: dumu me-luh-ha erin e Nanshe (‘The Meluhhan worker in the house of Nanshe’). In a balanced account (nig-kas-ak) regarding the different types of barley delivered to the temple of Ninmar (nig-kas ak Lu-Shul-gi shabra she e Nin-MAR.KI) the seal of the well-known Meluhhan appears twice in the text (Kishib Ur-Lamma dumu me-luh-ha). The royal barley deliveries sent to the different gardens (kiri en-ne) in the region of Girsu (year 48 of Shulgi) and the Meluhhan garden was again connected to the temple of Nin-Mar (kiri me-luh-ha Nin-MAR.KI) which was not connected to the Meluhhan temple. This means there had to be two gardens in the same temple of Ninmarki, one as a Meluhhan garden and another one not. The Meluhhan avifauna. The Meluhhan bird (dar me-luh-ha) appears five times in the Ur III texts, only once with the determinative of a bid (mushen). In most of the cases the dar has been listed together with images (alan) which indicates that in these instances the dar probably does not refer to a real bird, but to an image of a bird, maybe as a carved bird (as curio) from wood or ivory. In all instances these texts came from Ur and date from the thirteenth year of Ibbi-Sin. It has been speculated that the dar might be a ‘multi-coloured’ Meluhhan bird, described by Leemans (1960: 166) as a ‘peacock’, but he (Leemans 1968: 222) later corrected himself and regarded it as a kind of a ‘hen’ due to his understanding of it as a bird from ‘India’. The Meluhhan fauna. Although in earlier and later texts references are made to the Meluhhan fauna species from other periods such as the multicoloured Meluhhan dog which was given as a gift to Ibbi-Sin and a Meluhhan cat (Akkadian shuranu) in a Babylonian proverb (Lambert 1960: 272). The only Meluhhan fauna in the Ur III texts is a reference to the goat: mash ga me-luh-ha, ‘the Meluhhan milk goat’. The Meluhhan timber/woods. Special kinds of timber/woods came into southern Mesopotamia from various places such as Magan and Meluhha from the Early Dynastic III to the Gudea period. Lexical texts confirm the import of Meluhhan timber which entered via the ports in the Gulf. Various kinds of Meluhhan wood have been identified during the Ur III and other periods and they were mostly used for different kinds of furniture. The mes-me-luh-ha wood only occurs twice in the Ur III texts, but also continued to be used for furniture and household utensils during the Old Babylonian period (Leemans 160: 126). Its Akkadian equivalent musukkannu was referred to as a Magan and Meluhhan import and it was probably a hard and/or black wood. However, it was locally available during the first millennium BCE (Maxwell-Hyslop 1983: 70-71). The ab-ba me-luh-ha wood had a special purpose to make inter alia special chairs or thrones with ivory inlays. Heimpel (1993: 54) describes it as ‘Meerholz’ which indicates the usage as boat building material, but its Akkadian equivalent is even more well known kushabku.” The Meluhhan bronzes. Since the Uruk III period upto the Gudea period the acquiring of bronzes from the three places Dilmun, Magan en Meluhha was well documented, however during the Ur III period only one reference was found which connects the bronze (uruda) with the Meluhhan village: 6 ma-na uruda me-luh-ha. The Meluhhan village of Guabba.According to the electronic UR III databases there are more than four hundred references in texts mentioning the place name Gu-ab-ba and the texts mostly originate from Girsu/Lagash. Several features immediately come forward when you retrieve these texts, but we will only outline some of these features in order to find the common business of the area concerned…MVN 7 420 = ITT 4 8024…the Meluhhan village often referred to is now connected to the well-known place/village of Gu-ab-ba which is also mentioned twice in this text. It is also linked with a person called Ur-Lamma who has often been mentioned in several other Ur III texts and seals as a Meluhhan (dumu me-luh-ha)...Currently, all 44 texts have been published and are available electronically referring to Meluhha as a place or as a qualifier (a so-called ‘adjective’). On the other hand the place Gu-ab-ba is to be found several hundred times in the Sargonic and Ur III texts…Guabba continued with Meluhha temples…these temples, especially the one of Ninmar, have also been associated with the place of Guabba in earlier periods. One oyal inscription during the time of Ur-Bau in Lagash II dates the year according to the building of temple of Ninmar in Guabba: mu e-nin-mar –ka gu-ab-ba –ka ba-du-a ‘year in which the temple of Ninmar in Guabba was built’ (AO 3355)…In a Sumerian temple hymn (TH 23) Guabba is twice mentioned in connection with the temple of Ninmar…Guabba as a Meluhhan textile hub. .. During the UR III period Guabba provides the largest group of people from Girsu working in the weaving sector, mainly women and children. In one text 4272 women and 1800 children from Guabba are listed as being in the weaving industry (cf. Waetzoldt 1972-94)…if Guabba was indeed a Meluhhan village then one could speculate that this group could have been ancestors of a distant group which diffused into this area, bringing their skills of textiles into the region or being used as cheap labour…Ur-Lamma the Meluhhan of Guabba. Although the name Ur-Lamma occurs several hundred times in the UR III texts, it seems that several persons carried the name Ur-Lamma, because there are often references to the names of their fathers or sons, thus several could be distinguished. However, Ur-Lamma the Meluhhan occurs in a few texts and in seals, but Meluhha occurs only once as a personal name from Guabba…According to the references in texts the personal name Ur-Lamma occurs at least twice in seals from texts, namely Kishib Ur-Lamma dumu me-luh-ha (OBTR 242 = JESHO 20, 135 02)(SH 40)(2x in text) in a financial ‘balanced account’ (nig-kas-ak) and Kishib Ur-Lamma dumu me-luh-ha (UDT 64=CBCY 3, NBC 64). Guabba as a Meluhhan seaport. Guabba has been interpreted as a harbor town under the jurisdiction of Girsu/Lagas due to the literal meaning of the reading gu-ab-ba which did not include the determinative KI for the place name in text SRT 49 II 4, thus gu-ab-ba (‘sea-shore’) instead of the normal gu-ab-ba…Since pre-Sargonic and Sargonic times, references to ‘large boats’ hint at a trading colony which initially had direct contact with their distant ancestors. The following literary document (Lamentation of Sumer and Ur. Michalowski 1989) confirms the previous status: Line 168-169: nin-mar –ra esh gu-ab-ba-ka izi im-ma-da-an-te ku za-gin-bi ma-gal-gal-la bala-she i-ak-e (‘Fire approached Ninmarki in the shrine Guabba (and) large boats were transporting precious metals and gem stones’…one might be able to say that Guabba is a Meluhhan village in southern Mesopotamia…(pp. 556-568) Excerpts from:http://www.scribd.com/doc/21340164/Guabbasemit-v17-n2-a12
Meluhhan (mleccha) speakers were all over India, and also established villages close to Guabba, seaport (not far from Tigris-Euphrates): “In order to form a comprehensive view of the Meluhhan remnants (in Mesopotamia) a variety of texts could be consulted, although they display a picture of a people that have been integrated into the Sumerian and Babylonian cultures much earlier than the Ur III period. ” [i.e., earlier than (2112-2004 BC)] (cf. PS Vermaak, 2008, Guabba, the Meluhhan village in Mesopotamia, Journal of Semitics, 17/2, pp. 553-570). It should be possible to identify mleccha (meluhha) substratum words in Sumerian/Akkadian. One substrate word is sanga 'priest' (Akkadian); cognate with sanghvi 'priest accompanying pilgrims' (Gujarati).
Meluhha and Bronze Age revolution
Indus Script evidence validates maritime trade of Meluhha (Sarasvati civilization) with Dilmun from 2500 BCE.
A Maritime tin route from Hanoi to Haifa has been posited to transport tin which was a critical component to alloy with copper to sustain the Bronze Age revolution. On this route which predated Silk Road by two millennia, the Persian Gulf (Straits of Hormuz), together with the Straits of Malacca, was the critical maritime link. Archaeological reports on sites along the Persian Gulf have cumulatively evidenced the trade and cultural contacts Meluhha (Sarasvati civilization) merchants and artisans (some with settlements in Ancient Near East) had with Ancient Near East and Ancient Far East as active participants in the revolution. The presence of Munda in Austro-asiatic speaker areas of Ancient Far East is well-attested by Austro-asiatic etyma also present in glosses of Indian sprachbund (pace FBJ Kuiper on Munda words in Samskrtam).
Map of Bronze Age sites of eastern India and neighbouring areas: 1. Koldihwa; 2.Khairdih; 3. Chirand; 4. Mahisadal; 5. Pandu Rajar Dhibi; 6.Mehrgarh; 7. Harappa;8. Mohenjo-daro; 9.Ahar; 10. Kayatha; 11.Navdatoli; 12.Inamgaon; 13. Non PaWai; 14. Nong Nor;15. Ban Na Di andBan Chiang; 16. NonNok Tha; 17. Thanh Den; 18. Shizhaishan; 19. Ban Don Ta Phet [After Fig. 8.1 in: Charles Higham, 1996, The Bronze Age of Southeast Asia, Cambridge University Press].
Austroasiatic languages map (in German) from H.-J. Pinnow's Versuch einer historischen Lautlehre der Kharia-Sprache, 1958: map
The Gundestrup cauldron and Pillar of Boatmen are evidence of the Meluhhan contact areas in the Ancient NEar East. So are the hieroglyphs of frog, peacock, elephant, antelopes, heron on Dong Son bronze drums evidenc of the Meluhhan contact areas in the Tin Belt of the Globe in Ancient Far East.
Glyptic art of the Seals from Persian Gulf are a combination of Mesopotamian syles of cylinder seals combined with Indus Script hieroglyphs. Meluhhans had a flourishing tradw with Sumer ca. 2350 BCE. The inscriptions of Persian Gulf cylinder seald and also Dilmun-type stamp seals provide conclusive evidence for the presence of Meluhha merchants/artisans in the Persian Gulf and interacting with Ur and Susa. The trade transactions with Susa are attested by a Susa pot with the cargo of metal implements, tools, weapons. The decipherment of Indus Script hieroglyphs on the Susa pot as metalwork catalogues are presented in:
A Susa pot with Indus Script hieroglyphs is a 'rosetta stone' for Indus Script Corpora of metalwork proclamations http://bharatkalyan97.blogspot.in/2015/10/susa-pot-with-indus-script-hieroglyphs.html
Kuwait gold disc with Indus Script hieroglyphs
1. A pair of tabernae montana flowers tagara 'tabernae montana' flower; rebus: tagara 'tin'
2. A pair of rams tagara 'ram'; rebus: damgar 'merchant' (Akkadian) Next to one ram: kuTi 'tree' Rebus: kuThi 'smelter' Alternative: kolmo 'rice plant' Rebus: kolimi 'smithy, forge'.
3. Ficus religiosa leaves on a tree branch (5) loa 'ficus leaf'; rebus: loh 'metal'. kol in Tamil means pancaloha'alloy of five metals'. PLUS flanking pair of lotus flowers: tAmarasa 'lotus' Rebus: tAmra 'copper' dula 'pair' Rebus: dul 'cast metal' thus, denoting copper castings.
4. A pair of bulls tethered to the tree branch: barad, barat 'ox' Rebus: bharata 'alloy of copper, pewter, tin' (Marathi) PLUS kola 'man' Rebus: kolhe 'smelter' kur.i 'woman' Rebus: kol 'working in iron' Alternative: ḍhangar 'bull'; rebus ḍhangar 'blacksmith' poLa 'zebu' Rebus: poLa 'magnetite'.
Two persons touch the two bulls: meḍ ‘body’ (Mu.) Rebus: meḍ ‘iron’ (Ho.) Thus, the hieroglyph composition denotes ironsmiths.
Two persons touch the two bulls: meḍ ‘body’ (Mu.) Rebus: meḍ ‘iron’ (Ho.) Thus, the hieroglyph composition denotes ironsmiths.
5. A pair of antelopes looking back: krammara 'look back'; rebus: kamar 'smith' (Santali); tagara 'antelope'; rebus: damgar 'merchant' (Akkadian) Alternative: melh, mr..eka 'goat' (Brahui. Telugu) Rebus: milakkhu 'copper' (Pali), mleccha-mukha 'copper' (Samskritam)
6. A pair of antelopes mē̃ḍh 'antelope, ram'; rebus: mē̃ḍ 'iron' (Mu.)
7. A pair of combs kāṅga 'comb' Rebus: kanga 'brazier, fireplace'
Phal. kāṅga ʻ combing ʼ in ṣiṣ k° dūm ʻI comb my hairʼ khyḗṅgia, kēṅgī f.;
kaṅghā m. ʻ large comb (Punjabi) káṅkata m. ʻ comb ʼ AV., n. lex., °tī -- , °tikã -- f. lex. 2. *kaṅkaṭa -- 2 . 3. *kaṅkaśa -- . [Of doubtful IE. origin WP i 335, EWA i 137: aberrant -- uta -- as well as -- aśa -- replacing -- ata -- in MIA. and NIA.]1. Pk. kaṁkaya -- m. ʻ comb ʼ, kaṁkaya -- , °kaï -- m. ʻ name of a tree ʼ; Gy. eur. kangli f.; Wg. kuṇi -- přũ ʻ man's comb ʼ (for kuṇi -- cf. kuṇälík beside kuṅälíks.v. kr̥muka -- ; -- přũ see prapavaṇa -- ); Bshk. kēṅg ʻ comb ʼ, Gaw. khēṅgīˊ, Sv. khḗṅgiā, Tor. kyäṅg ʻ comb ʼ (Dard. forms, esp. Gaw., Sv., Phal. but not Sh., prob. ← L. P. type < *kaṅgahiā -- , see 3 below); Sh. kōṅyi̯ f. (→ Ḍ. k*l ṅi f.), gil. (Lor.) kōĩ f. ʻ man's comb ʼ, kōũ m. ʻ woman's comb ʼ, pales. kōgō m. ʻ comb ʼ; K. kanguwu m. ʻ man's comb ʼ, kangañ f. ʻ woman's ʼ; WPah. bhad. kãˊke i ʻ a comb -- like fern ʼ, bhal. kãke i f. ʻ comb, plant with comb -- like leaves ʼ; N. kāṅiyo, kāĩyo ʻ comb ʼ, A. kã̄kai, B. kã̄kui; Or. kaṅkāi, kaṅkuā ʻ comb ʼ, kakuā ʻ ladder -- like bier for carrying corpse to the burning -- ghat ʼ; Bi. kakwā ʻ comb ʼ, kaka hā, °hī, Mth. kakwā, Aw. lakh. kakawā, Bhoj. kakahī f.; H. kakaiyā ʻ shaped like a comb (of a brick) ʼ; G. (non -- Aryan tribes of Dharampur)kākhāī f. ʻ comb ʼ; M. kaṅkvā m. ʻ comb ʼ, kã̄kaī f. ʻ a partic. shell fish and its shell ʼ; -- S. kaṅgu m. ʻ a partic. kind of small fish ʼ < *kaṅkuta -- ? -- Ext. with --l -- in Ku. kã̄gilo, kāĩlo ʻ comb ʼ.2. G. (Soraṭh) kã̄gaṛ m. ʻ a weaver's instrument ʼ?3. L. kaṅghī f. ʻ comb, a fish of the perch family ʼ, awāṇ. kaghī ʻ comb ʼ; P. kaṅghā m. ʻ large comb ʼ, °ghī f. ʻ small comb for men, large one for women ʼ (→ H. kaṅghā m. ʻ man's comb ʼ, °gahī, °ghī f. ʻ woman's ʼ, kaṅghuā m. ʻ rake or harrow ʼ; Bi. kãga hī ʻ comb ʼ, Or. kaṅgei, M. kaṅgvā); -- G. kã̄gsī f. ʻ comb ʼ, with metath. kã̄sko m., °kī f.; WPah. khaś. kāgśī, śeu. kāśkī ʻ a comblike fern ʼ or < *kaṅkataśikha -- .WPah.kṭg. kaṅgi f. ʻ comb ʼ; J. kāṅgṛu m. ʻ small comb ʼ.(CDIAL 2598)
Rebus: large furnace, fireplace: kang कंग् । आवसथ्यो &1;ग्निः m. the fire-receptacle or fire-place, kept burning in former times in the courtyard of a Kāshmīrī house for the benefit of guests, etc., and distinct from the three religious domestic fires of a Hindū; (at the present day) a fire-place or brazier lit in the open air on mountain sides, etc., for the sake of warmth or for keeping off wild beasts. nāra-kang, a fire-receptacle; hence, met. a shower of sparks (falling on a person) (Rām. 182). kan:gar `portable furnace' (Kashmiri)Cf. kã̄gürü, which is the fem. of this word in a dim. sense (Gr.Gr. 33, 7). kã̄gürü काँग्् or
kã̄gürü काँग or kã̄gar काँग््र्् । हसब्तिका f. (sg. dat. kã̄grĕ काँग्र्य or kã̄garĕ काँगर्य , abl. kã̄gri काँग्रि ), the portable brazier, or kāngrī, much used in Kashmīr (K.Pr. kángár, 129, 131, 178; káṅgrí, 5, 128, 129). For particulars see El. s.v. kángri; L. 7, 25, kangar;and K.Pr. 129. The word is a fem. dim. of kang, q.v. (Gr.Gr. 37). kã̄gri-khŏphürü kã̄gri-khŏphürü काँग्रि-ख्वफ््&above;रू&below; । भग्ना काष्ठाङ्गारिका f. a worn-out brazier. -khôru -खोरु&below; । काष्ठाङ्गारिका<-> र्धभागः m. the outer half (made of woven twigs) of a brazier, remaining after the inner earthenware bowl has been broken or removed; see khôru. -kŏnḍolu -क्वंड । हसन्तिकापात्रम् m. the circular earthenware bowl of a brazier, which contains the burning fuel. -köñü -का&above;ञू&below; । हसन्तिकालता f. the covering of woven twigs outside the earthenware bowl of a brazier.
It is an archaeometallurgical challenge to trace the Maritime Tin Route from the tin belt of the world on Mekong River delta in the Far East and trace the contributions made by seafaring merchants of Meluhha in reaching the tin mineral resource to sustain the Tin-Bronze Age which was a revolution unleashed ca. 5th millennium BCE. See: http://bharatkalyan97.blogspot.in/2015/08/indus-script-corpora-as-catalogus.html
Phal. kāṅga ʻ combing ʼ in ṣiṣ k° dūm ʻI comb my hairʼ khyḗṅgia, kēṅgī f.;
kaṅghā m. ʻ large comb (Punjabi) káṅkata m. ʻ comb ʼ AV., n. lex., °tī -- , °tikã -- f. lex. 2. *kaṅkaṭa --
Rebus: large furnace, fireplace: kang कंग् । आवसथ्यो &1;ग्निः m. the fire-receptacle or fire-place, kept burning in former times in the courtyard of a Kāshmīrī house for the benefit of guests, etc., and distinct from the three religious domestic fires of a Hindū; (at the present day) a fire-place or brazier lit in the open air on mountain sides, etc., for the sake of warmth or for keeping off wild beasts. nāra-kang, a fire-receptacle; hence, met. a shower of sparks (falling on a person) (Rām. 182). kan:gar `portable furnace' (Kashmiri)Cf. kã̄gürü, which is the fem. of this word in a dim. sense (Gr.Gr. 33, 7). kã̄gürü काँग्् or
kã̄gürüकाँग or kã̄gar काँग््र्् । हसब्तिका f. (sg. dat. kã̄grĕ काँग्र्य or kã̄garĕ काँगर्य , abl. kã̄gri काँग्रि ), the portable brazier, or kāngrī, much used in Kashmīr (K.Pr. kángár, 129, 131, 178; káṅgrí, 5, 128, 129). For particulars see El. s.v. kángri; L. 7, 25, kangar;and K.Pr. 129. The word is a fem. dim. of kang, q.v. (Gr.Gr. 37). kã̄gri-khŏphürü kã̄gri-khŏphürü काँग्रि-ख्वफ््&above;रू&below; । भग्ना काष्ठाङ्गारिका f. a worn-out brazier. -khôru -खोरु&below; । काष्ठाङ्गारिका<-> र्धभागः m. the outer half (made of woven twigs) of a brazier, remaining after the inner earthenware bowl has been broken or removed; see khôru. -kŏnḍolu -क्वंड । हसन्तिकापात्रम् m. the circular earthenware bowl of a brazier, which contains the burning fuel. -köñü -का&above;ञू&below; । हसन्तिकालता f. the covering of woven twigs outside the earthenware bowl of a brazier.
It is an archaeometallurgical challenge to trace the Maritime Tin Route from the tin belt of the world on Mekong River delta in the Far East and trace the contributions made by seafaring merchants of Meluhha in reaching the tin mineral resource to sustain the Tin-Bronze Age which was a revolution unleashed ca. 5th millennium BCE. See: http://bharatkalyan97.blogspot.in/2015/08/indus-script-corpora-as-catalogus.html
kã̄gürü
It is an archaeometallurgical challenge to trace the Maritime Tin Route from the tin belt of the world on Mekong River delta in the Far East and trace the contributions made by seafaring merchants of Meluhha in reaching the tin mineral resource to sustain the Tin-Bronze Age which was a revolution unleashed ca. 5th millennium BCE. See: http://bharatkalyan97.blogspot.in/2015/08/indus-script-corpora-as-catalogus.html
8. A pair of fishes ayo 'fish' (Mu.); rebus: ayo 'metal, iron' (Gujarati); ayas 'metal' (Sanskrit)
9.A pair of buffaloes tethered to a post-standard kāṛā ‘buffalo’ கண்டி kaṇṭi buffalo bull (Tamil); rebus: kaṇḍ 'stone ore'; kāṇḍa ‘tools, pots and pans and metal-ware’; kaṇḍ ‘furnace, fire-altar, consecrated fire’.
mũh ‘face’; rebus: mũh ‘ingot’ (Mu.)
mũh ‘face’; rebus: mũh ‘ingot’ (Mu.) ṭhaṭera ‘buffalo horns’. ṭhaṭerā ‘brass worker’ (Punjabi)
Pe. kaṇga (pl. -ŋ, kaṇku) eye. Rebus: kanga ' large portable brazier, fire-place' (Kashmiri).
Thus the stylized standard is read rebus: Hieroglyph components:kanga + ṭhaṭerā 'one eye + buffalo horn' Rebus: kanga 'large portable barzier' (Kashmiri) + ṭhaṭerā ‘brass worker’ (Punjabi)
Ta. kaṇ eye, aperture, orifice, star of a peacock's tail. Ma. kaṇ, kaṇṇu eye, nipple, star in peacock's tail, bud. Ko. kaṇ eye. To. koṇ eye, loop in string.Ka. kaṇ eye, small hole, orifice. Koḍ. kaṇṇï id. Tu. kaṇṇů eye, nipple, star in peacock's feather, rent, tear. Te. kanu, kannu eye, small hole, orifice, mesh of net, eye in peacock's feather. Kol. kan (pl. kanḍl) eye, small hole in ground, cave. Nk. kan (pl. kanḍḷ) eye, spot in peacock's tail. Nk. (Ch.) kan (pl. -l) eye. Pa.(S. only) kan (pl. kanul) eye. Ga. (Oll.) kaṇ (pl. kaṇkul) id.; kaṇul maṭṭa eyebrow; kaṇa (pl. kaṇul) hole; (S.) kanu (pl. kankul) eye. Go. (Tr.) kan (pl.kank) id.; (A.) kaṛ (pl. kaṛk) id. Konḍa kaṇ id. Pe. kaṇga (pl. -ŋ, kaṇku) id. Manḍ. kan (pl. -ke) id. Kui kanu (pl. kan-ga), (K.) kanu (pl. kaṛka) id. Kuwi(F.) kannū (pl. kar&nangle;ka), (S.) kannu (pl. kanka), (Su. P. Isr.) kanu (pl. kaṇka) id. Kur. xann eye, eye of tuber; xannērnā (of newly born babies or animals) to begin to see, have the use of one's eyesight (for ērnā, see 903). Malt. qanu eye. Br. xan id., bud. (DEDR 1159) kāṇá ʻ one -- eyed ʼ RV. Pa. Pk. kāṇa -- ʻ blind of one eye, blind ʼ; Ash. kã̄ṛa, °ṛī f. ʻ blind ʼ, Kt. kãŕ, Wg. kŕãmacrdotdot;, Pr. k&schwatildemacr;, Tir. kāˊna, Kho. kāṇu NTS ii 260,kánu BelvalkarVol 91; K. kônu ʻ one -- eyed ʼ, S. kāṇo, L. P. kāṇã̄; WPah. rudh. śeu. kāṇā ʻ blind ʼ; Ku. kāṇo, gng. kã̄&rtodtilde; ʻ blind of one eye ʼ, N. kānu;A. kanā ʻ blind ʼ; B. kāṇā ʻ one -- eyed, blind ʼ; Or. kaṇā, f. kāṇī ʻ one -- eyed ʼ, Mth. kān, °nā, kanahā, Bhoj. kān, f. °ni, kanwā m. ʻ one -- eyed man ʼ, H. kān,°nā, G. kāṇũ; M. kāṇā ʻ one -- eyed, squint -- eyed ʼ; Si. kaṇa ʻ one -- eyed, blind ʼ. -- Pk. kāṇa -- ʻ full of holes ʼ, G. kāṇũ ʻ full of holes ʼ, n. ʻ hole ʼ (< ʻ empty eyehole ʼ? Cf. ã̄dhḷũ n. ʻ hole ʼ < andhala -- ).S.kcch. kāṇī f.adj. ʻ one -- eyed ʼ; WPah.kṭg. kaṇɔ ʻ blind in one eye ʼ, J. kāṇā; Md. kanu ʻ blind ʼ.(CDIAL 3019) Ko. kāṇso ʻ squint -- eyed ʼ.(Konkani)
Paš. ainċ -- gánik ʻ eyelid ʼ(CDIAL 3999) Phonetic reinforcement of the gloss: Pe. kaṇga (pl. -ŋ, kaṇku) eye.
See also: nimišta kanag 'to write' (SBal): *nipēśayati ʻ writes ʼ. [√piś] Very doubtful: Kal.rumb. Kho. nivḗš -- ʻ to write ʼ more prob. ← EPers. Morgenstierne BSOS viii 659. <-> Ir. pres. st. *nipaiš -- (for *nipais -- after past *nipišta -- ) in Yid. nuviš -- , Mj. nuvuš -- , Sang. Wkh. nəviš -- ; -- Aś. nipista<-> ← Ir. *nipista -- (for *nipišta -- after pres. *nipais -- ) in SBal. novīsta or nimišta kanag ʻ to write ʼ.(CDIAL 7220)
Pe. kaṇga (pl. -ŋ, kaṇku) eye. Rebus: kanga ' large portable brazier, fire-place' (Kashmiri).
Thus the stylized standard is read rebus: Hieroglyph components:kanga + ṭhaṭerā 'one eye + buffalo horn' Rebus: kanga 'large portable barzier' (Kashmiri) + ṭhaṭerā ‘brass worker’ (Punjabi)
Ta. kaṇ eye, aperture, orifice, star of a peacock's tail. Ma. kaṇ, kaṇṇu eye, nipple, star in peacock's tail, bud. Ko. kaṇ eye. To. koṇ eye, loop in string.Ka. kaṇ eye, small hole, orifice. Koḍ. kaṇṇï id. Tu. kaṇṇů eye, nipple, star in peacock's feather, rent, tear. Te. kanu, kannu eye, small hole, orifice, mesh of net, eye in peacock's feather. Kol. kan (pl. kanḍl) eye, small hole in ground, cave. Nk. kan (pl. kanḍḷ) eye, spot in peacock's tail. Nk. (Ch.) kan (pl. -l) eye. Pa.(S. only) kan (pl. kanul) eye. Ga. (Oll.) kaṇ (pl. kaṇkul) id.; kaṇul maṭṭa eyebrow; kaṇa (pl. kaṇul) hole; (S.) kanu (pl. kankul) eye. Go. (Tr.) kan (pl.kank) id.; (A.) kaṛ (pl. kaṛk) id. Konḍa kaṇ id. Pe. kaṇga (pl. -ŋ, kaṇku) id. Manḍ. kan (pl. -ke) id. Kui kanu (pl. kan-ga), (K.) kanu (pl. kaṛka) id. Kuwi(F.) kannū (pl. kar&nangle;ka), (S.) kannu (pl. kanka), (Su. P. Isr.) kanu (pl. kaṇka) id. Kur. xann eye, eye of tuber; xannērnā (of newly born babies or animals) to begin to see, have the use of one's eyesight (for ērnā, see 903). Malt. qanu eye. Br. xan id., bud. (DEDR 1159) kāṇá ʻ one -- eyed ʼ RV. Pa. Pk. kāṇa -- ʻ blind of one eye, blind ʼ; Ash. kã̄ṛa, °ṛī f. ʻ blind ʼ, Kt. kãŕ, Wg. kŕãmacrdotdot;, Pr. k&schwatildemacr;, Tir. kāˊna, Kho. kāṇu NTS ii 260,kánu BelvalkarVol 91; K. kônu ʻ one -- eyed ʼ, S. kāṇo, L. P. kāṇã̄; WPah. rudh. śeu. kāṇā ʻ blind ʼ; Ku. kāṇo, gng. kã̄&rtodtilde; ʻ blind of one eye ʼ, N. kānu;A. kanā ʻ blind ʼ; B. kāṇā ʻ one -- eyed, blind ʼ; Or. kaṇā, f. kāṇī ʻ one -- eyed ʼ, Mth. kān, °nā, kanahā, Bhoj. kān, f. °ni, kanwā m. ʻ one -- eyed man ʼ, H. kān,°nā, G. kāṇũ; M. kāṇā ʻ one -- eyed, squint -- eyed ʼ; Si. kaṇa ʻ one -- eyed, blind ʼ. -- Pk. kāṇa -- ʻ full of holes ʼ, G. kāṇũ ʻ full of holes ʼ, n. ʻ hole ʼ (< ʻ empty eyehole ʼ? Cf. ã̄dhḷũ n. ʻ hole ʼ < andhala -- ).S.kcch. kāṇī f.adj. ʻ one -- eyed ʼ; WPah.kṭg. kaṇɔ ʻ blind in one eye ʼ, J. kāṇā; Md. kanu ʻ blind ʼ.(CDIAL 3019) Ko. kāṇso ʻ squint -- eyed ʼ.(Konkani)
Paš. ainċ -- gánik ʻ eyelid ʼ(CDIAL 3999) Phonetic reinforcement of the gloss: Pe. kaṇga (pl. -ŋ, kaṇku) eye.
See also: nimišta kanag 'to write' (SBal): *nipēśayati ʻ writes ʼ. [√piś] Very doubtful: Kal.rumb. Kho. nivḗš -- ʻ to write ʼ more prob. ← EPers. Morgenstierne BSOS viii 659. <-> Ir. pres. st. *nipaiš -- (for *nipais -- after past *nipišta -- ) in Yid. nuviš -- , Mj. nuvuš -- , Sang. Wkh. nəviš -- ; -- Aś. nipista<-> ← Ir. *nipista -- (for *nipišta -- after pres. *nipais -- ) in SBal. novīsta or nimišta kanag ʻ to write ʼ.(CDIAL 7220)
Paš. ainċ -- gánik ʻ eyelid ʼ(CDIAL 3999) Phonetic reinforcement of the gloss: Pe. kaṇga (pl. -ŋ, kaṇku) eye.
See also: nimišta kanag 'to write' (SBal): *nipēśayati ʻ writes ʼ. [√piś] Very doubtful: Kal.rumb. Kho. nivḗš -- ʻ to write ʼ more prob. ← EPers. Morgenstierne BSOS viii 659. <-> Ir. pres. st. *nipaiš -- (for *nipais -- after past *nipišta -- ) in Yid. nuviš -- , Mj. nuvuš -- , Sang. Wkh. nəviš -- ; -- Aś. nipista<-> ← Ir. *nipista -- (for *nipišta -- after pres. *nipais -- ) in SBal. novīsta or nimišta kanag ʻ to write ʼ.(CDIAL 7220)
Alternative: dol ‘eye’; Rebus: dul ‘to cast metal in a mould’ (Santali)Alternative: kandi ‘hole, opening’ (Ka.)[Note the eye shown as a dotted circle on many Dilmun seals.]; kan ‘eye’ (Ka.); rebus: kandi (pl. –l) necklace, beads (Pa.);kaṇḍ 'stone ore' Alternative: kã̄gsī f. ʻcombʼ (Gujarati); rebus 1: kangar ‘portable furnace’ (Kashmiri); rebus 2: kamsa 'bronze'.
khuṇḍ ʻtethering peg or post' (Western Pahari) Rebus: kūṭa ‘workshop’; kuṭi= smelter furnace (Santali); Rebus 2: kuṇḍ 'fire-altar'
Why are animals shown in pairs?
dula ‘pair’ (Kashmiri); rebus: dul ‘cast metal’ (Mu.)
khuṇḍ ʻtethering peg or post' (Western Pahari) Rebus: kūṭa ‘workshop’; kuṭi= smelter furnace (Santali); Rebus 2: kuṇḍ 'fire-altar'
Why are animals shown in pairs?
dula ‘pair’ (Kashmiri); rebus: dul ‘cast metal’ (Mu.)
Thus, all the hieroglyphs on the gold disc can be read as Indus writing related to one bronze-age artifact category: metalware catalog entries.
kondh ‘young bull’. kũdār ‘turner, brass-worker’. sangaDa 'lathe, brazier' rebus: sangAta 'collection' (of metalwork) koTiya 'rings on neck' rebus: kotiya 'baghlah dhow, cargo boat'. कुटिल kuṭila, katthīl = bronze (8 parts copperand 2 parts tin) dATu ‘cross’ rebus: dhAtu ‘mineral’ gaNDa ‘four’ rebus: kaNDa ‘implements’ dula ‘two’ rebus: dul ‘metal casting’ ayo, aya ‘fish’ rebus: aya ‘iron’ ayas ‘metal’ aya ‘fish’ rebus: ayas ‘metal’ PLUS adaren ‘lid’ rebus: aduru ‘unsmelted metal’ kolmo ‘rice plant’ rebus: kolimi ‘smithy, forge’ muh ‘ingot’ kolom ‘three’ rebus: kolimi ‘smithy, forge’ dula ‘two’ rebus: dul ‘metal casting’ ranku ‘liquid measure’ rebus: ranku ‘tin’ kolmo ‘rice plant’ rebus: kolimi ‘smithy, forge’ karNaka, kanka ‘rim of jar’ rebus: karNI ‘supercargo, engraver, account’.See: https://www.academia.edu/1898205/Potts_2010_-_Cylinder_seals_and_their_use_in_the_Arabian_Peninsula_AAE_21_ DT Potts, 2010 Cylnder seals and their use in Arabian Peninsula. After presenting the following figures of cylinder seals, DT Potts concludes:
"In conclusion, the number of seals discovered in eastern Arabia comes nowhere near the thousands known further north in the cuneiform-using heartland of the ancient Near East. Nevertheless, the apparent dearth of cylinder seals in the region is itself a relative estimation. Compared with the Indus Valley, eastern Iran, Central Asia and the Bronze Age Caucasus, the numbers are not insignificant. There is, however, a very clear fall-off in seal numbers...
koThAri 'crucible' Rebus: koThAri 'treasurer, warehouse' . मेढ (p. 662) [ mēḍha ] 'polar' star' Rebus: mẽṛhẽt, meḍ 'iron' (Ho.Munda)
मेढ (p. 662) [ mēḍha ] 'polar' star' Rebus: mẽṛhẽt, meḍ 'iron' (Ho.Munda)
kola 'tiger' rebus: kol 'working in iron' mlekh 'goat' rebus:milakkhu 'copper' barad, balad 'ox' rebus: bharat 'alloy of copper, pewter, tin'
Fig. 6c offering table with hooves grasped/touched by bull-men or humans
Fig. 6e table grasped/touched by monkeys
Fig. 6a-e symbols/objects apparently placed on the table
Fig. 6a,c table apparently placed on a ‘podium’
कर्णक kárṇaka, kannā 'legs spread', 'rim of jar', '
Fig. 5a-f bull-man holding/touching a ‘ritual’ object or a branch; Fig 5c, d bull-man standing ‘above’ an animal; Fig. 5a-f : bull-man holding/touching a ‘ritual’ object or a branch
koThAri 'crucible' Rebus: koThAri 'treasurer, warehouse' . मेढ (p. 662) [ mēḍha ] 'polar' star' Rebus: mẽṛhẽt, meḍ 'iron' (Ho.M
करडूं or करडें (p. 137) [ karaḍū or ṅkaraḍēṃ ] n A kid. कराडूं (p. 137) [ karāḍūṃ ] n (Commonly करडूं ) A kid. (Marathi) Rebus: करडा (p. 137) [ karaḍā ] Hard from alloy--iron, silver &c. (Marathi) khaNDa 'divisions' Rebus: khANDa 'implements'
Fig. 4a b
ull-man standing on a hatched podium Fig. 4b, f bull-man holding/touching a ‘ritual’ object or a branch; Fig. 4a, c-d bull-man grasping an animal; Fig. 4b : bull-man holding/touching a ‘ritual’ object or a branch
karaDi 'safflower' Rebus: karaDa 'hard alloy' (Marathi); khaNDa 'divisions' Rebus: khANDa 'implements' koThAri 'crucible' Rebus: koThAri 'treasurer, warehouse' . मेढ (p. 662) [ mēḍha ] 'polar' star' Rebus: mẽṛhẽt, meḍ 'iron' (Ho.M
करडूं or करडें (p. 137)
Fig. 3a Features: god with a naked or garbed attendant behind or before; god holding/touching a crescent-standard; bull-man holding/touching a ‘ritual’ object or a branch Fig. 3b bull-man grasped/touched by a naked male figure Fig. 3b-f bull-man grasping an animal; Fig. 3d bull-man standing ‘above’ an animal; Fig. 3a : bull-man holding/touching a ‘ritual’ object or a branch
करडूं or करडें (p. 137) [ karaḍū or ṅkaraḍēṃ ] n A kid. कराडूं (p. 137) [ karāḍūṃ ] n (Commonly करडूं ) A kid. (Marathi) Rebus: करडा (p. 137) [ karaḍā ] Hard from alloy--iron, silver &c. (Marathi)
Fig. 2 e-f god with a naked or garbed attendant behind or before; Fig. 2c-d god grasping/touching a gazelle
करडूं or करडें (p. 137) [ karaḍū or ṅkaraḍēṃ ] n A kid. कराडूं (p. 137) [ karāḍūṃ ] n (Commonly करडूं ) A kid. (Marathi) Rebus: करडा (p. 137) [ karaḍā ] Hard from alloy--iron, silver &c. (Marathi) dula 'pair' rebus: dul 'metal casting'
Features Fig. 1c-f: god with a naked or garbed attendant behind or before; Fig. 1d-e god seated on a stool/throne ‘above’ a bull; Fig. 1a-f god drinking through a tube leading to a jar; god holding a cup
barad, balad, 'ox' rebus: bharat 'alloy of pewter, copper, tin'
meṭ sole of foot, footstep, footprint (Ko.); meṭṭu step, stair, treading, slipper (Te.)(DEDR 1557). dula ‘pair’.
Rebus: dul 'metal casting'
Rebus: dul 'metal casting'
Rebus: meḍ ‘iron’ (Ho.) dul meṛed, cast iron (Mu.) mẽṛhẽt baṭi = iron (Ore) furnaces (Santali)
kuDi 'drink' rebus: kuThi 'smelter' khaNDa 'water' rebus: khaNDa 'implements'
“Recent excavations on the island of Bahrain have uncovered a seal impression similar to a stamped seal tablet in the Yale Babylonian Collection. This Yale impression is dated to the tenth year of Gungunum, King of Larsa, in southern Babylonia – that is 1923 BCE. The Bahrain seal was found in a Barbar culture level, partially contemporary with the Umm an-Nar culture of Oman, which can in turn be paralled at Bampur V with the incised ware (‘hut-pot’) motifs. The general evidence, thus, points to a date c. 1900 BCE for the terminus of the Bampur sequence, and for the date of the Kurab shaft-hole pick-axe.” (Lamberg-Karlovsky, GC, 1969, Further Notes on the Shaft Hole Pick Axe From Khurab MakranIran, Vol. 7, 1969, pp 163-164) http://www.jstor.org/stable/4299621 .British Institute of Persian Studies
https://www.scribd.com/doc/315224554/Further-Notes-on-the-Shaft-Hole-Pick-Axe-From-Khurab-Makran-G-C-Lamberg-Karlovsky-Year-1969Many sites on the Gulf of Khambat, and the site of Lothal evidence that the Sarasvati civilization was involved in trade through the Persian Gulf and beyond through Tigris-Euphrates upto Haifa, Israel in Ancient Near East.
This is a remarkable square seal from Ur, with cuneiform script together with a bison/bull/ox hieroglyph. This may be called Gadd Seal 1 of Ur since this was the first item on the Plates of figures included in Gadd's paper. Assigned to the pre-Sargonic period, this is perhaps a seal of a Meluhha (Indus) merchant. Gadd lists 18 seals from Ur and sites in Babylonia, witn Indus-type writing system. Gadd Seal No. 2 is of circular shape with a button boss, perhaps of Persian Gulf origin (perhaps belongs to a Meluhha merchant in Bahrain). This seal plus seal nos. 3,4,5,15,16,17 have Indus script motifs and hieroglyphs. Seal no. 6 is cylindrical and Sumerian with hieroglyphs of zebu, scorpion, and other Indus Script hieroglyphs. Seal no. 7 has kuTi, 'tree' Indus Script hieroglyph (which signifies rebus kuThi 'smelter'). Seal no. 8 is Sumerian and perhaps relates to a Bahrain merchant who holds a goat (mlekh 'goat' rebus: milakkhu 'copper'), an Indus script hieroglyph. Seals 9,10,11, 12,13,14 are perhaps from Bahrain of a Meluhha merchant. Seal no. 15 was found with carnelian, steatite and copper beads in a Sargonid period grave, and is a Persian Gulf seal attributable to contacts with Sarasvati riverbasin (Gujarat carnelian in particular). Seal No. 16,17,18 are clearly those of Meluhha merchants in Bahrain. Seals found at Kish, Gawra and Asmar are of Indus Script corpora. Briggs Buchanan assigns Seal nos. 2,3,4,5 and 16 to Indus seal type I, a type which includes circular seals but with Indus script on the obverse. Seal no. 15 is categorised in type II as a crude Indus script imitation while seal no. 16 is categorised in type III as Persian Gulf Bahrain seal of the type found in Lothal and also Failaka. This tablet assigned to 10th year of Gungunum of Larsa (1923 BCE) is stamped by an Indus Script seal of type III in Buchanan classification of Persian Gulf seals.
m417 Glyph: ‘ladder’: H. sainī, senī f. ʻ ladder ʼ Rebus: Pa. sēṇi -- f. ʻ guild, division of army ʼ; Pk. sēṇi -- f. ʻ row, collection ʼ; śrḗṇi (metr. often śrayaṇi -- ) f. ʻ line, row, troop ʼ RV. The lexeme in Tamil means: Limit, boundary; எல்லை. நளியிரு முந்நீரேணி யாக (புறநா. 35, 1). Country, territory.
Ash. ċeitr ʻ ladder ʼ (< *ċaitr -- dissim. from ċraitr -- ?).(CDIAL 12720)*śrēṣṭrī2 ʻ line, ladder ʼ. [For mng. ʻ line ʼ conn. with √śriṣ 2 cf. śrḗṇi -- ~ √śri. -- See śrití -- . -- √śriṣ 2 ]
Pk. sēḍhĭ̄ -- f. ʻ line, row ʼ (cf. pasēḍhi -- f. ʻ id. ʼ. -- < EMIA. *sēṭhī -- sanskritized as śrēḍhī -- , śrēṭī -- , śrēḍī<-> (Col.), śrēdhī -- (W.) f. ʻ a partic. progression of arithmetical figures ʼ); K. hēr, dat. °ri f. ʻ ladder ʼ.(CDIAL 12724) rebus: Seṭṭhi [fr. seṭṭha, Sk. śreṣṭhin] foreman of a guild, treasurer, banker, "City man", wealthy merchant Vin i. 15 sq., 271 sq.; ii. 110 sq., 157; S i. 89; J i. 122;ii. 367 etc.; Rājagaha˚ the merchant of Rājagaha Vin ii. 154; J iv. 37; Bārāṇasi˚ the merchant of Benares J i. 242, 269; jana -- pada -- seṭṭhi a commercial man of the country J iv. 37; seṭṭhi gahapati Vin i. 273; S i. 92; there were families of seṭṭhis Vin i. 18; J iv. 62; ˚ -- ṭṭhāna the position of a seṭṭhi J ii. 122, 231; hereditary J i. 231, 243; ii. 64; iii. 475; iv. 62 etc.; seṭṭhânuseṭṭhī treasurers and under -- treasurers Vin i. 18; see Vinaya Texts i. 102.
Seṭṭhitta (nt.) [abstr. fr. seṭṭhi] the office of treasurer or (wholesale) merchant S
The glyphics are:
Semantics: ‘group of animals/quadrupeds’: paśu ‘animal’ (RV), pasaramu, pasalamu = an animal, a beast, a brute, quadruped (Te.) Rebus: pasra ‘smithy’ (Santali)
Glyph: ‘six’: bhaṭa ‘six’. Rebus: bhaṭa ‘furnace’.
Glyph (the only inscription on the Mohenjo-daro seal m417): ‘warrior’: bhaṭa. Rebus: bhaṭa ‘furnace’. Thus, this glyph is a semantic determinant of the message: ‘furnace’. It appears that the six heads of ‘animal’ glyphs are related to ‘furnace’ work.
This guild, community of smiths and masons evolves into Harosheth Hagoyim, ‘a smithy of nations’.
It appears that the Meluhhans were in contact with many interaction areas, Dilmun and Susa (elam) in particular. There is evidence for Meluhhan settlements outside of Meluhha. It is a reasonable inference that the Meluhhans with bronze-age expertise of creating arsenical and bronze alloys and working with other metals constituted the ‘smithy of nations’, Harosheth Hagoyim.
Dilmun seal from Barbar; six heads of antelope radiating from a circle; similar to animal protomes in Failaka, Anatolia and Indus. Obverse of the seal shows four dotted circles. [Poul Kjærum , The Dilmun Seals as evidence of long distance relations in the early second millennium BC, pp. 269-277.] A tree is shown on this Dilmun seal.
Glyph: ‘tree’: kuṭi ‘tree’. Rebus: kuṭhi ‘smelter furnace’ (Santali).
It appears that the Meluhhans were in contact with many interaction areas, Dilmun and Susa (elam) in particular. There is evidence for Meluhhan settlements outside of Meluhha. It is a reasonable inference that the Meluhhans with bronze-age expertise of creating arsenical and bronze alloys and working with other metals constituted the ‘smithy of nations’, Harosheth Hagoyim.
Glyph: ‘tree’: kuṭi ‘tree’. Rebus: kuṭhi ‘smelter furnace’ (Santali).
baTa 'six' Rebus: bhaTa 'furnace' ranku 'antelope' Rebus: ranku 'tin'
Izzat Allah Nigahban, 1991, Excavations at Haft Tepe, Iran, The University Museum, UPenn, p. 97. furnace’ Fig.96a.
There is a possibility that this seal impression from Haft Tepe had some connections with Indian hieroglyphs. This requires further investigation. “From Haft Tepe (Middle Elamite period, ca. 13th century) in Ḵūzestān an unusual pyrotechnological installation was associated with a craft workroom containing such materials as mosaics of colored stones framed in bronze, a dismembered elephant skeleton used in manufacture of bone tools, and several hundred bronze arrowpoints and small tools. “Situated in a courtyard directly in front of this workroom is a most unusual kiln. This kiln is very large, about 8 m long and 2 and one half m wide, and contains two long compartments with chimneys at each end, separated by a fuel chamber in the middle. Although the roof of the kiln had collapsed, it is evident from the slight inturning of the walls which remain in situ that it was barrel vaulted like the roofs of the tombs. Each of the two long heating chambers is divided into eight sections by partition walls. The southern heating chamber contained metallic slag, and was apparently used for making bronze objects. The northern heating chamber contained pieces of broken pottery and other material, and thus was apparently used for baking clay objects including tablets . . .” (loc.cit. Bronze in pre-Islamic Iran, Encyclopaedia Iranica, http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/bronze-i Negahban, 1977; and forthcoming).
Izzat Allah Nigahban, 1991, Excavations at Haft Tepe, Iran, The University Museum, UPenn, p. 97. furnace’ Fig.96a.
There is a possibility that this seal impression from Haft Tepe had some connections with Indian hieroglyphs. This requires further investigation. “From Haft Tepe (Middle Elamite period, ca. 13th century) in Ḵūzestān an unusual pyrotechnological installation was associated with a craft workroom containing such materials as mosaics of colored stones framed in bronze, a dismembered elephant skeleton used in manufacture of bone tools, and several hundred bronze arrowpoints and small tools. “Situated in a courtyard directly in front of this workroom is a most unusual kiln. This kiln is very large, about 8 m long and 2 and one half m wide, and contains two long compartments with chimneys at each end, separated by a fuel chamber in the middle. Although the roof of the kiln had collapsed, it is evident from the slight inturning of the walls which remain in situ that it was barrel vaulted like the roofs of the tombs. Each of the two long heating chambers is divided into eight sections by partition walls. The southern heating chamber contained metallic slag, and was apparently used for making bronze objects. The northern heating chamber contained pieces of broken pottery and other material, and thus was apparently used for baking clay objects including tablets . . .” (loc.cit. Bronze in pre-Islamic Iran, Encyclopaedia Iranica, http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/bronze-i Negahban, 1977; and forthcoming).
Stamp seals with figures and animals as Indus Script hieroglyphs
220a
220b
220c,d,e
220f,g
a. Dia 2.9 cm thickness 1.25 cm Gulf region, Bahrain, Karrana, Bahrain national Museum, Manama 4061
b. Dia 2.4 cm thickness 1.15 cm Gulf region, Bahrain, Karrana, Bahrain national Museum, Manama 4054
c. Dia 3 cm thickness 1.3 cm Gulf region, Failaka, Tell Sa’ad, F3, trench I, nu National Council for Culture, Arts and Letters, Kuwait National Museum 881 AIT
d. Dia 6.5 cm thickness 3 cm. Gulf region, Failaka, Tell Sa’ad, F3, trench I, nu National Council for Culture, Arts and Letters, Kuwait National Museum
e. Dia 2.8 cm thickness 1.3 cm Gulf region, Failaka, Tell Sa’ad, F3, trench I, nu National Council for Culture, Arts and Letters, Kuwait National Museum
f. Dia 2.5 cm thickness 1.3 cm Gulf region, Failaka, Tell Sa’ad, F3, trench I, nu National Council for Culture, Arts and Letters, Kuwait National Museum 881 UK
g. Dia 3.5 cm thickness 1.25 cm Gulf region, Failaka, Tell Sa’ad, F3, trench I, nu National Council for Culture, Arts and Letters, Kuwait National Museum 1129 CE.
“A number of decorative elements on the seals excavated at Bahrain and Failaka – two islands in the Gulf, which have been identified with the legendary kingdom of Dilmun – can be traced to Mesopotamia, Iran, the Indus Valley, Anatolia, and Central Asia. The cultural influences that these foreign motifs reflect stemmed from the maritime trade that connected the far-flung cities of the region beginning about 2500 BCE and lasting until about 1500 BCE. Epigraphic evidence from dated seal impressions and tablets found at Susa and Ur suggests that the Dilmun stamp seals, with their distinctive shape, were made between the end of the third millennium BCE and the early second millennium BCE. They are characterized by a flat obverse and a hemispherical reverse. Their backs are pierced for suspension and scored with multiple grooves at right angles to the piercing. Pairs of concentric circles are placed symmetrically on eithr side of the groose. Other characteristic features of the Dilmun glyptic include the manner in which animals and human figures are depicted. Deep cavities mark the eyes of animals, and there is no indication of a pupil; human figures, seen in profile, have linear bodies and stylized facial features rendered with horizontal lines. Foreign decorative elements on Dilmun seals include typical third-millennium BCE Mesopotamian imagery centered on male figures engaged in a rich repertoire of activities, including presentations in which local gods are occasionally adorned with the Mesopotamian horned crown as protectors of the flock; in contests with animals (see nos. 220d,e). In these scenes the adaptation of Mesopotamian dress, horned crown, bull-men (see no. 220c), standards, and lyres with taurine sound boxes (see no. 220f) indicates a close contact between the two regions and may signify a spiritual affinity. In catalogue number 220a a seated figure holds an axelike tool in one hand and reaches for the hand of a standing winged creature, possibly a deity, with the other. Similar winged figures on seals dating to the third millennium BCE are known from both Mesopotamia and Central Asia. The northern connection is underscored in this image by a solitary foot (here with four toes), a motif known from Central Asia and Syria and Iran. Two more seemingly unrelated elements – a bird and a gazelle – complete the composition. Ships and boats are a common theme. In catalogue number 220b the image can be interpreted as a variation of the Mesopotamian contest scene. Here, the central figure dressed in a tufted garment stands in a boat. He graps the animal’s foreleg with one hand, while the other is extended towards a companion figure. The craft resembles the modern-day mashluf – a small boat with a rather shallow draft, ideal for marsh travel. The boat with its upturned stern is reminiscent of vessels depicted in the earlier seals of Ur, a motif rarely occurring the second-millennium BCE Mesopotamian glyptic. The Mesopotamian pictorial repertoire is again reflected on a Dilmun seal showing two figures in an architectural setting (cat. No. 220c). The motif may best be compared with that of an early Old Babylonian seal in the Yale Babylonian Collection, New Haven, where suppliant deities and worshippers face an altar within a temple. They raise their hands in a gesture of respect toward a star standard on a podium. On the roof are two winged creatures and two vertical snakes that may be grasping. Two nude, double-belted fantastic beings with what seems to be three horns flank the structure and repeate the central worshippers’ gestures. Local decorative motifs such as a rosette, three stars, and two tree branches complete the harmonious, almost symmetrical composition that is so typical of later Dilmun seals. Mesopotamian banquet imagery occurs on three seals. In catalogue number 220e a high podium on which a small jar is placed separates two seated figures who confront each other. One of them is drinking through a long straw from a jar comparable in size to the one on the podium. This drinking scene closely parallels the image on a sealing dated to the reign of Gungunum of Larsa. Such drinking scenes must have had propitious significance for local Dilmunite seal owners. On a second seal with banquet imagery – by far the largest of the seven seals discussed here – two men dressed in tiered, flounced skirts face eath other (cat. No. 220d). Seated on rectangular stols, they are flanked by a ladder and a bird; between them are four vessels beneath a crescent and a star. Below, occupying most of the seal’s surface, are two vertical rows of bovids and recumbent antelopes. Two human figures, one nude, the other clothed, each raise one hand. On the third seal a seated man plays a three-stringed lyre (cat. No. 220f). The sound box is similar to Mesopotamian examples, such as those excavated from the royal tombs of Ur and those depicted on the Standard of Ur and in glyptic art. On preserved Mesopotamian lyres, bulls’ heads decorate the boxes, but in the present example the artists has created the music box out of the body of a bull so that its back acts as a strut – a detail paralleled on a stele from Tello, where the sound box of a lyre is formed by two superimposed bulls, one in profile. Seals with a radial composition form a distinct group. An example in this exhibition (cat. No. 220g) displays six antelope heads radiating like a six-pointed star from a central point. This decoration closely resembles that on sealings excavated at the early-second-millennium BCE site of Acemhovuk, in central Anatolia. Similar compositions are recorded earlier, however, at the site of Mohenjo-daro in the Indus Valley.
(Art of the First Cities: The Third Millennium B.C. from the Mediterranean to the Indus, Metropolitan Museum of Art, pp.320-321)
cat.no. 218“218. Cylinder seal with confronted figures and a tree. Steatite h 2.2 cm dia 1.15 cm Gulf region, Failaka F6 1174 Early Dilmun ca. 2000-1800 BCE National Council for Culture, Arts and Letters, Kuwait National Museum 1129 AXJ. The cylindrical form and the imagery of the seal exhibited here clearly illustrate how strong was Mesopotamian influence on the glyptic art of the Gulf. The image is a crude imitation of a Mesopotamian banquet scene. Two figures are seated on stools, which have been made to differ slightly by the addition of a second horizontal bar to one on the right. Horned headdresses identify the figures as deities. They are dressed in garments with tufts, indicated by the vertical striations, and their lower bodies appear exaggeratedly triangular. A crescent fills the space above and between them. Two nude worshippers, each of whom holds a crescent, flank a stylized tree, perhaps a date palm. Although the scene may have Mesopotamian roots, the peculiar details of the tree and the manner in which the humans are depicted – with elongated bodies and horizontal facial features – are typical of Gulf seals. This seal has counterparts at Susa, in Iran, where similarly nude worshippers are shown in front of enthroned deities.”(Art of the First Cities: The Third Millennium B.C. from the Mediterranean to the Indus, Metropolitan Museum of Art, pp.318-319)
cat. no. 221“221. Stamp seal with a boat scene. Steatite. L. 2 cm, w. 1.9 cm Gulf region, Failaka, F6 758 early Dilmun, ca. 2000-1800 BCE National Council of Culture, Arts, and Letters, Kuwait National Museum, 1129 ADY. This seal from Failaka island, at the head of the Gulf, is unusual in shape, as it is square rather than circular possibly alluding to the most common form of Harappan seals. The subject is a nude male figure standing in the middle of a flat-bottomed boat, facing right. The man’s arms are bent at the elbow, perpendicular to his torso. Beside him two jars stand on the deck of the boat, each containing a long pole to which is attached a hatched square that perhaps represents a banner. Flat-bottomed vessels with a single sail were used to transport cargoes in shallow tidal waters, but the one illustrated on this seal lacks a sail. If the two vertical posts on the stern are interpreted as steering paddles, then it resembles a model found in India at Lothal, which appears to have had square sails. Although the seal’s shape is atypical, all the decorative elements, including the boat and the two jars, find parallels on other seals from Dilmun, indicating that this one was made in the region where it was found.” (Note: On the Lothal boat model, three blind holes used as sockets may have held the masts of square-shaped sails.)(Art of the First Cities: The Third Millennium B.C. from the Mediterranean to the Indus, Metropolitan Museum of Art, pp.322-323)
Early Near Eastern Seals in the Yale Babylonian Collection, by Briggs Buchanan, with introduction and seal inscriptions by William W. Hallo, edited by Ulla Kasten. New Haven, Yale University Press, 1981.
Uruk-period seal (NBC 2579).
Seal no. 79 Persian gulf cylinder seal with seated person. Burnt steatite. H. 2.7 cm, dia 1.4 cm; string hole .3 cm Late 3rd-early 2nd millennium BCE Sb 1383 Excavated by Mecquenem. “The Mesopotamian influence on glyptic from the Persian gulf area is very clearly demonstrated in this example, one of the few cylinder seals executed in this distinctive style. Close parallels are found at Failaka, in the Gulf. Adopted here are not only the Mesopotamian cylinder-seal shape but also the theme of a worshipper standing before a seated horned deity in a flounced (?) garment and a version of the context scene with crossed animals. Pecular iconographic details also appear, however, such as the nude worshipper with his hand in a pot; the two ‘master of animals’, one nude and one kilted, grasping the animals’ necks; and the snake framing the scene from above. Glyptic and textual evidence suggests that the cities of Susa and Ur were trading centers in close contact with ancient Dilmun, located in the Persian Gulf. This contact, however, does not seem to have been limited to an exchange of goods. Francois Vallat has noted, the chief god of Dilmun, was one of a triad of deities worshipped on the Susa Acropole in the eighteenth century BCE. Persian Gulf-style seals found at Susa and other foreign sites with Mesopotamian and Indus-derived themes incorporated into their iconography were created, some scholars believe, for Dilmunite traders living abroad.” (The Royal City of Susa: Ancient Near Eastern Treasures in the Louvre By Musée du Louvre, Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1992, p.120)
A bun-ingot flanked by two goats: mlekh 'goat' rebus: milakkhu 'copper' dula 'pair' rebus: dul 'metal casting' PLUS muh
ingot
. Thus copper ingot. The dotted circles and three lines on the boss: dhAv 'strand' rebus: dhAv, dhAtu 'mineral' kolom 'three' rebus: kolimi 'smithy, forge' tri-dhAtu 'three strands' rebus: three minerals. Thus the seal signifies a copper mineral cast ingot and a smithy/forge working with three minerals, tridhAtu. Seal of the old Elamite period in Metmuseum cat. no. 78 Persian Gulf stamp seal with two caprids. Burnt steatite. 2.2 cm. dia, .8 cm ht. Late 3rd -early 2nd millennium BCE Sb1015 Excavated by Mecquenem
The Royal City of Susa: Ancient Near Eastern Treasures in the Louvre By Musée du Louvre, Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1992 “Many objects found at Susa reflect contacts with the Persian Gulf region…A mercantile document and a basket sealing were stamped with Gulf-style seals. Elamite imitations of Gulf seals were made in the local bitumen compound. Perhaps the most characteristic type of Persian Gulf seal is illustrated by this piece, one of four burnt, (whitened) steatite stamp seals found at Susa that have distinctive grooves and dot circles incised on a raised boss on the back. The face of this seal is engraved with the figures of two goats crouching head to foot on opposite sides of the circular field, the center of which is marked by a lozenge. Their slightly modeled bodies are defined by a curving outline, and distinctive details, such as large dot-circle eyes and striated necks, are sharply cut. Similar seals are known mainly from the Gulf region (and one example was found at Lothal in India). They were also exported to, and imitated at, the southern Mesopotamian city of Ur, a site with cuneiform texts that refer to the import of copper, semiprecious stones, and perhaps pearls from Dilmun. They are datable to the end of the third and the beginning of the second millennium BCE. That is the period when one elaborate Persian Gulf seal depicting a a Mesopotamian-derived ‘banquet scene’ was stamped on an old Babylonian contract between two merchants. The tablet, written in the time of Gungunum, ruler of Larsa in the late twentieth century BCE, is in the Yale Babylonian Collection. The document from Susa mentioning a Dilmunite merchant and ten minas of copper dates to the same period.” (p.119)
Yale tablet. Bull's head (bucranium) between two seated figures drinking from two vessels through straws. YBC. 5447; dia. c. 2.5 cm. Possibly from Ur. Buchanan, studies Landsberger, 1965, p. 204; A seal impression was found on an inscribed tablet (called Yale tablet) dated to the tenth year of Gungunum, King of Larsa, in southern Babylonia--that is, 1923 B.C. according to the most commonly accepted ('middle') chronology of the period. The design in the impression closely matches that in a stamp seal found on the Failaka island in the Persian Gulf, west of the delta of the Shatt al Arab, which is formed by the confluence of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers.karaṇḍa 'duck' (Sanskrit) karaṛa 'a very large aquatic bird' (Sindhi) Rebus: करडा [karaḍā] Hard from alloy--iron, silver &c. (Marathi) kaNDa 'divisions' rebus: kaNDa 'implements' muh 'face' rebus: muhA 'quantity of smelted metal taken out of a furnace';'ingot' kaNDa 'water' rebus: kaNDA 'implements' kanda 'fire-altar' meD 'body' rebus: meD 'iron' karNaka 'spread legs' rebus: karNI 'supercargo'. dula 'pair' rebus: dul 'metal casting' dhAV 'strand' rebus: dhAv 'mineral, dhAtu'
Failaka seal. The Yale tablet is dated to ca. the second half of the twentieth century B.C.... Trade3 on the Persian gulf was in existence well before that time-- about 2350 B.C.-- when Sargon, the first Akkadian king referred to ships from or destined for Melukhkha, Magan and Tilmun (Dilmun) at his wharves. in the Third Dynasty of Ur (around 2000), when trade apparently was centred at Magan. It is even better documented on other tablets from Ur (from about 1900 and from about 1800), belonging to various kings of Larsa. At this time the trade was centered at Tilmun... Cuneiform inscriptions naming Inzak, the god of Tilmun, were found on Failaka and, a long time ago, one on Bahrein... Failaka can be equated with Tilmun, or at least was an important part of it. (Briggs Buchanan, A dated seal impression connecting Babylonia and ancient India, Archaeology, Vol. 20, No.2, 1967, pp. 104-107).dula 'pair' rebus: dul 'metal casting' karaṇḍa 'duck' (Sanskrit) karaṛa 'a very large aquatic bird' (Sindhi) Rebus: करडा [karaḍā] Hard from alloy--iron, silver &c. (Marathi) kolmo 'rice plant' rebus:kolimi 'smithy, forge' kuTi 'tree' rebus: kuThi 'smelter' muh 'face' rebus: muhA 'quantity of smelted metal taken out of a furnace';'ingot' kaNDa 'water' rebus: kaNDA 'implements' kanda 'fire-altar' meD 'body' rebus: meD 'iron' karNaka 'spread legs' rebus: karNI 'supercargo'.dhAV 'strand' rebus: dhAv 'mineral, dhAtu'
Gadd, CJ, 1932, Seals of ancient Indian style found at Ur, in: Proceedings of the British Academy, XVIII, 1932, Plate 1, no. 1. Gadd considered this an Indus seal because, 1) it was a square seal, comparable to hundreds of other Indus seals since it had a small pierced boss at the back through which a cord passed through for the owner to hold the seal in his or her possession; and 2) it had a hieroglyph of an ox, a characteristic animal hieroglyph deployed on hundreds of seals.
This classic paper by Cyril John Gadd F.B.A. who was a Professor Emeritus of Ancient Semitic Languages and Civilizations, School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London, opened up a new series of archaeological studies related to the trade contacts between Ancient Far East and what is now called Sarasvati-Sindhu (Hindu) civilization.
There is now consensus that Meluhhan communities were present in Ur III and also in Sumer/Elam/Mesopotamia. (Parpola S., A. Parpola & RH Brunswig, Jr., 1977, The Meluhha village. Evidence of acculturation of Harappan traders in the late Third Millennium Mesopotamia in: Journal of Economic and Social History of the Orient, 20, 129-165.)
Use of rebus-metonymy layered cipher for the entire Indus Script Corpora as metalwork catalogs provides the framework for reopening the investigation afresh on the semantics of the cuneiform text on Gadd Seal 1, the Indus seal with cuneiform text.
This renewed attempt to decipher the inscription on the seal starts with a hypothesis that the cuneiform sign readings as: SAG KUSIDA. The ox is read rebus in Meluhha as: barad, barat 'ox' Rebus: भरत (p. 603) [ bharata ] n A factitious metal compounded of copper, pewter, tin &c. The gloss bharata denoted metalcasting in general leading to the self-designation of metalworkers in Rigveda as Bharatam Janam, lit. metalcaster folk.
While SAG is a Sumerian word meaning 'head, principal' (detailed in Annex A), KUSIDA is a Meluhha word well-attested semantically in ancient Indian sprachbund of 4th millennium BCE. The semantics of the Meluhha gloss, kusida signifies: money-lender (Annex B). Thus SAG KUSIDA is a combined Sumerian-Meluhha phrase signifying 'principal of chief money-lender'. This could be a clear instance of Sumerian/Akkadian borrowing a Meluhha gloss.
SAG KUSIDA + ox hieroglyphon Gadd Seal 1, read rebus signifies: principal money-lender for bharata metal alloy artisans. This reading is consistent with the finding that the entire Indus Script Corpora are metalwork catalogs.
The money-lender who was the owner of the seal might have created seal impressions as his or her signature on contracts for moneys lent for trade transactions of seafaring merchants of Meluhha.
The Gadd Seal 1 of Ur is thus an example of acculturation of Sumerians/Akkadians in Ur with the Indus writing system and underlying Meluhha language of Meluhha seafaring merchants and Meluhha communities settled in Ur and other parts of Ancient Near East.
Annex A: Meaning of SAG 'head, principal' (Sumerian)
The Sumerians called themselves sag-giga, literally meaning "the black-headed people"
Cuneiform sign SAG- phonetic values
- Sumerian: SAG, SUR14
- Akkadian: šag, šak, šaq, riš sign evolution
- 1. the pictogram as it was drawn around 3000 BC;
- 2. the rotated pictogram as written around 2800 BC;
- 3. the abstracted glyph in archaic monumental inscriptions, from ca. 2600 BC;
- 4. the sign as written in clay, contemporary to stage 3;
- 5. late 3rd millennium (Neo-Sumerian);
- 6. Old Assyrian, early 2nd millennium, as adopted into Hittite;
- 7. simplified sign as written by Assyrian scribes in the early 1st millennium.
Akkadian Etymology
From Proto-Semitic *raʾš-.
Noun
𒊕 (rēšu, qaqqadu) [SAG]
Sumerian:
(SAG)
Derived terms[edit]
- SAG(.KAL) "first one"
- (LÚ.)SAG a palace official
- ZARAḪ=SAG.PA.LAGAB "lamentation, unrest"
- SAG.DUL a headgear
- SAG.KI "front, face, brow"
Sag.ur.Sag is interpreted as “ Chief warrior” (www.jstor.org/stable/pdfplus/10.1086/677312.pdf http://www.angelfire.com/tx/tintirbabylon/ME.html)
Annex B: Meaning of kusīda 'money-lender'
कुशीदम् Usury; see कुसी. कुषीद a. Indifferent, inert. -दम् Usury. कुसितः 1 An inhabited country. -2 One who lives on usury; see कुसीद below. कुसितायी kusitāyī (= कुसीदायी).कुसी kusī (सि si) द d कुसी (सि) द a. Lazy, slothful. -दः (also written as कुशी-षी-द) A monkey-lender, usurer; Mbh.4.29. -दम् 1 Any loan or thing lent to be repaid with in- terest. -2 Lending money, usury, the profession of usury; कुसीदाद् दारिद्र्यं परकरगतग्रन्थिशमनात् Pt.1.11; Ms. 1.9;8.41; Y.1.119. -3 Red sandal wood. -Comp. -पथः usury, usurious interest; any interest exceeding 5 per cent; कृतानुसारादधिका व्यतिरिक्ता न सिध्यति कुसीदपथमा- हुस्तम् (पञ्चकं शतमर्हति) Ms.8.152. -वृद्धिः f. interest on money; कुसीदवृद्धिर्द्वैगुण्यं नात्येति सकृदाहृता Ms.8.151. कुसीदा kusīdā कुसीदा A female usurer. कुसीदायी kusīdāyī कुसीदायी The wife of a usurer. कुसीदिकः kusīdikḥ कुसीदिन् kusīdin कुसीदिकः कुसीदिन् m. A usurer. (Samskritam. Apte) kúsīda ʻ lazy, inert ʼ TS. Pa. kusīta -- ʻ lazy ʼ, kōsajja -- n. ʻ sloth ʼ (EWA i 247 < *kausadya -- ?); Si. kusī ʻ weariness ʼ ES 26, but rather ← Pa.(CDIAL 3376). FBJ Kuiper identifies as a 'borrowed' word in Indo-Aryan which in the context of Indus Script decipherment is denoted by Meluhha as Proto-Prakritam: the gloss kusīda 'money-lender'. (Kuiper, FBJ, 1948, Proto-Munda words in Sanskrit, Amsterdam: Noord-Hollandsche Uit. Mij.; Kuiper, FBJ, 1955, Rigvedic loan-words in: O. Spies (ed.) Studia Indologica. Festschrift fur Willibald Kirfel Vollendung Seines 70. Lebensjahres. Bonn: Orientalisches Seminar; Kuiper, FBJ, 1991, Arans in the Rigveda, Amsterdam-Atlanta: Rodopi).
Dilmun seals from Saar
Dilmun is a trading post on the 'Lower Sea'. In Mesopotamian mythology, Dilmun is the land of immortality, a favourite meeting place of the gods, which was visited by the hero Gilgamesh in his search for everlasting life. Inscriptions indicate that the ancestors of the Sumerians came from Dilmun, and it was here that they learnt the art of writing. We agree with S.N.Kramer's observations identifying Dilmun with the Sarasvati-Sindhu (Indus) valley. The God Enki is said to have given his son Inzak dominion over Dilmun. On the Lagash tablet (ca. 2520 BC) is recorded: "The ships of Dilmun from the foreign lands brought me woods". A document of ca. 1800 BC refers to an expedition "to Dilmun to buy copper there'. Sargon of Assyria (710 BC) notes that "he had received presents from the King of Dilmun, a land which lies like a fish, 60 hours away in the midst of the sea of the rising sun".
An Assurbanipal clay cylinder states: Dilmun ki s'a qabal ta_mtim s'apli_t (Dilmun is in the midst of the lower sea) (D.D. Luckenbill, Ancient Records of Assyria, ARAB, II 970. A Ungnad, ZA 31 (1917): 34, 1.9. That Dilmun was a continental coastland may be surmised from Sargon II's great Display inscription: bi_t-ia-kin s'a kis'a_d na_r marrati adi pa_t Dilmun (Bi_t-Iakin which (extends) from the bank of the brackish river to the border of Dilmun)(Luckenbill, ARAB, 54 = 82 =99). Sargon II's inscription states: Upe_ri s'ar Dilmun s'a ma_la_k 30 be_ru ina qabal ta_mtim s'a nipih s'ams'i ki_ma nu_ni s'itkunu narbasu (Upe_ri, king of Dilmun, whose resting place is 30 double hours away like a fish in the midst of the ocean of the rising sun)(Luckenbill, ARAB, 41,70). During the reign of Sargon of Assyria, Dilmun and Magan are stated to be "on the farther side of the lower sea" and there is also a reference to the " sea of Magan" (J.Muhly, Copper and Tin, p. 226; W.F. Leeman, Foreign Trade, p. 81, n.11; M. Weitemeyer, Acta Orientalia, 27 (1964): 207; E. Weidner, AfO, 16 (1953): 5, 1.42). The timber for the boats in Bahrain always came from India. The name of the Meluhha-boat is magilum (Enki and the World Order 128).[Boats which plied on the Sindhu river are called mohanna.]
"The Ninevite Gigamesh Epic, composed probably at the end of the second millennium BC, has Utnapishtim settled "at the mouth of the rivers", taken by all commentators to be identical with Dilmun." (W.F.Albright, The Mouth of the Rivers, AJSL, 35 (1919): 161-195).
The mouth of the rivers may relate to the Rann of Kutch/Saurashtra lying at the mouth of the Sindhu and Sarasvati rivers. In the Sumerian myth Enki and Ninhursag, which recounts a Golden Age, paradise is described: "The crow screams not, the dar-bird cries not dar, the lion kills not... the ferry-man says not 'it's midnight', the herald circles not round himself, the singer says not elulam, at the outside of the city no shout resounds." The cry of the sea-faring boatmen in Indian languages on the west-coast is: e_le_lo!
Lines 123-129; and interpolation UET VI/1:
"Let me admire its green cedars. The (peole of the) lands Magan and Dilmun, Let them come to see me, Enki! Let the mooring posts beplaced for the Dilmun boats! Let the magilum-boats of Meluhha transport of gold and silver for exchange...The land Tukris' shall transport gold from Harali, lapis lazuli and bright... to you. The land Meluhha shall bring cornelian, desirable and precious sissoo-wood from Magan, excellent mangroves, on big ships The land Marhashi will (bring) precious stones, dushia-stones, (to hang) on the breast. The land Magan will bring copper, strong, mighty, diorite-stone, na-buru-stones, shumin-stones to you. The land of the Sea shall bring ebony, the embellishment of (the throne) of kingship to you. The land of the tents shall bring wool... The city, its dwellin gplaces shall be pleasant dwelling places, Dilmun, its dwelling place shall be a pleasant dwelling place. Its barley shall be fine barley, Its dates shall be very big dates! Its harvest shall be threefold. Its trees shall be ...-trees."
We postulate a hypothesis that Dilmun refers to the Sarasvati-Sindhu civilization area and that MAR-TU refer to the people of Marusthali (the present-day Thar-Cholistan on the banks of the Sarasvati river.) In the context of the decipherment of the script inscriptions as lists of bronze-copper weapons, the following analysis based on Uruk texts is significant:
"Almost from the beginning of the excavations in the ruins of the old city of Uruk in Lower Mesopotamia in 1928, work has concentrated on uncovering large parts of the temple area of that city, the holy district of Eanna... It was in these various layers and accumulations of debris covering large parts of the Eanna district that over the years more than four thousand clay tablets and fragments were found... In the Archaic Metals List we again find DILMUN in a line which due to a common denominator proves to be part of an internally cohesive group of entries. The entire list starts out with a sequence of metal vessels and continues with metal tools and weapons. This group opens with a sequence of various daggers, continues with various groups of unidentified objects and from line 23 on shows five entries with the common denominator tun2, 'axe'. The lines read in tentative translation: 'big axe', 'two-handed axe', 'one-handed axe', 'x-axe', and 'Dilmun axe'. Here most likely the differentiation bears on differences in shape, size or function; the 'two-handed axe' may mean a double-edged axe, for instance. Again, if seen as a coherent context DILMUN may be used here as equivalent to 'Dilmun-type axe'. I do not think it could just refer to the provenance of an axe but rather to specific qualities... three texts clearly are dealing with textiles but only one of them has a context which might be interpreted; tentatively it reads' 1 bale of DILMUN garment'... as the title following the one containing the sign for DILMUN we find the comosite sign for namesda, the title of the opening line of the Archaic Professions list. It is supposed that this title represents the highest official. Probably without all connotations of the terms 'ruler' or 'king' it nevertheless should be fairly close. The preceding line contains a number of signs which if translated literally could mean 'the prince of the good Dilmun-house (or temple)'. The exact meaning is elusive. To sum up, from our texts we do not get an adequate picture of the relations of Babylonia, or the city of Uruk, with Dilmun. On a general level, however, we can conclude that not only did such relations exist already by the end of the fourth millennium BC, but that these contacts apparently were not restricted to trade. To be sure, the exchange of metal and ttextiles may represent the main ties, but the existence of titles containing Dilmun in their name in normal Babylonia contexts like the Professions List point to much closer mutual contacts that would be sustained by occasional trade. The same is suggested by the existence of DILMUN in generic designations for kinds of textiles or metal tools. We certainly are entitled to assume that these relations had existed long before the emergence of writing." [Hans J. Nissen, The occurrence of Dilmun in the Oldest texts of Mesopotamia, pp. 335-339].
In the Old Babylonian period, some Mesopotamian seals depict a deity holding a crook. (cf. Seal 124 in Macropoli Collection). The deity also appears with his foot on a gazelle, but sometimes on a small pedestal; he wears a long robe or a kilt and on his head a horned headdress or a tall cylindrical hat. He has been identified as the god AMURRU. In texts and cylinder seal impressions his name is written d/AN.MAR.TU or d/MAR.TU, i.e., AMURRU(M), 'GOD OF THE WEST' in Akkadian. He is often loosely called the god of the Amorites because of his association in texts with the desert and steppe. He became the son of Anu the sky god and was often associated with Sin the moon god. He was referred to as the warrior god. The association with the desert is remarkable. In the Sarasvati Sindhu valley area, the arid zone on the banks of the Sarasvati river is called MARUSTHALI (now called Thar/Cholistan or Great Indian Desert). And, MARUTS are celebrated in the Rigveda as wind-gods, echoing the phenomenon of the 'a_ndhi' or sandstorms common in the region of Thar/Cholistan desert.
"From the Ur III (2112-2004 BC) and Isin-Larsa (2025-1763) periods, we have a number of textual sources which suggest that an ethnic group of people called MAR-TU were associated with the land of Dilmun-- the first of three entities found to be trade partners with Mesopotamia from at least 2500 BC (the others being Makkan and Meluhha). From Drehem, a city near Nippur, we note the occurrence in two texts (dated to AS 2-2044 BC)(CST 254 and TRU 305) of a colophon which reads 'MAR-TU (and) Diviners coming from Dilmun' (or MAR-TU Diviners coming from Dilmun)(BUccellati 1966: 249)... In addition, other evidence suggests that the MAR-TU were associated with (sea) fishing (Civil 1961: Buccellati 1966: 90). Thus Buccellati and later Gelb concluded that the MAR-TU existed in the south in the area of the Gulf as far as Bahrain (Gelb 1968: 43; 1980: 2). Finally, this linkage is suggested by a text from Eshnunna, a Mesopotamian city on the Diyala river. In this text most likely dated to Is'aramas'u (c. 1970 BC) MAR-TU are arranged by segmented lineage affiliation (babtum). The total states that twenty-six MAR-TU are e-lu-tum-me, a term perhaps best translated as meaning' trustworthy' or 'reliable' vis-a-vis the local Eshnunna officials. One MAR-TU from the lineage of Bas'anum is said to be a-ab-ba-ta or 'from the sea (lands)' or the land across the sea (Gelb 1968: 43)... the newely discovered Ibla texts mention the MAR-TU principally in connection with metal daggers (Pettinato 180: 9 and commentary) and prisoners of war (Pettinato 1981b: 120, see text TM 75G.309). (Note also the MAR-TU name Iblanum as meaning man from Ibla, Buccellati 1966: 155, 246)... From the early second millennium BC, we have a much wider body of evidence dealing with the MAR-TU. This is due to the greatly increased numbers of MAR-TU escaping the hamad and entering the settled zones. As early as S'u-Sin year (2034 BC) we see that a large defensive wall was being built in central Mesopotamia for the express purpose of keeping out the MAR-TU (the MAR-TU wall (called) the one which keeps Didanum away, Buccellati 1966: 92). Unfortunately, by the early reign of the succeeding king, Ibbi-Si, things had changed:
Reports that hostiel MAR-TU had entered the plains having been received, 144,000 gur grain (representing) the grain in its entirety was brought into Isin. Now the MAR-TU in their entirety have entered the interior of the country taking one by one all the great fortresses. Because of the MAR-TU I am not able to provide... for that grain... (Jacobsen 1953: 40)
According to the year date of Ibbi-Sin 17, some of these MAR-TU apparently came from the Gulf region: 'The year the MAR-TU, the powerful south wind who, from the remote past, have not known cities, submitted to Ibbi-Sin, the king of Ur.' (cf. also Gelb's views, 1961: 36)... Oppenheim's review of UET V suggests that Ur apparently served as a focal point and port for foreign trade, specifically with Dilmun (Oppenheim 1954: 8, n.8). A number of texts describe this activity as traders called alik Dilmun sailed to Dilmun and exchanged goods. A number of texts (e.g. UET V 286, 297, 549 and 796) clearly demonstrate that individuals with MAR-TU names were involved in the trade (e.g. in UET V 297 a certain Zuabbaum; in UET V 549 a person named Milkudanum; and in UET V 796 Alazum). This then is a clear link between Dilmun and the MAR-TU-- a hypothesis already formulated from a number of literary texts and Ur III economic records... It seems clear in summary that the MAR-TU were linked to Dilmun in a political sense (rulers in southern Mesopotamian towns), commercial agents in Mesopotamia (alik Dilmun), and inhabitants of Dilmun itself (Susa Tablet, UET V 716).[Juris Zarins, MAR-TU and the land of Dilmun, 232-249 in: Shaikha Haya Ali Al Khalifa and Michael Rice (eds.) Bahrain through the ages: the archaeology, London, KPI, 1986.]
Sir Henry Rawlinson in 1880 suggested that Dilmun of the Sumerian and Akkadian texts might be identified with Bahrain island. This was on the basis of a stone cone found by Captain Durand during an archaeological survey of Bahrain in 1879, but later lost. The text related to the temple of Inzak, elsewhere known as the god of Dilmun. (Captain Durand, Extracts from Report on the Islands and Antiquities of Bahrain, with notes by Major-General Sir. H.C. Rawlinson, JRAS, N.S. 12 (1880): 189-227, with two maps. Also suggested by Fr. Hommel, Ethnologie und Geographie des Alten Orients, 1904/1926, p. 24, 270.) Since then various identifications have been suggested such as: encompassing Saudi Arabian mainland in the area called Dilmun, Iranian side of the Persian Gulf as constituting Dilmun, Al-Qurna in southern Iraq and the Indus Valley (S.N.Kramer). All these identifications suggest that not all of them are valid for all periods of Mesopotamian history. Throughout Mesopotamian history, however, Dilmun has been an important trade centre, and 'one of the remote areas which was at times within the reach of Mesopotamian political influence. Noticeable among the early texts mentioning Dilmun is that of Urnanshe who had wood transported to Mesopotamia from Dilmun (ca. 2500 BC). In the same early period copper is known to hae been exported from Dilmun to Sumer. About 2100 BC Urnammu of the 3rd dynasty of Ur reopened the Arabian Gulf trade, this time with direct contact with Magan, from which copper was exported to Mesopotamia. The Dilmun trade flourished in the Larsa period (ca. 2000-1763 BC), but then died out. After an interim of 400 years Kassite influence appears in Dilmun (early 14th century BC). It seems that at this time the only export article was dates. Under Sargon of Assyria (end of 8th century BC) Upe_ri, king of Dilmun, is recorded to have sent tribute to the Assyrian empire. In 544 BC, Dilmun disappears from Mesopotamian history when, according to an administrative document, Nabonidus, king of Babylon, had a governor there. Dilmun is also mentioned in Sumerian literary texts as a famous place of prosperity and happiness, and even of eternal life, with the result that comparisons with the Biblical paradise have been made.' (Bendt Alster, Dilmun, Bahrain, and the alleged paradise in Sumerian Myth and Literature, in: Daniel T. Potts (ed.), Dilmun: New studies in the archaeology and early history of Bahrain, Berlin, Dietrich Reimer Verlag, 1983, pp. 39-74). (See also: Daniel Potts, Dilmun: Where and When? Dilmun: Journal of the Bahrain Historical and Archaeological Society, 11 (1983): 15-19; Theresa Howard-Carter, The tangible evidence for the earliest Dilmun, JCS, 33 (1981): 210-223; S.N.Kramer, Quest for Paradise, Antiquity, 37 (1963): 112-113)
On the northern coast of Bahrain, at Barbar, a Sumerian temple, which had been rebuilt three times was found. The dates for the contruction events are estimated to be: beginning of third millennium B.C., middle of the third millennium BC and for the third event, ca. 2200-2000 BC. In the first temple there were two staircases descending to a square well. This was retained in all the three phases. Peder Mortensen suggested, based on the similarity with the Khafajah and al-'Uaid temples, that the temple was for goddess Ninhursag. The mother-goddess plays an important role in the Sumerian Dilmun myth, Enki and Ninhursag. (Peder Mortensen, Kuml 1956: 189-198, 1970: 385-398).
Indus valley type seals and cubical chert weights were found. (T.G. Bibby, Kuml 1970: 345-353; cf. Michael Roaf, Weights on the Dilmun standard, Iraq 44 (1982): 137:141). A bronze mirror handle was also found in the Barbar temple suggesting a link with the Kulli culture in South Baluchistan (N.Rao, Kuml 1969: 218-220). "....as far as the third millennium BC is concerned, the cultural relations with the early civilizations in the Indus valley and southern Iran seem to have been much more outspoken than those with Mesopotamia. (M.Tosi, Dilmun, Antiquity, 45 (1971): 21-25). Yet, as far as the early second millennium BC is concerned, a cultural setting has certainly been found within which the identification of Dilmun with Bahrain makes good sense... There is now wide agreement among most, but not all scholars, that from the middle of the third millennium BC, Magan and Meluhha are to be found east of Mesopotamia along the coast of the Arabian Gulf or the Arabian Sea, whereas later, from the middle of the secon dmillennium BC, Egypt, Nubia or Ethiopia must be considered. (I.J.Gelb, Makkan and Meluhha in Early Mesopotamian Sources, RA 64 (1970): 1-8; E. Sollberger, The Problem of Magan and Meluhha, Bulletin of the Institute of Archaeology 8-9 (1968-69): 247-250; John Hansman, A Periplus of Magan and Meluhha, BOAS 36 (1973): 554-587; E.C.L. During Caspers and A. Govindakutty, R. Thapar's Dravidian Hypothesis for the Location of Meluhha, Dilmun and Makan, JESHO 21 (1978): 114-145.) The cuneiform texts certainly give the impression that at least originally they (Makan and Meluhha) were located in the same direction as Dilmun, but farther away-- and later, remembrance of this direction was demonstrably kept alive, which makes the matter rather complicated. Archaeologically it makes sense to speak of Bahrain as a station on the way to Magan and Meluhha if these two were located east of Bahrain, as the most important cultural relations of Bahrain were Indus and Iran rather than Egypt. The use of Indus measuring standards in Bahrain clearly testifies to this, and was taken for granted by the Mesopotamian traders... The most important suggestins that have been made for Magan are Makran on the Iranian coast, and the Oman peninsula. As copper has been found in the Oman, the latter possibility seems highly likely. This, however, has been questioned by W. Heimpel, according ot whom diorite statues of Naramsin and Gudea said to be made of stones from Magan cannot have come from Oman, because diorite stones big enough for these statues are reported not to exist in Oman. As a possible source he suggests a position 50 miles NNE of Bandar Abbas on the northern side of the Arabian Gulf. Meluhha is to be found along the coast of Baluchistan and the Indus valley.
"...there was a temple of Enzak, the god of Dilmun, on Failaka... it was Failaka that was Dilmun?...the so-called a_lik Dilmun, the sea-faring merchants of Ur... The returning merchants used to offer a share of their goods or a silver model of their boat to the temple of the goddess Ningal, and he texts tell about partnerships and the sharing of profit and losses in a way which would not fit such an easy travel as thaf from Ur to Failaka. The distance from Aba_da_n to Failaka is no more than 60 nautical miles (111 km.) and could hardly be considered a great enterprise... Another possibility would be to suggest that Dilmun was a designation not only of Bahrain, but also of other parts of the Arabian Gulf area, among which Failaka would be counted... Dilmun is likely to the name of a rather large geographical area, including Bahrain, Failaka, Tarut, and certain parts of the Arabian littoral (During Caspers and Govindakutty, JESHO 21 (1978): 130; cf. the map in D.O.Edzard and G.Farber, Repertoire Geographique des Textes Cuneiformes 2, Wiesbaden, 1974)..." (Bendt Alster, opcit., 1983, p. 41).
COMMON MOTIFS ON MESOPOTAMIAN CIVILIZATION AND SARASVATI SINDHU CIVILIZATION SEALS/TABLETS
The following seals of Mesopotamia contain features reminiscent of themes depicted on the seals of the Sarasvati Sindhu civilization. Typical motifs are: rows of animals, combat, antelope or tiger with head turned, woman with thighs spread out, circle-and-dot, one-horned bull, hare, plant, snake, bird, fish. All these motifs have been explained as related to metallic weapons, in the context of the decipherment of Indus script pictorials and signs. In the Mesopotamian motifs, there are clear images related to WEAPONS.
The only motif that is remarkably unique in Mesopotamian seals is the LION. Only a tiger motif appears on the seals of the Sarasvati Sindhu civilization. The closest to a lion motif is the bristled-hair (like a lion's mane) on the face of the three-faced, fully adorned, horned, seated person surrounded by animals and an inscription.
Beatrice Teissier, Ancient Near Eastern Cylinder Seals: From the Marcopoli Collection, Berkeley, University of California Press, 1984.
 | ca. 3100-2900 BC; serpentine; cat. 313; top end converges into a squat perforated handle; pattern on stamp base of seal. Row of open double-lined lozenges with circle and dot motif in center. Circle and dot motif along upper and lower edge and on base of seal. |
 | ca. 2700-2200 BC; serpentine; cat. 343; a crossed lion and a bearded bull between a rampant gazelle and a bull (?). In the field: drill holes, curved shape resembling a pommel (handle ofsword). |
 | ca. 2000-1900 BC; serpentine; cat. 371; two figures stand beside an antelope and a bull. In the field: serpent,dagger, ball staff. In the sky: disc and crescent. |
 | ca. 2000-1900 BC; serpentine; cat. 375; two figures stand beside two rampant hares. In the field: schematic plant, star. |
 | ca. 2000-1900 BC; serpentine; cat. 379; a figure drives a spear into a lion attacking a bull. In the sky: bird, star, crescent. |
 | ca. 1900 BC; serpentine; cat. 381; two figures stand facing each other, holding a spear between them. Terminal: two schematic bull-men, snake. |
 | Mitannian seal; ca. 1450-1300 BC; pyro-phyllite; cat. 580; a kneeling figure grasps an antelope by the hind legs. A lion attacks the antelope from behind. In the sky: fish. |
 | Mitannian seal; ca. 1550-1350 BC; composition; cat. 581; two crossed bulls. Terminal: laticed panel. |
 | Mitannian seal; ca. 1500-1300 BC; chert; cat. 584; two figures stand grasping a tree between them. In the field: ball staff, drill hole. Terminal: fish, bull's head, drill hole above recumbent antelope and star. |
 | Mitannian seal; ca. 1500-1300 BC; hematite; cat. 585; two figures stand before a seated deity holding a triple lightning fork. In the field: incomplete ankh. In the sky: three stars. |
 | Mitannian seal; ca. 1500-1300 BC; hematite; cat. 586; a worshipper presents an antelope to a deity standing on a lion which it holds by a leash. A nude goddess with hands clasped under her breasts stands between them. In the field: bird. In the sky: two rosettes. Terminal: inscription. IS'KUR.MU-u-s.ur = Adad-sum-us.ur |
 | Mitannian seal; ca. 1500-1300 BC; hematite; cat. 589; a lion atacks an antelope. Recumbent antelope above the lion. In the field: animal head, fish. In the sky: winged sun disc, drill holes. |
 | Mitannian seal; ca. 1450-1300 BC; chert; cat. 630; animal row: two antelopes and a lion. In the sky: scorpion, drill hole. |
 | Late Uruk and Jemdet Nasr seal; ca. 3200-3000 BC; serpentine; cat.1; boar and bull in procession; terminal: plant; heavily pitted surface beyond plant |
 | Late Uruk and Jemdet Nasr seal; ca. 3200-3000 BC; talc; cat.2; two gazelles (?) with heads turned backward, an antelope, a recumbent antelope (?), with two smaller indistinguishable animals above; in the field: plant(?) |
 | Late Uruk and Jemdet Nasr seal; ca. 3200-3000 (?) BC; marble; cat.3; loop bore; an antelope wiht two panchers, one with head turned. |
 | Late Uruk and Jemdet Nasr seal; marble; ca. 3200-3000 BC; cat.4; surface divided into 3 panels, from l. to r.: (a) squatting figure with arms raised to pot, (b) squatting figure with arms raised to pot, second pot on ground, (c) two figures squat one behind the other with their arms raised before them. |
 | ca. 2334-2260 BC; serpentine; cat. 76; two groups in combat. a hero wearing a kilt and a conical cap wrestles with a lion attacking a bull. A urinating bull-man wrestles with a water-buffalo. |
 | ca, 2334-2260 BC (early); marble; cat. 77; a hero in combat with a urinating, human-headed bull. A similar bull with forelegs resting on a bush stands to one side. |
 | ca. 233-2220 BC (early-mature); serpentine; cat. 78; two kilted heroes, one wearing a feathered crown and other a chignon, grapple with a lion attacking a bull. In the field: a small naked bearded figure kneels facing right |
 | ca. 2254-2220 BC (mature); ceramic; cat. 79; two groups in combat. A naked, bearded hero wrestles with a water buffalo, and a bull-man wrestles with a lion. In the centre: inscription (unread). Appears to be recut. |
 | ca. 2334-2260 BC (Early); serpentine; cat. 80; six dieties in combat in groups of two. A deity with rays issuing from the shoulders and holding a macesubdues a kneeling deity. A third deity with a mace grapples with a deity also armed with a mace. A fifth deity with a mace clutches an unarmed deity. In the field: mountain. |
 | ca. 2334-2220 BC (early-mature); serpentine; cat. 81; a deity with rays issuing from the shoulders and holding a saw (?) and a mace ascends a mountain. A worshipper carrying a kid salutes a deity opening a portal to the ascending deity. |
 | ca. 2334-2154 BC (mature); serpentine; cat. 82; a deity with rays issuing from the shoulders and a human figure sit opposite each other, each with an arm raised. An attendant stands between them, saluting the deity. In the field: mace. In the sky: crescent. Terminal: palm tree. |
 | ca. 750-600 BC; chalcedony; cat. 285; a hero in a short kilt stands between two ibexes and graps their horns. In the field: plant in vase. In the sky: star, crescent. |
 | ca. 900-700 BC; chert;cat. 188; a rosette and a bull. Terminal: plant (the linear striations on the bull's body are reminiscent of certain seals of the late Kassite style). The bull is pictured like the Indus one-horned bull, but in motion with 3 legs seen in profile. |
 | ca. 750-600 BC; chalcedony; cat. 286; lower edge chipped; a hero with a quiver on his back, and armed with a scimitar, holds a rearing bull by a horn. In the field: rhomb, stylus,marru. In the sky: ankh, star, crescent. |
 | Achaemenian seal; ca. 521-400 BC; agate; slight chipping along upper and lower edge. A royal figure holds two lions at bay. In the sky: winged sun disk. |
 | Achaemenian seal; ca. 521-400 BC; lentoid; agate. A royal figure holds two bearded ibexes at bay. |
In 1990, the Arab Archaeological Mission and the Directorate of Archaeology and Museums of the State of Bahrain excavated the mounds of Saar, near the causeway between the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the State of Bahrain. Shell seals were found. [Haya Al Khalifa, The shell seals of Bahrain, pp. 255-259]
 Barhain seal: ten circular depressions surround the spiral |
 Bahrain seal: Two antelopes |
 Bahrain seal: four antelope heads emanating from a star |
Susa
 Fig.85; Susa, tablet: seal impression, Louvre Sb 11221 |  Fig. 86; Susa, sealing: seal impressionl Louvre MDAI, 43, no. 240 |
 Fig. 87; Susa, stamp seal from the Gulf, Louvre, MDAI, 43, No. 1716; depicts two goat-antelopes crouching head to tail, inside and outside an oval. Incised eyes are saucer-shaped. |  Fig. 88; Susa, stamp seal from the Gulf, Teheran museum, MDAI, 43, no. 1717; an animal tamer wearing a skirt and grasping with one hand a goat-antelope with its head turned back and with its feet bound; with the other hand, the person holds a large object which looks like an architectural feature or shield. |
 Fig. 89; Susa, stamp seal from the Gulf, Teheran Museum, MDAI, 43, no. 1718; a person, naked and thin, has a stylised head shaped like a narrow arch with indentations to mark the nose and mouth. Animals have bound feet and surround a square object on which the person stands. |  Fig.90; Susa, cylinder seal from the Gulf, Louvre, MDAI, 43, no. 2021; made of steatite; a person with a horned tiara, wearing an unevenly chequered robe; the person is attended by a naked man and alongside are two tamers grasping a pair of crossed animals. |
 Fig. 91; Susa, cylinder seal from the Gulf, Teheran Museum, MDAI, 43, no. 1975; steatite; three figures with stylised heads in the form of notched arches, wearing boldly chequered skirts; one is seated; the other two stand with backs turned, hold an enormous feathered arrow, and one of them extends a hand towards a stylised goat-antelope. |  Fig. 92; Susa,stamp seal made of bitumen compound, Louvre, MDAI, 43, no. 1726; a tamer with three heavily hatched animals |
 Fig. 93;Susa stamp seal made of bitumen compound, Louvre, MDAI, 43, no. 1720 | |
 Fig. 94;Susa, stamp seal from a butimen compound, Louvre, MDAI, 43, no. 1726 |  Fig. 95;Susa, stamp seal of bitumen compound, Louvre, MDAI, 43, no. 1725; a woman shown full-face is squatting with legs apart, possibly on a stool. (A similar image of a woman with legs spread out occurs on an Indus tablet). |
"Susa... profound affinity between the Elamite people who migrated to Anshan and Susa and the Dilmunite people... Elam proper corresponded to the plateau of Fars with its capital at Anshan. We think, however that it probably extended further north into the Bakhtiari Mountains... likely that the chlorite and serpentine vases reached Susa by sea... From the victory proclamations of the kings of Akkad we also learn that the city of Anshan had been re-established, as the capital of a revitalised political ally: Elam itself... the import by Ur and Eshnunna of inscribed objects typical of the Harappan culture provides the first reliable chronological evidence. [C.J. Gadd, Seals of ancient Indian style found at Ur, Proceedings of the British Academy, XVIII, 1932; Henry Frankfort, Tell Asmar, Khafaje and Khorsabad, OIC, 16, 1933, p. 50, fig. 22). It is certainly possible that writing developed in India before this time, but we have no real proof. Now Susa had received evidence of this same civilisation, admittedly not all dating from the Akkadian period, but apparently spanning all the closing years of the third millennium (L. Delaporte, Musee du Louvre. Catalogues des Cylindres Orientaux..., vol. I, 1920, pl. 25(15), S.29. P. Amiet, Glyptique susienne, MDAI, 43, 1972, vol. II, pl. 153, no. 1643)... B. Buchanan has published a tablet dating from the reign of Gungunum of Larsa, in the twentieth century BC, which carries the impression of such a stamp seal. (B.Buchanan, Studies in honor of Benno Landsberger, Chicago, 1965, p. 204, s.). The date so revealed has been whollyconfirmed by the impression of a stamp seal from the same group, fig. 85, found on a Susa tablet of the same period. (P. Amiet, Antiquites du Desert de Lut, RA, 68, 1974, p. 109, fig. 16. Maurice Lambert, RA, 70, 1976, p. 71-72). It is in fact, a receipt of the kind in use at the beginning of the Isin-Larsa period, and mentions a certain Milhi-El, son of Tem-Enzag, who, from the name of his god, must be a Dilmunite. In these circumstances we may wonder if this document had not been drawn up at Dilmun and sent to Susa, after sealing with a local stamp seal. This seal is decorated with six tightly-packed, crouching animals, characterised by their vague shapes, with legs tucked under their bodies, huge heads and necks sometimes striped obliquely. The impression of another seal of similar type, fig. 86, depicts in the centre a throned figure who seems to dominate the animals, continuing a tradition of which examples are known at the end of the Ubaid period in Assyria... Fig. 87 to 89 are Dilmun-type seals found at Susa. The boss is semi-spherical and decorated with a band across the centre and four incised circles. [Pierre Amiet, Susa and the Dilmun Culture, pp. 262-268].
Dilmun (Failaka) seals
[Poul Kjærum, The Dilmun Seals as evidence of long distance relations in the early second millennium BC, pp. 269-277.]
[Poul Kjærum, The Dilmun Seals as evidence of long distance relations in the early second millennium BC, pp. 269-277.]
 Fig.96a; Dilmun seal from Barbar; six heads of antelope radiating from a circle; similar to animal protomes in Filaka, Anatolia and Indus. |  Fig. 96b; Failaka no. 267;harp with taurine sound-box |
 Fig. 96f: Failaka no. 260Double antelope joined at the belly; in the Levant, similar doubling occurs for a lion |  Fig. 102; Failaka no. 126; antelopes flanking a line (standard?) |
 Fig. 99; Failaka; no. 174 impression;two bull heads emanating from a chequered square; two persons drinking; altar and sun; bull in the lower register |  Fig. 103; Failaka no. 206; serpents held in the hands |
 Fig. 100; Failaka no. 83impression; a person flanked by two bulls, each standing atop a chequered square |  Fig. 104; Failaka; no. 89 impression; bulls; antelopes; person; chequered square; trough? |
 Fig. 101; Failaka no. 82;entwined serpent in the middle; two antelopes standing atop a chequered rectangle; two bulls in lower register. |  Fig. 105; Failaka no. 204; is the person seated on a bull? |
Demonstrating a connection between Dilmun and Syria based on seal imagery, Buchanan observes: "It seems possible that around 2000 BC, the Persian Gulf merchants had a relationship, other than one involving trade, with some ethnic element in Syria (merchants or colonists)". (Briggs Buchanan, 1965, A Persian Gulf Seal, Studies in Honor of Benno Landsberger, 199-209, Chicago, p. 207).
Lapis lazuli seals and sources
In Mesopotamian and Sarasvati-Sindhu valley sites, significant numbers of objects of lapis lazuli have been found. In the 'royal' tombs,lapis lazuli, carnelian and gold are the three important materials used. Lapis lazuli is a rare stone found in Badakhshan mines (NE Afghanistan, currently known as Kerano-Munjan), in the Pamirs and near Lake Baikal in eastern Siberia (F. Rutley, Elements of Mineralogy (rev. by H.H. Read 1948), pp. 380-381). "Darius states that his lapis lazuli came from his satrapy of Sogdia, in which province Badakhshan was located; and finally, the colour range from Sar-i-Sang is closely comparable to that of archaeological lapis lazuli. The varying shades of the pieces of veneer on the 'Standard' of Ur, for instance, can be exactly paralleled by modern specimens from Badakhshan...
 W14772 cl |  Fig. 4 |
The lapis lazuli seal W. 14772 cl relates to the Uruk IV period. The unstratified lapis lazuli seal G.7-205 (Fig. 4b) has the figures of two salukis and a 'fox'... This is comparable to the impression of another seal found at that level (Fig. 4a)... Also comparable are the seal impressions shown in Fig. 4c and 4d. Fig. 4c has two superimposed dogs on the left and the hunted animal with turned head in front of them. Fig. 4d, if divided horizontally also shows a similar scene... Porada has noted that filling motifs of 'disembodied heads of horned animals are another feature of the period'.[A.J.Tobler, Excavations at Tepe Gawra, II, Levels IX-XX, 1950, p. 192; Georgina, Herrmann, Lapis Lazuli: the early phases of its trade, in Iraq 30, 1968, pp.21-54]
 | NE Afghanistan, 4 lapis-lazuli mines are at heights ranging from 6000 to 17000 ft.: Sar-i-sang, S (Stromby), C (Chilmak) and R (Robat-i-Paskaran); Sar-i-sang mine is worked even today. [After Georgina, Herrmann, Lapis Lazuli: the early phases of its trade, in Iraq 30, 1968. |
Aratta. Enmerkar, the king of Uruk (Early Dynastic Period II) wanted from the state of Aratta: gold, silver and semi-precious stones, particularly lapis lazuli, to beautify shrines and temples, especialy the Apsu temple in Eridu. He implored Inanna: " O my sister, Inanna, for Erech Let them (the people of Aratta) fashion artfully gold (and) silver, Let them... pure lapis lazuli from the slab,.... Of the holy giparru where you have established (your) dwelling... Let the people of Aratta, Having brought down the stones of the mountains from their highland, Build for me the great chapel, set up for me the great shrine." (S.N.Kramer, Enmerkar and the Lord of Aratta, p. 9, line 38 ff.). To reach Aratta, Enmerkar's herald had to traverse Anshan, a kingdom bordering Elam... and then cross seven further 'mighty mountains'. (S.N.Kramer, Enmerkar and the Lord of Aratta, A Sumerian Epic Tale of Iraq and Iran, 1952, p. 17, line 166 ff.) Enmerkar was the second king of the first dynasty of Ur, of which Gilgamesh was the fifth.
 |
Seven EDII seals show contest friezes (Ashmolean Museum) The lapis lazuli seal shows in the lower register geometric motifs reminiscent of the Jemdat Nazr Diyala seals. ram in the thicket has not only horns, fringe, beard, eyes and eye-rims of lapis lazuli, but also part of its fleece is made of overlapping sections of the blue stone. Lapis lazuli was also used in amulets sculpted as frogs, fish, flies, calves, bulls, rams, ibex, monkey, seated bull, eagle. 37 Royal cemetery seals depict banqueting scenes, (generally belonging to ED III) all except five depict these scenes in two registers. Some seals have on one register a contest, spread eagle or animal row motif. Contest friezes in the 'fara' style began in EDI.
 |
The seal of Nin-banda. In the upper register, the central figure is a man who grasps two animals around their necks. The animals are attacked from the rear by another animal, whom they turn to face. The lower register shows two crossed lions attacking two animals whose bodies are sharply angled. 53 lapis lazuli seals of EDIII date depict contest friezes; of these 17 are from Ur. A total of 138 lapis lazuli seals are assigned to this date.
Dilmun, Meluhha, Makkan
"Around 2500 BC, Dilmun is first referred to as a supplier of wood, by Urnanshe, King of Lagash. His successors, Lugalanda and Uri'inimgina (before 2350 BC) dispensed various textiles, resins, oil and silver out of the state storehouses to merchants of Lagash. The merchants were to trade the goods in Dilmun for copper and other wares, such as onions, linen, resin and bronze 'marine spoons'... During the succeeding Old Akkadian Period (2334-2193 BC) the Mesopotamians were no longer the only traders to visit Dilmun. The seas were open to all contries and seafaring merchants from the distant lands of Dilmun, Meluhha and Makkan tied up at Akkad's quay, during Sargon's reign (2334-2279 BC). Copper was shipped directly from Makkan; people from Meluhha are mentioned in written sources as interpreters and seamen. During the reign of Gudea of Lagash, copper, diorite and wood were delivered from Makkan and Meluhha delivered rare woods (such as Sissoo wood), gold, tin, lapis lazuli and carnelian to Lagash. Naramsin warred against Makkan; Mesopotamia strove for predominance in the area... Ships from Makkan did not sail to the north. It appears that one or more trading centers in Makkan were visited during the voyages where Makkan wares-- chiefly copper-- and luxury items from Meluhha were bartered. Therefore it appears that many wares referred to in the written sources as 'Makkan goods', actually were materials originally brought from Meluhha. Through trans-shipment in Makkan, these goods were then later referred to as coming from Makkan; the same confusion occurs later with materials from Dilmun... Both the goods and the foreign merchants trading in Dilmun's markets influenced forms of trade. The cuneiform characters had been taken over from the Sumerians, but the system of weights used in barter derived from the Indus Valley culture. (Michael Road, Weights on the Dilmun Standard, Iraq, vol. 44, 1982, 137-141). Spreading out from Dilmun, this system of weights became very popular and was used as far away as Ebla in Syria... Dilmun is mentioned for the last time in written records, during the reign of Samsu'liluma in the year 1744 BC, with the entry...'12 measures of purified copper from Alasia and Dilmun'. With this notice, the new supplier of copper is also mentioned; Alasia (Cyprus) would control the Mediterranean and Near Eastern market for copper for the next millennium. Alasia's rise did not occur in isolation; obviously a lengthy series of crises led to the collapse of the existing system in the East. Unlike Dahlak, Dilmun did not cease to exist; Tukulti-Ninurta refers to himself as 'King of the Upper and Lower Seas' and ruler over Dilmun and Meluhha. However, Meluhha and Makkan are no longer referred to in written records in the old sense.
"...More recent arcaheological researches in East Arabia have brought to light many finds which are related to the presence of Indus valley people. In the settlements of Hili 8 and Maysar-1, both of which have been investigated, Indus valley pottery is frequently found. Seals with Indus valley script and typical iconography indicate influences in Makkan down to the level of business organization. Marks identifying pottery in Makkan were taken from those used in the Indus valley, including the use of the signs on pottery used in the Indus valley. The discovery of a sea-port-- which may be ascribed to the Harappans-- at Ra's al-Junayz on Oman's east coast by an Italian expedition would seem to indicate that trade routes should be viewed in a more differentiated fashion than has been done upto now." [Sege Cleuziou, Preliminary report on the second and third excavation campaigns at Hili 8, Archaeology in the United Arab Emirates, vol. 2/3, 1978/79, 30ff.; Gerd Weisgerber, '...und Kupfer in Oman', Der Anschnitt, vol. 32, 1980, 62-110; Gerd Weisgerber, Makkan and Meluhha- 3rd millennium copper production in Oman and evidence of contact with the Indus valley, Paper read in Cambridge 1981 and to appear in South Asia Archaeology 1981; Maurizio Tosi, A possible Harappan seaport in Eastern Arabia: Ra's al-Junayz in the Sultanate of Oman, Manuscript]." Gerd Weisgerber, Dilmun--a trading entrepot; evidence from historical and archaeological sources, 135-142 in: Shaikha Haya Ali Al Khalifa and Michael Rice (eds.) Bahrain through the ages: the archaeology, London, KPI, 1986. [Simo Parpola/Asko Parpola/Robert H. Brunswig, The Meluhha village. evidence of acculturation of Harappan traders in the later third millennium Mesopotamia?, Journal of the Economic and Political History of the Orient, vol. 20, 1977, 129-165. 'If the tablets and their sealed envelopes had not been found, in fact, we might never have suspected the existence of a merchant colony.' (T. Ozguc, An Assyrian trading outpost, Scientific American, 1962, 97 ff.) cited after Lamberg-Karlovsky 1972).]
"Oman peninsula/Makkan lies half way between the two main civilization centres of the third millennium Middle East: Mesopotamia and the Indus valley... an increasing influence of Harappan civilization on Eastern Arabia during the last two centuries of the third millennium. This influence seems to strengthen during the early second millennium where proper Harappan objects are found all over the Oman peninsula: a cubic stone weight at Shimal, sherds of Harappan storage jars on several sites including Hili 8 (period III). Maysar and Ra's Al-Junayz bears a Harappan inscription and Tosi (forth.) has emphasized the importance of this discovery for the knowledge of Harappan control over the Oman Sea." [Serge Cleuziou, Dilmun and Makkan during the third and early second millennia BC, 143-155 in: Shaikha Haya Ali Al Khalifa and Michael Rice (eds.) Bahrain through the ages: the archaeology, London, KPI, 1986.]
Warfare in Ancient Sumer
Copper tools predominate in Sumer by Ur III period (2380-2360 B.C.) In Sumer, the early urban civilization of southern Mesopotamia, kings used writing to record and commemorate significant military victories.
The standardized equipment of bodyguards were: a copper helmet, battle-axe, the dagger and a heavy spear. The early spearheads had long tangs, which were thrust into the spearshaft. A hook was formed at the end of the tang to firm up the attachment to the shaft. The blade of a Mesopotamian battle-axe was round, designed to pierce helmets and skulls and slash gaping flesh-wounds.
"Mari on the Euphrates... The palace administration was responsible for the provision of arms, munitions, and siege equipment. King Zimri-Lim wrote while on a military campaign to order further supplies of arrowheads: 'To Mukannishum [his official in the palace] say this, Thou speaks your lord. When you hear this letter read, have made: 50 arrowheads of 5 shekels [40 grams] weight in bronze, 50 arrowheads of 3 shekels, 100 arrowheads of 2 shekels, 200 arrowheads of 1 shekels. Give orders to have this done at once. Then have them put in store to await my further instructions. I suspect the siege of Andariq will be prolonged. I shall write to you again about these arrowheads. When I do write, have them brought to me as quickly as possible.' Anothe letter from the king to the same official orders him: 'When you hear my letter read to you, have made 1,000 bronze arrowheads at 1/4 shekels [2 grams] each. Have them made from the red bronze at your disposal, and have them sent to me at once.'.. Later, when Shamshi-Adas's son Yasmah-Addu was installed as vice-regent at Mari... in a letter to his son, Shamshi-Adad ordered 10,000 arrowheads to be made, requiring almost five tons of bronze. Some of the bronze for the job had to be transported from Assur since the Mari palace armourers did not have enough stock. The accounts were kept straight Watkins, 1989, The Beginnings of Warfare, in: General Sir John Hackett (ed.), Warfare in the Ancient World, London, Sidgwick and Jackson Ltd.)
Sources of tin: the great enigma of Early Bronze Age archaeology
"The Early Bronze Age of the 3rd millennium B.C. saw the first development of a truly international age of metallurgy... The question is, of course, why all this took place in the 3rd millennium B.C... It seems to me that any attempt to explain why things suddenly took off about 3000 B.C. has to explain the most important development, the birth of the art of writing... As for the concept of a Bronze Age one of the most significant events in the 3rd millennium was the development of true tin-bronze alongside an arsenical alloy of copper... That such (arsenic alloy) ingots would be silver in color and were therefore known as annaku in Akkadian and d'm in Egyptian (E.R.Eaton and H. McKerrell, World Archaeology 8 (1976): 179f.) is extremely unlikely because the former means 'tin' and the latter 'electrum'... Many theories have been presented to account for the spread of metallurgy in the 3rd millennium B.C., through Beaker Folk in the west, torque-bearers in Europe and the Eastern Mediterranean, and Khirbet-Kerak people in the Near East, as well as Cycladic colonists in Iberia and Trojan prospectors in eastern Europe. Such theories involve large-scale migration of peoples over vast distances, migrations often identified with one ethnic group such as Indo-Europeans or Hurrians. It is probably best to reject all such theories, along with the elaborate archaeological reconstructions that have accompanied them. There is no evidence to support the existence of any specialized group of metalworkers in the Early Bronze Age, and it has not been possible to substantiate any theory of migration or colonization at this time. Even the famous Indo-European migration into Greece and Anatolia is in need of a comploete reinvestigation... Now everyone, from the British Isles to India and China, emphasizes the local origins of technology developed by indigenous cultures. Surely the pendulum has swung in the opposite direction and we are seeing the extreme reaction to an equally extreme past position. The truth must lie somewhere in the middle ground... In fact the spread of tin-bronze, the other major development in copper metallurgy in this period, implies the existence of some type of long-distance trade. As there are no known sources of tin anywhere in the Aegean, the Eastern Mediterranean (apart from Egypt), or the Near East, the appearance of tin-bronze in such widely separated areas as north-western Anatolia (Troy), Cyprus (Vounous), and southern Mesopotamia (Ur and Kish) requires a network of trade routes covering a considerable area... The sources of tin being used in the 3rd millennium B.C. remain the great enigma of Early Bronze Age archaeology... The Old Assyrian letters from the Anatolian merchant colony (or ka_rum) at Kultepe, ancient Kanes', covering the period known as ka_rum II, 1950-1850 B.C. , provides extremely detailed information on shipment of loads of tin (Old Assyrianannukum) from the capital city of Assur to the members of the private business-houses residing at Kanes'... All that we know is that the tin was brought to Assur, presumably from points to the east, and from Assur shipped overland by annual donkey caravans to central Anatolia. We also know that the textiles, representing the other half of the trade goods sent to Anatolia, came from Babylonia to the south... With disturbances in the north, especially in the Zagros mountains, cutting off the trade in tin with Anatolia, Sams'i-Adad I (king of Assyria, ca. 1850-1600 B.C.) shifted his interests westward and Mari (located on the upper part of Euphrates midway between Aleppo and Baghdad) became an entrepot on a trade route that brought tin up the Euphrates to Mari... the texts are vague as to the ultimate source of this tin, but it seems to be coming from Iran by a southern route through Susa. There is also some indication that Elamites were involved in the trade... The tin was shipped to Mari in the form of ingots (Akkadian le_'u) and there stored in various parts of the palace known as abu_sum (storeroom), the bi_t kunukki (seal-house), and the kisallu (courtyard)... More evidence on the copper trade comes from Old Babylonian Ur, where the excavator, Sir Leonard Woolley, uncovered the house of Ea-na_s.ir, a merchant who specialized in the trade in copper, located at what Woolley called No. 1 Old Street. A number of texts found in the area and dating to the reign of Rim-Sin, king of Larsa (1822-1763 B.C.), record Ea-na_s.ir's activities in the copper trade, which consisted of importing what is called Tilmun copper... called Magan copper in earlier periods, which was shipped to Mesopotamia up the Persian Gulf. [A. Leo Oppenheim, The Seafaring Merchants of UR, JAOS74 (1954): 6-17, and J.D. Muhly, 1973, Copper and Tin, Conn.: Archon., Hamden; Transactions of Connecticut Academy of Arts and Sciences, vol. 43) p. 221f. ]... However, the shipment of tin all the way from Iran to southern Mesopotamia and up the Euphrates to Ugarit and beyond to Crete represents a trade route of epic scope... the so-cakked Dark Age lasting from ca. 1600 to 1400 B.C... saw the establishment of the Hurrian kingdom of Mitanni, with its Indo-Aryan background (T. Burrow, The Proto-Indo-Aryans, 1973, Journal of the Royal Asiatic Society, 1973: 123-40)... the recipes for making bronze contained in many Bronze Age cuneiform texts. The following text from Mari is a good example: (Text is G. Dossin: Archives de Sumu-lamam, roi de Mari, RA 64 (1970): 17-44, esp. 25, text n.6. The specification te-ma-yu which appears in several texts from this archive, is really of unknown meaing). Here the proportions are quite exact: 20 shekels of tin is added to 170 shekels of copper (almost 1:8) to make exactly 190 shekels of bronze. This means that there was a fair amount of metallic tin in use during the Late Bronze Age. By ca. 1400 B.C. tin was being used in Greece to cover clay vases destined for the grave, in order to make them look like silver, and to line ivory cosmetic boxes to keep the ivory from being stained by the rouge or ointment placed inside...""According to ratios given in the texts tin was very cheap, as high as 240:1 and 180:1 in a tin/silver ratio. What is curious is that bronze was twice as expensive as tin, for a text says of a payment that 'if (paid) in tin (it should be) at the ratio of four minas (of tin) per (shekel of silver), if in bronze at the rate of two minas.' (Text isHarvard Semitic Studies (HSS) XIV as quoted in Chicago Assyrian Dictionary (CAD), s.v. annaku, 129a). This seems to indicate a great increase in the amont of tin in circulation during the period 1500-1300 B.C... One text even refers to an alloy (Akkadian billatu) composed of 1 mina of copper and 8 1/2 shekels of tin, giving a ratio of 7:1. (Text is Keilschrifttexte aus Assur verschiedenen Inhalts 205, quoted in CAD, s.v. billatu, 226a.) In the Old Assyrian period one text gives a ratio of 8:1 (4 minas of copper, 1/2 mina of tin, the metal being destined for the smith, Akkadian nappa_hum)(Text is Cuneiform Texts from Cappadocian Tablets in the British Museum (CCT) I 37b, quoted in CAD, s.v. annaku, 128a.)
1.1/3 MA.NA AN.NA2. a-na 2 5/6 MA URUDU.LUH.HA
3.TE-MA-YU
4. i-na 8 GIN.TA.AM ba-l[i-e]l
5. SU.NIGIN 3 MA.NA 10 GIN ZABAR
6. a-na nam-za-qi-im1/3 mina of tin to 2 5/6 minas
of washed copper from
Tema (?) has been alloyed
at the ratio of 8:1
Total: 3 minas, 10 shekels
of bronze for a key
Notes:
takaram = tin, white lead (Ta.Ma.); t.agromi = tin metal, alloy (Kuwi)
nis.ka = allusion to a goldsmith (RV. 8.47.15); may also mean gold coins (RV. 1.126.2, 4.37.4, 5.27.2)
loha = red (RV.); lohitaka = of red colour, reddish (Pa_n.ini's As.t.a_dhya_yi: 5.4.30); lohita_yasa = red metal, copper, made of it (Pa_n.ini'sAs.t.a_dhya_yi: 5.4.94) Pa_n.ini's As.t.a_dhya_yi: 5.4.94 states that ayas denotes a genus or a name (hence, may connote metal): anas as'man ayas saras ityevamanta_t tatpurus.at, t.ac pratyayo bhavato ja_tau sam.jn~a_ya_m ca vis.aye = anas (cart), as'man (rock), ayas (metal), saras(river) denote a genus or name; lohita_yasam is a sam.jn~a_ or name; ka_la_yasam is a genus or aja_ti.
ayil = iron (Ta.); ayiram = any ore (Ma.); aduru = native metal (Ka.)
ayorasa = metal rust (RV.); an:ga_ra = charcoal (RV.); ayastamba = metallic pitcher (RV. 5.30.15); a_yasi_ = metallic (RV. 1.116.15, 1.118.8, 7.3.7, 7.15.14, 7.95.1); ayas = metal (prob. copper or bronze)(RV. 1.57.3, 1.163.9, 4.2.17, 6.3.5, 6.47.10, 6.75.12, 10.53.9-10).
loha: metal that is extracted (Skt.) cf. Akkadian le_'u = ingots
loha_dhyaks.a = director of metal work (Arthas'a_stra : 2.12.23)
ka_rma_ra = metalsmith who makes arrows etc. of metal (RV. 9.112.2: jarati_bhih os.adhi_bhih parn.ebhih s'akuna_na_m ka_rma_ro as'mabhih dyubhih hiran.yavantam icchati_ ) karmaka_ra = labourer (Pa_n.ini's As.t.a_dhya_yi:ka_rukarma = artisan's work (Arthas'a_stra : 2.14.17); karma_nta = a workshop or factory (Arthas'a_stra : 2.12.18, 23 and 27, 2.17.17, 2.19.1, 2.23.10). kan- = copper work (Tamil)
d'm = electrum (Egyptian); assem= electrum (Egyptian); somnakay = gold (Gypsy); soma = electrum (RV)(See analysis in: Kalyanaraman, Indian Alchemy).
[Notes:
bi_d.u = alloy of iron (Tu.)
pis.t.aka = agglomerate of fine particles (Arthas'a_stra : 4.3.147)
pa_ka = roasting, cooking (Arthas'a_stra : 4.1.64, 5.2.24)
dravi = smelter or metalsmith who melts metal (RV. 6.3.4: tignam... paras'uh na jihva_m dravirna dra_vayati da_ru dhaks.at: fire devours wood with its axe-like sharp tongue, just as the smelter melts the metal).
s'ulva = copper; underground vein of metal ore or water (Arthas'a_stra : 2.13.16 and 44; 2.14.20-22 and 30-31; 2.12.1, 2.24.1); vellaka = an alloy of silver and iron in equal proportions (Arthas'a_stra : 2.14.22);
ta_mra = copper (Arthas'a_stra : 2.12.23-24, 2.13.52 and 58, 2.17.14, 4.1.35); na_ga = lead (Skt.);
trapu = tin (RV; Pa_n.ini's As.t.a_dhya_yi: 4.3.138)(Skt.); capala = quickmelting tin or bismuth ore (Skt.);
kan:sa = bronze (RV.);
kajjala = lamp-black used as collyrium (Pa_n.ini's As.t.a_dhya_yi: 6.2.91) an~jana = collyrium (RV.); = antimony compound/sulphide (Arthas'a_stra : 2.11.31, 2.12.6 and 24; 2.22.6)
ka_m.sya = related to bell-metal (Pa_n.ini's As.t.a_dhya_yi: 4.3.168);
a_raku_t.a = brass (Skt.); pittal.ai = brass (Ta.)]
(See J.D. Muhly, New evidence for sources of and trade in bronze age tin, in: The Search for Ancient Tin , Washington, D.C., Smithsonian Institution Press, 1978, pp. 43-48)(James D. Muhly, The Bronze Age Setting, in: Theodore A. Wertime and James D. Muhly (eds.), 1980, The Coming of the Age of Iron, New Haven, Yale University Press, pp.25-67.)
 | A warrior, ca. 2500 B.C. with helmet, battle-axe and sickle-sword; a small plaque of engraved shell from the ancient city of Mari on the Euphrates (Musee National de Louvre, Paris) |
 | Bas relief, Tello: long haired person carrying on his shoulder a hooked sceptre; a fillet is held in his left hand and is presenting it to the warrior standing in front of him with a lance in hand. (Musee du Louvre, Cat., pp. 87,89 No. 5) |
 | A. bronze scimitar, over 21 in.; length of the blade 16 in. and of the hilt about 5 in., width varies from over one to just under 2 in.; the hilt was jewelled and inlaid with ivory; bears an inscription of Adad-nirari I, king of Assyria ca. 1325 B.C.B. Straight sword found at Ashur C. Bronze axe (A: Boscawen, 1876, Transactions of the Society of Biblical Archaeology, Vol. IV, Pl. 2, p. 347; B: cf. Andrae, Der Anu-Adad Tempel, p. 53; C: Andrae, ibid.) |
 | Bronze dish found by Layard at Nimrud: circular objects are decorated by consecutive chains of animals following each other round in a circle. A similar theme occurs on the famous silver vase of Entemena. In the innermost circle, a troop of gazelles (similar to the ones depicted on cylinder seals) march along in file; the middle register has a variety of animals, all marching in the same direction as the gazelles. A one-horned bull, a winged griffin, an ibex and a gazelle, are followed by two bulls who are being attacked by lions, and a griffin, a one-horned bull, and a gazelle, who are all respectively being attacked by leopards. In the outermost zone there is a stately procession of realistically conceived one-horned bulls marching in the opposite direction to the animals parading in the two inner circles. The dish has a handle. (Percy S.P.Handcock, 1912, Mesopotamian Archaeology, London, Macmillan and Co., p. 256). |
 | Vulture-stele (upright monument carved with reliefs and inscriptions) of Eannatum, Patesi of Shirpurla, Lagash leading his troops inbattle and on the march (ca. 2500 B.C.); abandoned bodies are shown being picked by vultures. [Louvre Museum; Dec. en Chald., pl. 3 (bis)]; inscription records his victory over Ummaites and treaty of peace forced upon them; upper register: Ur-Nina, king is of colossal size and is standing; he balances a basket (perhaps containing clay and foundation brick for the temple of Ningirsu) with his right hand; the inscription written alongside mentions the temple of Ningirsu; lower register: the king is raising his cup offering a libation; all figures are clad in Sumerian short woollen skirt, called 'kaunake'.The light infantry wear no protective armour and carry no shields; each holds a long spear in the left hand and a battle-axe in the right. Massed ranks of helmeted spearment are behind a front rank of men bearing sheilds; these soldiers were trained, uniformed and equipped to fight as corps. The vulture-stele shows that the long lance or spear is grasped by both hands and is the principal weapon of offence. Axe, dart, club or mace, a curved weapon and a short lance were also in use. Eannatum is bearing the curved weapon, a number of double-pointed darts and a long lance; he is in the act of piercing the head of a vanquished foe with his lance, which he holds horizontally over his head at the extreme end. Baked clay balls, copper arrows, spears, axes and stone clubs were discovered in the pre-Sargonic strata at Nippur. |
  Naramsin with horns of divinity and fully-armed | Stele of victory of Naram-Sin, King of Agade (2291--2255 B.C.) found at Susa, whither it had been brought by the Elamite king Shutruk-nakhkhunte as part of the 'booty of Sippar'; Height 198 cm.; this celebrates a victory over the Lullubi. In mountainous and wooded country the Akkadian monarch is depicted at the head of his troops protected by the symbols of his deities. Wearing a horned headdress to signify his own divinity and carrying a bow, he tramples the enemy beneath his feetBow and arrow appear to be the principal weapons, apart from the spear and the axe (note the absence of any type of shield). |
  | From Tello: Lancehead, copper blade 31 1/2 in. long, belonging to a lance; the title 'King of Kish' is legible with the sign 'Sharru'; tang is pierced with 4 holes and a flat surface of the blade is engraved with the figure of a lion; found six inches above the stratum in which the remains of Ur-Nina (founder of the first dynasty of Lagash) were buried (Cat., p. 367; Dec. en Chald., Pl. 5 ter, No.1. Musee du Louvre).Hollow pipe of beaten copper, over ten feet long and dia. of 4 in.; the tube was fastened to a wooden pole with copper nails; the pipe tapers upwards and the top is crowned with a hollow ball of hardened bitumen, a little below which there is a large semicircular handle which is also a hollow tube made of copper; it appears to be part of a standard as it is found reproduced on the famous vase of Gudea. [Weapons of copper have been discovered at Nippur, Fara, Tell Sifr: hammers, knives, daggers, hatchets, fetters, fish-hooks, spear-heads; some weapons have rivets for wooden handles; also found were: mirrors, net-weights, vases, dishes and cauldrons] (cf. King, Sumer and Akkad, p. 26; and Hilprecht,Explorations, p. 156] |
 | Builders' tools carried by Ur-Nammu of Ur (Harriett Crawford, 1991, Sumer and the Sumerians, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, Fig. 4.6) |
 | Assyrian weapons found represented on bas-reliefs:A,B,C,D show different kinds of pike wielded by the warriors of Ashur (they vary in length, handles differ; but all have a diamond-shaped blade). E shows arrow-heads shaped like the pike. F shows two extremities of the bow, often terminating in the head of a bird. G to L are quivers in which the arrows reposed. L is the largest and could accommodate five arrows; the normal number seems to have been four. The quiver was slung over the back by means of cords (cf. G,J,L). M,N depict swords. O depicts a curved sword. The sword-hilt was often adorned with several lions' heads, while the scabbard itself was often decorated with lions. P is a sceptre, a ceremonial weapon symbolic of royalty. Q is a dirk brandished alarmingly as shown by the composite monstrosities portrayed on the palace walls of Ashur-nas.ir-pal. |
 Gadd Seal 1 | -- Sag kusida, 'chief money-lender' for bharata, 'metalcasters' -- cuneiform text on an Indus seal of Ur including kusida as a borrowed word from Meluhha PLUS hieroglyph 'ox' read rebus in Meluhha as bharata, 'metal alloy of copper, pewter, tin'. Seal impression and reverse of seal (with pierced lug handle) from Ur (U.7683; BM 120573); image of bison and cuneiform inscription; length 2.7, width 2.4, ht. 1.1 cm. cf. Gadd, PBA 18 (1932), pp. 5-6, pl. I, no.1; Mitchell 1986: 280-1 no.7 and fig. 111; Parpola, 1994, p. 131: signs may be read as (1) sag(k) or ka, (2)ku or lu or ma, and (3) zi or ba (4)?. SAG.KU(?).IGI.X or SAG.KU(?).P(AD)(?) The commonest value: sag-ku-zi |
 |
Seal; BM 122187; dia. 2.55; ht. 1.55 cm. Gadd PBA 18 (1932), pp. 6-7, pl. 1, no. 2
|
 | Seal; BM 122946; Dia. 2.6; ht. 1.2cm.; Gadd PBA 18 (1932), p. 7, pl. I, no.3; Legrain, Ur Excavations, X (1951), no. 629. |
 | Cylinder seal; BM 122947; U. 16220; humped bull stands before a palm-tree, feeding froun a round manger or a bundle of fodder; behind the bull is a scorpion and two snakes; above the whole a human figure, placed horizontally, with fantastically long arms and legs, and rays about his head. |
 | Cylinder (white shell) seal impression; Ur, Mesopotamia (IM 8028); white shell. height 1.7 cm., dia. 0.9 cm.; cf. Gadd, PBA 18 (1932), pp. 7-8, pl. I, no.7; Mitchell 1986: 280-1, no.8 and fig. 112; Parpola, 1994, p. 181; fish vertically in front of and horizontally above a unicorn; trefoil design |
 | Seal; BM 118704; U. 6020; Gadd PBA 18 (1932), pp. 9-10, pl. II, no.8; two figures carry between them a vase, and one presents a goat-like animal (not an antelope) which he holds by the neck. Human figures wear early Sumerian garments of fleece. |
 | Seal; BM 122945; U. 16181; dia. 2.25, ht. 1.05 cm; Gadd PBA 18 (1932), p. 10, pl. II, no. o; each of four quadrants terminates at the edge of the seal in a vase; each quadrant is occupied by a naked figure, sitting so that, following round the circle, the head of one is placed nearest to the feet of the preceding; two figures clasp their hands upon their breasts; the other two spread out the arms, beckoning with one hand. |
 | Seal; BM 120576; U. 9265; Gadd, PBA 18 (1932), p. 10, pl. II, no. 10; bull with long horns below an uncertain object, possibly a quadruped and rider, at right angles to the ox (counter clockwise) |
  | Seal; UPenn; a scorpion and an elipse [an eye (?)]; U. 16397; Gadd, PBA 18 (1932), pp. 10-11, pl. II, no. 11Rectangular stamp seal of dark steatite; U. 11181; B.IM. 7854; ht. 1.4, width 1.1 cm.; Woolley, Ur Excavations, IV (1956), p. 50, n.3 |
 | kuTi ‘water-carrier’ rebus: kuThi ‘smelter’ meDha ‘polar star’ rebus: meD ‘iron’ dula ‘pair’ rebus: dul ‘metal casting’Seal impression, Ur (Upenn; U.16747); dia. 2.6, ht. 0.9 cm.; Gadd, PBA 18 (1932), pp. 11-12, pl. II, no. 12; Porada 1971: pl.9, fig.5; Parpola, 1994, p. 183; water carrier with a skin (or pot?) hung on each end of the yoke across his shoulders and another one below the crook of his left arm; the vessel on the right end of his yoke is over a receptacle for the water; a star on either side of the head (denoting supernatural?). The whole object is enclosed by 'parenthesis' marks. The parenthesis is perhaps a way of splitting of the ellipse (Hunter, G.R., JRAS, 1932, 476). An unmistakable example of an 'hieroglyphic' seal. |
 | Seal; BM 122841; dia. 2.35; ht. 1 cm.; Gadd PBA 18 (1932), p. 12, pl. II, no. 13; circle with centre-spot in each of four spaces formed by four forked branches springing from the angles of a small square. Alt. four stylised bulls' heads (bucrania) in the quadrants of an elaborate quartering device which has a cross-hatched rectangle in the centre. |
 | Seal; UPenn; cf. Philadelphia Museum Journal, 1929; ithyphallic bull-men; the so-called 'Enkidu' figure common upon Babylonian cylinders of the early period; all have horned head-dresses; moon-symbols upon poles seem to represent the door-posts that the pair of 'twin' genii are commonly seen supporting on either side of a god; material and shape make it the 'Indus' type while the device is Babylonian. |
 | Seal impression; UPenn; steatite; bull below a scorpion; dia. 2.4cm.; Gadd, PBA 18 (1932), p. 13, Pl. III, no. 15; Legrain, MJ (1929), p. 306, pl. XLI, no. 119; found at Ur in the cemetery area, in a ruined grave .9 metres from the surface, together with a pair of gold ear-rings of the double-crescent type and long beads of steatite and carnelian, two of gilt copper, and others of lapis-lazuli, carnelian, and banded sard. The first sign to the left has the form of a flower or perhaps an animal's skin with curly tail; there is a round spot upon the bull's back. |
 | Seal impression; BM 123208; found in the filling of a tomb-shaft (Second Dynasty of Ur). Dia. 2.3; ht. 1.5 cm.; Gadd, PBA 18 (1932), pp. 13-14, pl. III, no. 16; Buchanan, JAOS 74 (1954), p. 149. |
 | Seal impression, Mesopotamia (?) (BM 120228); cf. Gadd 1932: no.17; cf. Parpola, 1994, p. 132. Note the doubling of the common sign, 'jar'. |
 | Seal and impression (BM 123059), from an antique dealer, Baghdad; script and motif of a bull mating with a cow; the tuft at the end of the tail of the cow is summarily shaped like an arrow-head; inscription is of five characters, most prominent among them the two 'men' standing side by side. To the right of these is a damaged 'fish' sign.cf. Gadd 1932: no.18; Parpola, 1994, p.219. |
 Yale tablet. Bull's head (bucranium) between two seated figures drinking from two vessels through straws. YBC. 5447; dia. c. 2.5 cm. Possibly from Ur. Buchanan, studies Landsberger, 1965, p. 204; A seal impression was found on an inscribed tablet (called Yale tablet) dated to the tenth year of Gungunum, King of Larsa, in southern Babylonia--that is, 1923 B.C. according to the most commonly accepted ('middle') chronology of the period. The design in the impression closely matches that in a stamp seal found on the Failaka island in the Persian Gulf, west of the delta of the Shatt al Arab, which is formed by the confluence of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers. | Failaka seal. The Yale tablet is dated to ca. the second half of the twentieth century B.C.... Trade3 on the Persian gulf was in existence well before that time-- about 2350 B.C.-- when Sargon, the first Akkadian king referred to ships from or destined for Melukhkha, Magan and Tilmun (Dilmun) at his wharves. in the Third Dynasty of Ur (around 2000), when trade apparently was centred at Magan. It is even better documented on other tablets from Ur (from about 1900 and from about 1800), belonging to various kings of Larsa. At this time the trade was centered at Tilmun... Cuneiform inscriptions naming Inzak, the god of Tilmun, were found on Failaka and, a long time ago, one on Bahrein... Failaka can be equated with Tilmun, or at least was an important part of it. (Briggs Buchanan, A dated seal impression connecting Babylonia and ancient India, Archaeology, Vol. 20, No.2, 1967, pp. 104-107). |
 | Cylinder seal impression [elephant, rhinoceros and gharial (alligator) on the upper register] |
 Cylinder seal impression, Mesopotamia [Scene representing Gilgamesh and Ea-bani in conflict with bulls in a wooded and mountainous country; British Museum No. 89308] | Image parallels: Sign 232 m308 Seal |
 | Cylinder seal impression; scene representing mythological beings, bullls and lions in conflict (British Museum No. 89538). |
  | Mcmohan cylinder seal with six signs,found in 'Swat and Seistan', unrolled photographically and the unbroken stamp-end of the seal; positive impression of the cylinder showing Harappan inscriptions (Robert Knox, 1994, A new Indus Valley Cylinder Seal, pp. 375-378 in: South Asian Archaeology 1993, Vol. I,Helsinki)The triangle motif is similar to the motif shown on M-443B. Possible connection with Sibri cylinder seals (which show (i) a zebu and a lion and image of a scorpion on the flat end (Shah and Parpola 1991: 413); and (ii) a zebu bull with a geometric pattern of triangles and a circle at the stamp end). "The Seistan findspot of this seal is of great interest. Evidence exists for the movement of Indus commodities, and, therefore, Indus commercial activities in the direction of western Asia and, in return, from there to the Indus world.. Evidence for the Harappan penetration of Seistan and farther to southeastern Iran is scanty but includes at least one other Indus inscription from an impression of a sherd discovered at Tepe Yahya, period IV A (c. 2200 BC) (Lamberg- Karlovsky and Tosi 1973: pl. 137)" (Knox, p. 377). |
Seal published: The Elamite Cylinder seal corpus: c. 3500-1000 BCE miṇḍāl 'markhor' (Tōrwālī) meḍho a ram, a sheep (Gujarati)(
Hieroglyph on an Elamite cylinder seal (See illustration embedded)
Hieroglyph: stalk, thorny
S. kã̄ḍo ʻ thorny ʼ (CDIAL 3022).kāˊṇḍa (kāṇḍá -- TS.) m.n. ʻ single joint of a plant ʼ AV., ʻ arrow ʼ MBh., ʻ cluster, heap ʼ (in tr̥ṇa -- kāṇḍa -- Pāṇ. Kāś.). [Poss. connexion with gaṇḍa -- 2 makes prob. non -- Aryan origin (not with P. Tedesco Language 22, 190 < kr̥ntáti). Prob. ← Drav., cf. Tam. kaṇ ʻ joint of bamboo or sugarcane ʼ EWA i 197] Pa. kaṇḍa -- m.n. ʻ joint of stalk, stalk, arrow, lump ʼ; Pk. kaṁḍa -- , °aya -- m.n. ʻ knot of bough, bough, stick ʼ; Ash. kaṇ ʻ arrow ʼ, Kt. kåṇ, Wg. kāṇ, kŕãdotdot;, Pr.kə̃, Dm. kā̆n; Paš. lauṛ. kāṇḍ, kāṇ, ar. kōṇ, kuṛ. kō̃, dar. kã̄ṛ ʻ arrow ʼ, kã̄ṛī ʻ torch ʼ; Shum. kō̃ṛ, kō̃ ʻ arrow ʼ, Gaw. kāṇḍ, kāṇ; Kho. kan ʻ tree, large bush ʼ; Bshk. kāˋ'nʻ arrow ʼ, Tor. kan m., Sv. kã̄ṛa, Phal. kōṇ, Sh. gil. kōn f. (→ Ḍ. kōn, pl. kāna f.), pales. kōṇ; K. kã̄ḍ m. ʻ stalk of a reed, straw ʼ (kān m. ʻ arrow ʼ ← Sh.?); S. kānu m. ʻ arrow ʼ, °no m. ʻ reed ʼ, °nī f. ʻ topmost joint of the reed Sara, reed pen, stalk, straw, porcupine's quill ʼ; L. kānã̄ m. ʻ stalk of the reed Sara ʼ, °nī˜ f. ʻ pen, small spear ʼ; P. kānnā m. ʻ the reed Saccharum munja, reed in a weaver's warp ʼ, kānī f. ʻ arrow ʼ; WPah. bhal. kān n. ʻ arrow ʼ, jaun. kã̄ḍ; N. kã̄ṛ ʻ arrow ʼ, °ṛo ʻ rafter ʼ; A. kã̄r ʻ arrow ʼ; B. kã̄ṛ ʻ arrow ʼ, °ṛā ʻ oil vessel made of bamboo joint, needle of bamboo for netting ʼ, kẽṛiyā ʻ wooden or earthen vessel for oil &c. ʼ; Or. kāṇḍa, kã̄ṛ ʻ stalk, arrow ʼ; Bi. kã̄ṛā ʻ stem of muñja grass (used for thatching) ʼ; Mth. kã̄ṛ ʻ stack of stalks of large millet ʼ, kã̄ṛī ʻ wooden milkpail ʼ; Bhoj. kaṇḍā ʻ reeds ʼ; H. kã̄ṛī f. ʻ rafter, yoke ʼ, kaṇḍā m. ʻ reed, bush ʼ (← EP.?); G. kã̄ḍ m. ʻ joint, bough, arrow ʼ, °ḍũ n. ʻ wrist ʼ, °ḍī f. ʻ joint, bough, arrow, lucifer match ʼ; M. kã̄ḍ n. ʻ trunk, stem ʼ, °ḍẽ n. ʻ joint, knot, stem, straw ʼ, °ḍī f. ʻ joint of sugarcane, shoot of root (of ginger, &c.) ʼ; Si. kaḍaya ʻ arrow ʼ. -- Deriv. A. kāriyāiba ʻ to shoot with an arrow ʼ. [< IE. *kondo -- , Gk. kondu/lo s ʻ knuckle ʼ, ko/ndo s ʻ ankle ʼ T. Burrow BSOAS xxxviii 55] S.kcch. kāṇḍī f. ʻ lucifer match ʼ?(CDIAL 3023) *kāṇḍakara ʻ worker with reeds or arrows ʼ. [kāˊṇḍa -- , kará -- 1 ] L. kanērā m. ʻ mat -- maker ʼ; H. kãḍerā m. ʻ a caste of bow -- and arrow -- makers ʼ.(CDIAL 3024). 3026 kāˊṇḍīra ʻ armed with arrows ʼ Pāṇ., m. ʻ archer ʼ lex. [kāˊṇḍa -- ]H. kanīrā m. ʻ a caste (usu. of arrow -- makers) ʼ.(CDIAL 3026).
Barbar temple, Bahrain and Meluhha hieroglyphs
Copper ? Bull's head. c. 20 cm. high After Fig. 3 in: During Caspers, Elizabeth C.L., 1971, The bull's head from Barbar temple II, Bahrain, a contact with early dynastic Sumer, East and West, Vol. 21, No.3/4, September-December 1971, p.217. The curved style of the horns becomes a way of decorating the crowns of eminent persons on Sumerian, Elamite and Mesopotamian cylinder seals.
ḍhangra ‘bull’ Rebus: ṭhakkura m. ʻ idol, deity (cf. ḍhakkārī -- ), ʼ lex., ʻ title ʼ Rājat. [Dis- cussion with lit. by W. Wüst RM 3, 13 ff. Prob. orig. a tribal name EWA i 459, which Wüst considers nonAryan borrowing ofśākvará -- : very doubtful] Pk. ṭhakkura -- m. ʻ Rajput, chief man of a village ʼ; Kho. (Lor.) takur ʻ barber ʼ (= ṭ° ← Ind.?), Sh. ṭhăkŭr m.; K. ṭhôkur m. ʻ idol ʼ ( ← Ind.?); S. ṭhakuru m. ʻ fakir, term of address between fathers of a husband and wife ʼ; P. ṭhākar m. ʻ landholder ʼ, ludh. ṭhaukar m. ʻ lord ʼ; Ku. ṭhākur m. ʻ master, title of a Rajput ʼ; N. ṭhākur ʻ term of address from slave to master ʼ (f. ṭhakurāni), ṭhakuri ʻ a clan of Chetris ʼ (f. ṭhakurni); A.ṭhākur ʻ a Brahman ʼ, ṭhākurānī ʻ goddess ʼ; B. ṭhākurāni, ṭhākrān, °run ʻ honoured lady, goddess ʼ; Or. ṭhākura ʻ term of address to a Brahman, god, idol ʼ, ṭhākurāṇī ʻ goddess ʼ; Bi. ṭhākur ʻ barber ʼ; Mth.ṭhākur ʻ blacksmith ʼ; Bhoj. Aw.lakh. ṭhākur ʻ lord, master ʼ; H. ṭhākur m. ʻ master, landlord, god, idol ʼ, ṭhākurāin, ṭhā̆kurānī f. ʻ mistress, goddess ʼ; G. ṭhākor, °kar m. ʻ member of a clan of Rajputs ʼ, ṭhakrāṇī f. ʻ his wife ʼ, ṭhākor ʻ god, idol ʼ; M. ṭhākur m. ʻ jungle tribe in North Konkan, family priest, god, idol ʼ; Si. mald. "tacourou" ʻ title added to names of noblemen ʼ (HJ 915) prob. ← Ind.Garh. ṭhākur ʻ master ʼ; A. ṭhākur also ʻ idol ʼ AFD 205.(CDIAL 5488)
Seal, Bet Dwaraka 20 x 18 mm of conch shell. Drawing based on a seal from the Harappan port of Dwaraka (After Fig. 5.7 in: Crawford, Harriett EW, 1998, Dilmun and its Gulf neighbours, Cambridge University Press)
The artistic rendering with vivid eyes of the ligatured set of animals is typical Dilmun but the motif is from Meluhha as evidenced by many seals with a comparable ligatured set of animals.
m1169, m1170, m0298 Mohenjo-daro seals which compare with the Dwaraka shell seal of Dilmun type motifs.
Meluhha hieroglyphs read rebus:
sangaḍi = joined animals (M.) Rebus: sangāṭh संगाठ् । सामग्री m. (sg. dat. sangāṭas संगाटस् ), a collection (of implements, tools, materials, for any object), apparatus, furniture, a collection of the things wanted on a journey, Rebus: sãgaṛh m. ʻline of entrenchments, stone walls for defenceʼ; sangath संगथ् । संयोगः f. (sg. dat. sangüʦü संग&above;च&dotbelow;ू&below; ), association, living together, partnership (e.g. of beggars, rakes, members of a caravan, and so on); jangaḍ ‘entrusted articles on approval basis’. Allograph: sangath संगथ् (of a man or woman) copulation.
tagara 'ram, antelope' Rebus: tagara 'tin'; damgar, tamkāru 'merchant' (Akkadian)
ayo ‘fish’ (Mu.) Rebus: aya = iron (G.); ayah, ayas = metal (Skt.)
mr̤eka ‘goat’. Rebus: milakkhu ‘copper’ Rebus: meṛh ‘helper of merchant’.
kondh ‘young bull’. ‘Pannier’ glyph: खोंडी [ khōṇḍī ] f An outspread shovelform sack (as formed temporarily out of a कांबळा, to hold or fend off grain, chaff &c.) Rebus: kõdā ‘to turn in a lathe’ (Bengali) . कोंद kōnda‘engraver, lapidary setting or infixing gems’ (Marathi)
ḍhangra ‘bull’. Rebus: ḍhangar ‘blacksmith’.
kolom ‘sprout’ Rebus: kolami ‘smithy, forge’ (Telugu)
khareḍo = a currycomb (Gujarati) Rebus: करडा [karaḍā] Hard from alloy--iron, silver &c. (Marathi)
"Dilmun and the Harappans. The Harapan civilistion played a formative role in the emergence of Bahrain's mercantile tradition. The inhabitants of Bahrain adopted the Harappan weight system. Seven weights conforming to the Harappan series are known from Qala'at al-Bahrain, mainly in City IIa layers, with others found at Saar. The value of a Dilmun standard measure, calculated according to ratio given in an Isin Larsa text from Ur, was found to correspond exactly to a unit in the Harappan system. Harappan script and motifs are found on Persian Gulf seals which are associated with the 3rd milennium...At Saar a number of sherds comparable to Late Sorath Harappan and possibly Jhukar ware have been found...In Gujarat, a Dilmun seal was found at Lothal in unstratified deposits perhaps indicating the presence of Dilmun merchants at that site; a Dilmun-related seal has been reported from Dwarka...the role of the Harappans in the maritime trading system of the late 3rd millennium appears to have been very great." (Carter, Robert, 'Restructuring bronze age trade: Bahrain, southeast Arabia and the copper question, in: Crawford, Harriet, 2003, Archaeology of Bahrain, Proceedings of a seminar held on Monday 14th July 2000, BAR International Series 1189, pp.34, 42)
Unprovenanced Harappan-style cylinder seal impression; Museedu Louvre; cf. Corbiau, 1936, An Indo-Sumerian cylinder, Iraq 3, 100-3, p. 101, Fig.1; De ClercqColl.; burnt white agate; De Clercqand Menant, 1888, No. 26; Collon, 1987, Fig. 614. A hero grasping two tigers and a buffalo-and-leaf-horned person, seated on a stool with hoofed legs, surrounded by a snake and a fish on either side, a pair of water buffaloes. Another person stands and fights two tigers and is surrounded by trees, a markhorgoat and a vulture above a rhinoceros. Text 9905
Hieroglyphs on the cylinder seal impression are: buffalo, tiger, rice-plant, eagle, ram, hooded snake, fish pair, round object (circle), crucible, twigs as part of hair-style of the seated person.
kula 'hooded snake' Rebus: kol 'working in iron'; kolle 'blacksmith' kolhe 'smelter'
dula 'pair' Rebus: dul 'cast metal'
The bunch of twigs = kūdī,kūṭī (Samskritam)kūdī (also written as kūṭī in manuscripts) occurs in the Atharvaveda (AV 5.19.12) and KauśikaSūtra (Bloomsfield'sed.n, xliv. cf. Bloomsfield, American Journal of Philology, 11, 355; 12,416; Roth, Festgrussan Bohtlingk, 98) denotes it as a twig. This is identified as that of Badarī, the jujube tied to the body of the dead to efface their traces. (See Vedic Index, I, p. 177). Rebus: kuThi 'smelter'
Hieroglyph multiplexes of the hypertext of the cylinder seal from a Near Eastern Source can be identified: aquatic bird, rhinoceros, buffalo, buffalo horn, crucible, markhor, antelope, hoofed stool, fish, tree, tree branch, twig, roundish stone, tiger, rice plant.
Hieroglyph components on the head-gear of the person on cylinder seal impression are: twig, crucible, buffalo horns: kuThI 'badari ziziphus jojoba' twig Rebus: kuThi 'smelter'; koThAri 'crucible' Rebus: koThAri 'treasurer'; tattAru 'buffalo horn' Rebus: ṭhã̄ṭhāro 'brassworker'. This hieroglyph multiplex ligatures head of an antelope to a snake: nAga 'snake' Rebus: nAga 'lead' ranku 'antelope' Rebus: ranku 'tin'. tuttināgamu is a Prakritam gloss meaning 'pewter, zinc'. A comparable alloy may be indicated by the hieroglyph-multiplex of antelope-snake: rankunAga, perhaps a type of zinc or lead alloy.
Two fish hieroglyphs flank the hoofed legs of the stool or platform signify: warehouse of cast metal alloy metal implements:
Hieroglyph: kaṇḍō a stool Rebus: kanda 'implements'
Hieroglyph: maṇḍā 'raised platform, stool' Rebus: maṇḍā 'warehouse'.
dula 'pair' Rebus: dul 'cast metal'
ayo 'fish' Rebus: aya 'iron' (Gujarati) ayas 'metal' (Rigveda)
barad, barat 'ox' Rebus: भरत (p. 603) [ bharata ] n A factitious metal compounded of copper, pewter, tin &c.(Marathi).
This mkultiplx is flanked by 1. kolom 'rice plant' Rebus: kolimi 'smithy, forge'; 2. kuTi 'tree' Rebus: kuThi 'smeter'. Thus the message is that the warehouse of cast metal alloy metal implements is complemented by a smelter and a smithy/forge -- part of the metalwork repertoire.
The hieroglyph-multiplex of a woman thwarting two rearing tigers is also signified on other seals and tablets to signify:
Hieroglyph: kola 'woman' Rebus: kol 'working in iron'
dula 'pair' Rebus: dul 'cast metal' PLUS kola 'tiger' Rebus: kolle 'blacksmith'; kolhe 'smeter'; kole.l 'smithy, forge'. The kolmo 'rice-plant' Rebus kolimi 'smithy, forge' is a semantic determinant of the cipher: smithy with smelter.
The bottom register of the cylinder seal impression lists the products: smithy/forge forged iron, alloy castings (laterite PLUS spelter), hard alloy implements.
goTa 'roundish stone' Rebus: gota 'laterite'
dula 'pair' Rebus: dul 'cast metal' PLUS rã̄go 'buffalo' Rebus: rāṅgā 'zinc alloy, spelter, pewter'. Thus, cast spelter PLUS laterite.
markhor PLUS tail
miṇḍāl 'markhor' (Tōrwālī) meḍho a ram, a sheep (Gujarati)(CDIAL 10120) Rebus: mẽṛhẽt, meḍ 'iron' (Munda.Ho.) koṭe meṛed = forged iron, in contrast to dul meṛed, cast iron (Mundari) PLUS Kur. xolā tail. Malt. qoli id. (DEDR 2135) Rebus: kol 'working in iron' Ta. kol working in iron, blacksmith; kollaṉ blacksmith. Ma. kollan blacksmith, artificer. Ko. kole·l smithy, temple in Kota village.
Rhinoceros PLUS aquatic bird or eagle
Hieroglyhph: kāṇṭā 'rhinoceros. gaṇḍá m. ʻ rhinoceros ʼ Rebus: kāṇḍa 'tools, pots and pans and metal-ware' (Gujarati)
karaṛa 'large aquatic bird' (Sindhi) Rebus: karaḍā 'hardalloy of metals' (Marathi) Alternative: eruvai 'kite, eagle' Rebus: eruvai 'copper (red)'
Two water-buffalos flanks a hieroglyph: something round, like a seed. Hieroglyph: rã̄go 'buffalo' Rebus: rāṅgā 'zinc alloy, spelter, pewter'. What does the hieroglyph 'something round' signify? I suggest that it signifies goTa 'laterite (ferrous ore)'.
Persian Gulf seals, 2500-1800 B.C.E. At the British Museum, London.These seals were used in trade in the Persian Gulf. Most were button-shaped, some were cylindrical or differently shaped. The top left seal has an Indus script inscription.
Impression from a cylinder seal. urseal6 Cylinder seal; BM 122947; U. 16220 (cut down into Ur III mausolea from Larsa level; U. 16220), enstatite; Legrain, 1951, No. 632; Collon, 1987, Fig. 611. Humped bull stands before a plant, feeding from a round manger or a bundle of fodder (or, probably, a cactus); behind the bull is a scorpion and two snakes; above the whole a human figure, placed horizontally, with fantastically long arms and legs, and rays about his head.
Rebus reading of scorpion glyph: bicha ‘scorpion’ (Assamese) Rebus:bica ‘stone ore’ (Munda) pola ‘magnetite ore’ (Munda. Asuri); bichi 'scorpion'; 'hematite ore'; tagaraka 'tabernae montana'; tagara 'tin'; ranga 'thorny'; Rebus: pewter, alloy of tin and antimony; kankar., kankur. = very tall and thin, large hands and feet; kankar dare = a high tree with few branches (Santali) Rebus: kanka, kanaka = gold (Samskritam); kan = copper (Tamil) nAga 'snake' nAga 'lead' (Samskritam). पोलाद [ pōlāda ] n (पोलादी a Of steel. (Marathi) bulad 'steel, flint and steel for making fire' (Amharic); fUlAd 'steel' (Arabic)
Stamp seal and modern impression: quadruped
Period: Ubaid-Middle Gawra
Date: ca. 4500–3500 B.C.
Geography: Northern Syria or eastern Anatolia
Medium: Chlorite, black
Dimensions: Seal face: 3.16 x 2.96 cm
Height: .68 cm
String Hole: 0.4 cm
Height: .68 cm
String Hole: 0.4 cm
Classification: Stone-Stamp Seals
Stamp seal and modern impression: horned animal and bird
Period: Ubaid
Date: 6th–5th millennium B.C.
Geography: Syria or Anatolia
Medium: Steatite or chlorite
Dimensions: 0.2 x 0.8 x 0.84 in. (0.51 x 2.03 x 2.13 cm)
Classification: Stone-Stamp Seals
The Ubaid Period (5500–4000 B.C.)
In the period 5500–4000 B.C., much of Mesopotamia shared a common culture, called Ubaid after the site where evidence for it was first found. Characterized by a distinctive type of pottery, this culture originated on the flat alluvial plains of southern Mesopotamia (ancient Iraq) around 6200 B.C. Indeed, it was during this period that the first identifiable villages developed in the region, where people farmed the land using irrigation and fished the rivers and sea (Persian Gulf). Thick layers of alluvial silt deposited every spring by the flooding rivers cover many of these sites. Some villages began to develop into towns and became focused on monumental buildings, such as at Eridu and Uruk. The Ubaid culture spread north across Mesopotamia, gradually replacing the
. Ubaid pottery is also found to the south, along the west coast of the Persian Gulf, perhaps transported there by fishing expeditions. Baked clay figurines, mainly female, decorated with painted or appliqué ornament and lizardlike heads, have been found at a number of Ubaid sites. Simple clay tokens may have been used for the symbolic representation of commodities, and pendants and stamp seals may have had a similar symbolism, if not function. During this period, the repertory of seal designs expands to include snakes, birds, and animals with humans. There is much continuity between the Ubaid culture and the succeeding
, when many of the earlier traditions were elaborated, particularly in architecture.
http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/works-of-art/1984.175.13/
Gulf seal with bucranium (top center), anthropomorph (left), grid, and scorpion (right), as well as bird (Kjærum 1983: 37). karaṇḍa 'duck' (Sanskrit) karaṛa 'a very large aquatic bird' (Sindhi) Rebus: करडा [karaḍā] Hard from alloy--iron, silver &c. (Marathi) bicha 'scorpiion' rebus: bicha 'haematite ore' kaNDa 'divisions' rebus: kaNDa 'implements' muh 'face' rebus: muhA 'quantity of smelted metal taken out of a furnace';'ingot' kaNDa 'arrow' rebus: kaNDA 'implements' kanda 'fire-altar' meD 'body' rebus: meD 'iron' karNaka 'spread legs' rebus: karNI 'supercargo'.
Dilmun seals (35) and decipherment through Indus Script Cipher
I am grateful to Luca Peyronel for selecting the following Dilmun seals from out of hundreds from Failaka, Bahrain and other Persian Gulf sites and categorizing them on iconographic frames (i.e. with the types of hieroglyphs signified on the seals). Peyronel gleans meanings of sacredness and ritual offerings from adorants explaining the iconograhic motifs.
The procedure for gleaning semantics (i.e. decipherment) of the hierolyphs is to treat them as Indus Script Cipher of rebus-metonymy-Meluhha speech renderings of metalwork proclamations.
I, therefore, suggest -- an alternative semantic framework -- that all the 35 Dilmun seals are Indus Script hieroglyph-multiplexes which are technical descriptions for documentation or proclamation as metalwork catalogues.
Proto-Prakritam or Meluhha hieroglyphs and rebus-metonymy readings of the hieroglyph-multiplexes on the 35 Dilmun seals:
Some hieroglyphs which recur on Ancient Near seals and their Meluhha rebus readings:
bull-man, bull ḍangar 'bull' read rebus ḍhangar 'blacksmith'; ṭagara 'ram' Rebus: damgar 'merchant' (Akkadian) ṭhakkura, ‘idol’, ṭhākur ʻ blacksmith ʼ, ṭhākur m. ʻmaster’.ḍhangar ‘blacksmith’.
tiger kol 'tiger' Rebus: kol 'working in iron'
lion arye 'lion' āra 'brass'
aquatic bird karaḍa ‘aquatic bird, duck’ Rebus: karaḍa 'hard alloy'
eagle eraka 'eagle' Rebus: erako 'moltencast copper
buffalo கண்டி kaṇṭi , n. 1. Buffalo bull Rebus: Pk. gaḍa -- n. ʻlarge stoneʼ? (CDIAL 3969)
six hair-curls āra 'six curls' Rebus: āra 'brass'
face mũh ‘face’ Rebus: mũh ‘ingot’.
stag karuman 'stag' karmara 'artisan'
antelope melh 'goat' Rebus: milakkhu 'copper'
calf khoṇḍ 'young bull-calf' Rebus khuṇḍ '(metal) turner'.
scorpion bica ‘scorpion’ (Assamese) Rebus: bica ‘stone ore’
stalk daṭhi, daṭi 'stalks of certain plants' Rebus: dhatu ‘mineral.kāṇḍa काण्डः m. the stalk or stem of a reed. Rebus: kāṇḍa ‘tools, pots and pans and metal-ware’.
twig kūdī ‘twig’ Rebus: kuṭhi ‘smelter’
fish ayo 'fish' Rebus: ayo, ayas 'metal'.
overflowing pot lo ‘pot to overflow’ kāṇḍa ‘water’. Rebus: लोखंड lokhaṇḍ Iron tools, vessels, or articles in general.
spear మేడెము [ mēḍemu ] or మేడియము mēḍemu. [Tel.] n. A spear or dagger. Rebus: meḍ ‘iron’.
ring, bracelet kaḍum a bracelet, a ring (G.) Rebus: kaḍiyo [Hem. Des. kaḍaio = Skt. sthapati a mason] a bricklayer; a mason;
star मेढ [ mēḍha ] The polar star (Marathi). [cf.The eight-pointed star Rebus: meḍ 'iron' (Mundari. Remo.)
safflower karaḍa -- m. ʻsafflowerʼ Rebus: करडा [karaḍā] Hard from alloy--iron, silver &c. (Marathi)
twig kūdī ‘twig’ Rebus: kuṭhi ‘smelter’
frond (of palm), palm tamar, ‘palm tree, date palm’ Rebus: tam(b)ra, ‘copper’ (Prakrit)
tree kuṭhāru 'tree' Rebus: kuṭhāru ‘armourer or weapons maker’(metal-worker)
ram, ibex, markhor 1. ram मेंढा [ mēṇḍhā ] m (मेष S through H) A male sheep, a ram or tup.(Marathi) meḍ 'iron' (Mundari. Remo.)
goat melh 'goat' Rebus: milakkhu 'copper'
knot (twist) meḍ, ‘knot, Rebus: 'iron’
reed, scarf dhaṭu m. (also dhaṭhu) m. ‘scarf’ (WPah.) (CDIAL 6707) Rebus: dhatu ‘minerals’ (Santali); dhātu ‘mineral’ (Pali) kāṇḍa काण्डः m. stem of a reed. Rebus: kāṇḍa ‘tools, pots and pans and metal-ware’
mountain डोंगर [ ḍōṅgara ] m A hill. डोंगरकणगर or डोंगरकंगर [ ḍōṅgarakaṇagara or ḍōṅgarakaṅgara ] m (डोंगर & कणगर form of redup.) Hill and mountain; hills comprehensively or indefinitely. डोंगरकोळी [ ḍōṅgarakōḷī ] m A caste of hill people or an individual of it. (Marathi) ḍāngā = hill, dry upland (B.); ḍã̄g mountain-ridge (H.)(CDIAL 5476). Rebus: dhangar ‘blacksmith’ (Maithili) dhokra 'cire perdue metallurgist'
wing eraka 'wing' eṟaka, ṟekka, rekka, neṟaka, neṟi ‘wing’ (Telugu)(DEDR 2591). Rebus: erako 'moltencast copper'.
snake nāga 'snake' nāga 'lead'
frame of building sã̄gāḍā m. ʻ frame of a building ʼ (M.)(CDIAL 12859) Rebus: sangāṭh संगाठ् । सामग्री m. (sg. dat. sangāṭas संगाटस्), a collection (of implements, tools, materials, for any object), apparatus, furniture, a collection of the things wanted on a journey, luggage (Kashmiri) jangaḍ 'entrustment note' (Gujarati)
monkey kuṭhāru = a monkey (Sanskrit) Rebus: kuṭhāru ‘armourer or weapons maker’(metal-worker), also an inscriber or writer.
kick kolsa 'to kick' Rebus: kol working in iron, blacksmith
foot . khuṭo ʻ leg, foot ʼ Rebus: khũṭ ‘community, guild’ (Santali)
copulation (mating) kamḍa, khamḍa 'copulation' (Santali) Rebus: kampaṭṭa ‘mint, coiner’
adultery ṛanku, ranku = fornication, adultery (Telugu) ranku 'tin'
koṭe meṛed = forged iron, in contrast to dul meṛed, cast iron (Mundari)
meṭ sole of foot, footstep, footprint (Ko.); meṭṭu step, stair, treading, slipper (Te.)(DEDR 1557). dula ‘pair’.
Rebus: dul 'metal casting'
Rebus: meḍ ‘iron’ (Ho.) dul meṛed, cast iron (Mu.) mẽṛhẽt baṭi = iron (Ore) furnaces (Santali).A. bhaṭā ʻ brick -- or lime -- kiln ʼ; B. bhāṭi ʻ kiln ʼ; Or. bhāṭi ʻ brick -- kiln, distilling pot ʼ; Mth. bhaṭhī, bhaṭṭī ʻ brick -- kiln, furnace, still ʼ; Aw.lakh. bhāṭhā ʻ kiln ʼ; H. bhaṭṭhā m. ʻ kiln ʼ, bhaṭ f. ʻ kiln, oven, fireplace ʼ; M. bhaṭṭā m. ʻ pot of fire ʼ, bhaṭṭī f. ʻ forge ʼ. -- X bhástrā -- q.v. S.kcch. bhaṭṭhī keṇī ʻ distil (spirits) ʼ.(CDIAL 9656).
Hieroglyph: sãgaḍ f. ʻa body formed of two or more fruits or animals or men &c. linked together' (Marathi). sãghāṛɔ (Gujarati) 'joined animal or animal parts, linked together' Rebus: sangara 'proclamation'.
Hieroglyph: dula 'pair' Rebus: dul 'cast metal'
Hieroglyphs:
1. kolom 'three'
2. Hieroglyph: kolmo 'rice plant' Rebus: kolimi 'smithy, forge'.
Hieroglyph: 'human face': mũhe ‘face’ (Santali) Rebus: mũh opening or hole (in a stove for stoking (Bi.); ingot (Santali) mũh metal ingot (Santali) mũhã̄ = the quantity of iron produced at one time in a native smelting furnace of the Kolhes; iron produced by the Kolhes and formed like a four-cornered piece a little pointed at each end; mūhā mẽṛhẽt = iron smelted by the Kolhes and formed into an equilateral lump a little pointed at each of four ends; kolhe tehen mẽṛhẽt ko mūhā akata = the Kolhes have to-day produced pig iron (Santali) kaula mengro ‘blacksmith’ (Gypsy) mleccha-mukha (Skt.) = milakkhu ‘copper’ (Pali) The Samskritam gloss mleccha-mukha should literally mean: copper-ingot absorbing the Santali gloss, mũh, as a suffix.
Hieroglyph: करडूं or करडें [karaḍū or ṅkaraḍēṃ ] n A kid. Rebus: karaḍa 'hard alloy of metal (Marathi) Allograph: करण्ड m. a sort of duck L. కారండవము (p. 0274) [ kāraṇḍavamu ] kāraṇḍavamu. [Skt.] n. A sort of duck. (Telugu) karaṭa1 m. ʻ crow ʼ BhP., °aka -- m. lex. [Cf. karaṭu -- , karkaṭu -- m. ʻ Numidian crane ʼ, karēṭu -- , °ēṭavya -- , °ēḍuka -- m. lex., karaṇḍa2 -- m. ʻ duck ʼ lex: see kāraṇḍava -- ]Pk. karaḍa -- m. ʻ crow ʼ, °ḍā -- f. ʻ a partic. kind of bird ʼ; S. karaṛa -- ḍhī˜gu m. ʻ a very large aquatic bird ʼ; L. karṛā m., °ṛī f. ʻ the common teal ʼ.(CDIAL 2787)
koḍ `horn' (Kuwi) Rebus: koḍ `artisan's workshop' (Gujarati).
कुठारु [p= 289,1] kuṭhāru monkey (Samskritam) Rebus: armourer (Samskritam)
koṭhāri 'crucible' Rebus: koṭhāri 'treasurer' (If the hieroglyph on the leftmost is moon, a possible rebus reading: قمر ḳamar A قمر ḳamar, s.m. (9th) The moon. Sing. and Pl. See سپوږمي or سپوګمي (Pashto) Rebus: kamar 'blacksmith' )
Hieroglyph: arka ‘sun’; agasāle ‘goldsmithy’ (Ka.) erka = ekke (Tbh. of arka) aka (Tbh. of arka) copper (metal); crystal (Ka.lex.) cf. eruvai = copper (Ta.lex.) eraka, er-aka = any metal infusion (Ka.Tu.); erako molten cast (Tulu) Rebus: eraka = copper (Ka.) eruvai = copper (Tamil); ere - a dark-red colour (Ka.)(DEDR 817). eraka, era, er-a = syn. erka, copper, weapons (Kannada)
Hierolyphs:
1. kuDi 'to drink'
2. kuTi 'tree' Rebus: kuThi '
Hieroglyphs:
1. gaṇḍa 'four'
2. కాండము [ kāṇḍamu ] kānḍamu. [Skt.] n. Water. నీళ్లు (Telugu) kaṇṭhá -- : (b) ʻ water -- channel ʼ
3. khaṇḍ 'field,division' (Samskritam) Rebus 1: kaṇḍ 'fire-altar' (Santali) Rebus 2: khaṇḍa 'metal implements' lokhãḍ, kāṇḍa ‘flowing water’‘overflowing pot’ Rebus: lokhãḍ, kāṇḍā ‘metalware, tools, pots and pans’(Gujarati)
kole.l 'temple' Rebus: kole.l 'smithy' (Kota)
kāṅga 'comb' Rebus: kanga 'brazier, fireplace' (Kashmiri)
Hieroglyphs:
1. kula '
2. kur.i 'woman'
3. kola ‘tiger’ (Telugu); kola ‘tiger, jackal’ (Kon.). Rebus: kol ‘working in iron’ (Tamil) kolhe 'smelter'
mē̃ḍh 'antelope, ram'; rebus: mē̃ḍ 'iron' (Mu.)
క్రమ్మర krammara. adv. క్రమ్మరిల్లు or క్రమరబడు Same as క్రమ్మరు 'look back' (Telugu). Rebus: krəm backʼ(Kho.)(CDIAL 3145) Rebus: kamar 'artisan, smith'
pattar 'trough' Rebus: pattar 'guild, goldsmith'.
ḍhangar ‘bull’ Rebus: dhangar ‘blacksmith’ (Maithili) ḍangar ‘blacksmith’ (Hindi)
balad m. ʻox ʼ, gng. bald, (Ku.) barad, id. (Nepali. Tarai) Rebus: bharat (5 copper, 4 zinc and 1 tin)(Punjabi) pattar ‘trough’ Rebus: pattar ‘guild, goldsmith’. Thus, copper-zinc-tin alloy (worker) guild. Rebus: bharata 'alloy of copper, pewter, tin' (Marathi) bhāraṇ = to bring out from a kiln (G.) bāraṇiyo = one whose profession it is to sift ashes or dust in a goldsmith’s workshop (G.lex.) In the Punjab, the mixed alloys were generally called, bharat (5 copper, 4 zinc and 1 tin). In Bengal, an alloy called bharan or toul was created by adding some brass or zinc into pure bronze. bharata = casting metals in moulds; bharavum = to fill in; to put in; to pour into (G.lex.) Bengali. ভরন [ bharana ] n an inferior metal obtained from an alloy of coper, zinc and tin. baran, bharat ‘mixed alloys’ (5 copper, 4 zinc and 1 tin) (Punjabi)
Hieroglyph: ‘hoof’: Kumaon. khuṭo ʻleg, footʼ, °ṭī ʻgoat's legʼ; Nepalese. khuṭo ʻleg, footʼ(CDIAL 3894). S. khuṛī f. ʻheelʼ; WPah. paṅ. khūṛ ʻfootʼ. (CDIAL 3906). Rebus: khũṭ ‘community, guild’ (Santali)
Kur. kaṇḍō a stool. Malt. kanḍo stool, seat. (DEDR 1179) Rebus: kaṇḍ ‘fire-altar, furnace’ (Santali) kāṇḍa ’stone ore’. kāṇḍa 'tools, pots and pans
‘scarf’ hieroglyph: dhaṭu m. (also dhaṭhu) m. ‘scarf’ (Wpah.) (CDIAL 6707) Rebus: dhatu ‘minerals’ (Santali)
Seated person seated on a stool, with a tiara of a set of curved horns (sometimes with double crown as in al-Sindi 1994: no. 19; Kjærum 1983: no. 185 shown below). A pigtail hangs over the seated person's shoulders. Other hieroglyphs are: drinking through tubes from jar, bull -- sometimes paired, antelope (kid) -- sometimes paired, standard (portable brazier).
al-Sindi 1994: no. 17 barad, balad 'ox' rebus: bharat 'alloy of pewter, copper, tin' kaNDa 'water' rebus: kaNDa 'implements'
al-Sindi 1994: no. 18 meD 'foot' rebus: meD 'iron' med 'copper' (Slavic) barad, balad' ox' rebus: bharat 'alloy of pewter, copper, tin'
al-Sindi 1994: no. 19 barad, balad' ox' rebus: bharat 'alloy of pewter, copper, tin'
kaNDa 'water' rebus: kaNDa 'implements' meDha 'polar star' rebus: meD 'iron' med 'copper' (Slavic)
Kjærum 1983: no. 185
Kjærum 1983: no. 186
al-Sindi 1994: no. 23 kolmo 'rice plant' rebus: kolimi 'smithy, forge' barad, balad 'ox' rebus: bharat 'alloy of pewter, copper, tin'
al-Sindi 1994: no. 24
al-Sindi 1994: no. 57 bichi 'scorpion' rebus: bichi 'haematite ore'
Kjærum 1983: no. 212 [ karaḍū or ṅkaraḍēṃ ] n A kid. कराडूं (p. 137) [ karāḍūṃ ] n (Commonly करडूं ) Akid. (Marathi) Rebus: करडा (p. 137) [ karaḍā ] 'hard alloy' (Marathi)
Kjærum 1983: no. 81 [ karaḍū or ṅkaraḍēṃ ] n A kid. कराडूं (p. 137) [ karāḍūṃ ] n (Commonly करडूं ) Akid. (Marathi) Rebus: करडा (p. 137) [ karaḍā ] 'hard alloy' (Marathi) dula 'pair' rebus: dul 'metal casting'
Kjærum 1983: no. 274 [ karaḍū or ṅkaraḍēṃ ] n A kid. कराडूं (p. 137) [ karāḍūṃ ] n (Commonly करडूं ) Akid. (Marathi) Rebus: करडा (p. 137) [ karaḍā ] 'hard alloy' (Marathi) barad, balad 'ox' rebus: bharat 'alloy of pewter, copper, tin'
Dotted circles and three lines on the obverse of many Failaka/Dilmun seals are read rebus as hieroglyphs:
dhAv 'strand' rebus: dhAv 'dhAtu, mineral' tri-dhAtu 'three strands' rebus: 'three minerals'
A (गोटा) gōṭā Spherical or spheroidal, pebble-form. (Marathi) Rebus 1: khoṭā ʻalloyedʼ (metal) (Marathi) खोट [khōṭa] f A mass of metal (unwrought or of old metal melted down); an ingot or wedge (Marathi). P. khoṭ m. ʻalloyʼ (CDIAL 3931) Rebus 2: goTa 'laterite ore'
kolom ‘three’ (Mu.) Rebus: kolami ‘furnace, smithy’ (Telugu)
Thus, the seals are intended to serve as metalware catalogs from the smithy/forge. Details of the alloyed metalware are provided by the hieroglyphs of Indus writing on the reverse of the seal.
Composition of two horned animals, sitting human playing a four-string musical instrument, a star and a moon.
The rebus reading of hieroglyphs are: తంబుర [tambura] orతంబురా tambura. [Tel. తంతి +బుర్ర .] n. A kind of stringed instrument like the guitar. A tambourine. Rebus: tam(b)ra 'copper' tambabica, copper-ore stones; samṛobica, stones containing gold (Mundari.lex.) tagara 'antelope'. Rebus 1: tagara 'tin' (ore) tagromi 'tin, metal alloy' (Kuwi) Rebus 2: damgar 'merchant'.
Thus the seal connotes a merchant of tin and copper.
Inventory No. 8480. A seal from Dilmun, A seal from Dilmun, made of soft stone, classified as the 3rd largest seal in Failaka Island, decorated with human and zoomorphic figures. 0.16 X 4.8 cm. Site: the Ruler's Palace. 2nd millennium BCE, Dilmun civilization [NOTE: Many such seals of Failaka and Dilmun have been read rebus as Indus writing on blogposts.]
Hieroglyphs on this Dilmun seal are: star, tabernae montana flower, cock, two divided squares, two bulls, antelope, sprout (paddy plant), drinking (straw), stool, twig or tree branch. A person with upraised arm in front of the antelope. All these hieroglyphs are read rebus using lexemes (Meluhha, Mleccha) of Indiansprachbund.
meḍha ‘polar star’ (Marathi). Rebus: meḍ ‘iron’ (Ho.Mu.)
ṭagara (tagara) fragrant wood (Pkt.Skt.).tagara 'antelope'. Rebus 1: tagara 'tin' (ore) tagromi 'tin, metal alloy' (Kuwi) Rebus 2: damgar 'merchant'
kuṭi (-pp-, -tt-) to drink, inhale. Rebus: kuṭhi ‘smelting furnace’ (Santali)
ḍangar ‘bull’; rebus: ḍangar ‘blacksmith’ (Hindi) dula 'pair' (Kashmiri). Rebus: dul 'cast metal' (Santali) Thus, a pair of bulls connote 'cast metal blacksmith'.
khaṇḍ ‘field, division’ (Skt.) Rebus 1: Ga. (Oll.) kanḍ, (S.) kanḍu (pl. kanḍkil) stone (ore). Rebus 2: kaṇḍ 'fire-altar' (Santali) Thus, the two divided squares connote furnace for stone (ore).
kolmo ‘paddy plant’ (Santali) Rebus: kolami ‘furnace, smithy’ (Telugu)
Kur. kaṇḍō a stool. Rebus: kaṇḍ 'fire-altar' (Santali)
Tu. aḍaru twig. Rebus: aduru 'native (unsmelted) metal' (Kannada) Alternative reading: కండె [kaṇḍe] kaṇḍe. [Tel.] n. A head or ear of millet or maize. Rebus 1: kaṇḍ 'fire-altar' (Santali) Rebus 2: khānḍa ‘tools, pots and pans, metal-ware’.
eraka ‘upraised arm’ (Te.); eraka ‘copper’ (Te.)
Thus, the Dilmun seal is a metalware catalog of damgar 'merchant' dealing with copper and tin.
The two divided squares attached to the straws of two vases in the following seal can also be read as hieroglyphs:
khaṇḍ ‘field, division’ (Skt.) Rebus 1: Ga. (Oll.) kanḍ, (S.) kanḍu (pl. kanḍkil) stone (ore). Rebus 2: kaṇḍ 'fire-altar' (Santali) Thus, the two divided squares connote furnace for stone (ore).
kuṭi (-pp-, -tt-) to drink, inhale. Rebus: kuṭhi ‘smelting furnace’ (Santali)
ḍangā = small country boat, dug-out canoe (Or.); ḍõgā trough, canoe, ladle (H.)(CDIAL 5568). Rebus: ḍānro term of contempt for a blacksmith (N.); ḍangar (H.) (CDIAL 5524)
Thus, a smelting furnace for stone (ore) is connoted by the seal of a blacksmith, ḍangar :
Similar readings are suggested for all hieroglyphs on Failaka seals treating them as evidences of Indus writing in ancient Near East. The suggested rebus readings for specific hieroglyphs of Failaka seals (akin to Dilmun seal readings) are listed in the following section.
Note:
What is shown like the phase of a moon may not denote a moon but the shape of a bun-ingot. ḍabu ‘an iron spoon’ (Santali) Rebus: ḍab, ḍhimba, ḍhompo ‘lump (ingot?)’. Alternative reading: mū̃h 'ingot'. Read together with the polar star, the rebus reading is: meḍ mū̃h 'iron ingot'. [meḍha ‘polar star’ (Marathi). meḍ ‘iron’ (Ho.Mu.)] The antelope + divided square is read rebus: eraka tagara kaṇḍ 'tin furnace' (merchant, damgar). The upraised arm indicates eraka 'copper': eraka ‘upraised arm’ (Telugu); eraka ‘copper’ (Telugu) Thus, the seal denotes a merchant dealing in iron, tin and copper ingots.
Rebus readings of hieroglyphs on Failaka seals (akin to Dilmun seal readings):
తంబుర [tambura] orతంబురా tambura. [Tel. తంతి +బుర్ర .] n. A kind of stringed instrument like the guitar. A tambourine. Rebus: tam(b)ra 'copper' tambabica, copper-ore stones; samṛobica, stones containing gold (Mundari.lex.)
Skt. kuṭī- intoxicating liquor. Ta. kuṭi (-pp-, -tt-) to drink, inhale; n. drinking, beverage (DEDR 1654). Rebus: kuṭhi‘smelting furnace’.
meḍha ‘polar star’ (Marathi). meḍ ‘iron’ (Ho.Mu.) Allograph: meḍh ‘ram’.
mūxā ‘frog’. Rebus: mũh ‘(copper) ingot’ (Santali) mũhã̄ = the quantity of iron produced at one time in a native smelting furnace of the Kolhes; iron produced by the Kolhes and formed like a four-cornered piece a little pointed at each end (Santali) Allographs: mũhe ‘face’ (Santali) मोख [ mōkha ] . Add:--3 Sprout or shoot. (Marathi) Kuwi (Su.) mṛogla shoot of bamboo; (P.) moko sprout (DEDR 4997) Tu. mugiyuni to close, contract, shut up; muguru sprout, shoot, bud; tender, delicate; muguruni, mukuruni to bud, sprout; muggè, moggè flower-bud, germ; (BRR; Bhattacharya, non-brahmin informant) mukkè bud. Kor. (O.) mūke flower-bud. (DEDR 4893)
ḍato ‘claws or pincers (chelae) of crabs’; ḍaṭom, ḍiṭom to seize with the claws or pincers, as crabs, scorpions; ḍaṭkop = to pinch, nip (only of crabs) (Santali) Rebus: dhātu ‘mineral’ (Vedic); dhatu ‘a mineral, metal’ (Santali)
Stamp seal from Al-Khidr.
Designs of stamp seals from Al-Khidr are composed of characteristic Early Dilmun stamp seal motifs. This stamp seal depicts human and half-human-half-animal horned figures, monkeys, serpents and birds on either side of a central motif of a standard and a podium at the bottom (drawing of stamp seal impression).
On the obverse of Dilmun seals from Al-Khidr are depicted human or divine figures, half human-half animal creatures, animal figures (such as gazelles, bulls, scorpions, and snakes), celestial bodies (star or sun and moon), sometimes drinking scenes and also other activities (playing musical instruments). Composition of these motifs varies from formal (with ordering the figures and symbols to clear scenes) to chaotic.
koThAri 'crucible' Rebus: koThAri 'treasurer, warehouse' . मेढ (p. 662) [ mēḍha ] 'polar' star' Rebus: mẽṛhẽt, meḍ 'iron' (Ho.Munda) dula 'pair' rebus: dul 'metal casting' meD 'body' rebus:meD 'iron' Dhangar 'bull' rebus: Dhangar 'blacksmith'
Seals with rotating designs usually bear pure plant, animal or geometric motifs. karaDi 'safflower' Rebus: karaDa 'hard alloy' (Marathi) kaNDa 'divisions' rebus: kaNDa 'implements'.
dhAv 'strand' rebus: dhAv 'dhAtu, mineral' tri-dhAtu 'three strands' rebus: 'three minerals'A (गोटा) gōṭā Spherical or spheroidal, pebble-form. (Marathi) Rebus 1: khoṭā ʻalloyedʼ (metal) (Marathi) खोट [khōṭa] f A mass of metal (unwrought or of old metal melted down); an ingot or wedge (Marathi). P. khoṭ m. ʻalloyʼ (CDIAL 3931) Rebus 2: goTa 'laterite ore'
kolom ‘three’ (Mu.) Rebus: kolami ‘furnace, smithy’ (Telugu)
Thus, the seals are intended to serve as metalware catalogs from the smithy/forge. Details of the alloyed metalware are provided by the hieroglyphs of Indus writing on the reverse of the seal.
Composition of two horned animals, sitting human playing a four-string musical instrument, a star and a moon.The rebus reading of hieroglyphs are: తంబుర [tambura] or
Thus the seal connotes a merchant of tin and copper.
Inventory No. 8480. A seal from Dilmun, A seal from Dilmun, made of soft stone, classified as the 3rd largest seal in Failaka Island, decorated with human and zoomorphic figures. 0.16 X 4.8 cm. Site: the Ruler's Palace. 2nd millennium BCE, Dilmun civilization [NOTE: Many such seals of Failaka and Dilmun have been read rebus as Indus writing on blogposts.]Hieroglyphs on this Dilmun seal are: star, tabernae montana flower, cock, two divided squares, two bulls, antelope, sprout (paddy plant), drinking (straw), stool, twig or tree branch. A person with upraised arm in front of the antelope. All these hieroglyphs are read rebus using lexemes (Meluhha, Mleccha) of Indiansprachbund.
meḍha ‘polar star’ (Marathi). Rebus: meḍ ‘iron’ (Ho.Mu.)
ṭagara (tagara) fragrant wood (Pkt.Skt.).tagara 'antelope'. Rebus 1: tagara 'tin' (ore) tagromi 'tin, metal alloy' (Kuwi) Rebus 2: damgar 'merchant'
kuṭi (-pp-, -tt-) to drink, inhale. Rebus: kuṭhi ‘smelting furnace’ (Santali)
ḍangar ‘bull’; rebus: ḍangar ‘blacksmith’ (Hindi) dula 'pair' (Kashmiri). Rebus: dul 'cast metal' (Santali) Thus, a pair of bulls connote 'cast metal blacksmith'.
khaṇḍ ‘field, division’ (Skt.) Rebus 1: Ga. (Oll.) kanḍ, (S.) kanḍu (pl. kanḍkil) stone (ore). Rebus 2: kaṇḍ 'fire-altar' (Santali) Thus, the two divided squares connote furnace for stone (ore).
kolmo ‘paddy plant’ (Santali) Rebus: kolami ‘furnace, smithy’ (Telugu)
Kur. kaṇḍō a stool. Rebus: kaṇḍ 'fire-altar' (Santali)
Tu. aḍaru twig. Rebus: aduru 'native (unsmelted) metal' (Kannada) Alternative reading: కండె [kaṇḍe] kaṇḍe. [Tel.] n. A head or ear of millet or maize. Rebus 1: kaṇḍ 'fire-altar' (Santali) Rebus 2: khānḍa ‘tools, pots and pans, metal-ware’.
eraka ‘upraised arm’ (Te.); eraka ‘copper’ (Te.)
Thus, the Dilmun seal is a metalware catalog of damgar 'merchant' dealing with copper and tin.
The two divided squares attached to the straws of two vases in the following seal can also be read as hieroglyphs:
khaṇḍ ‘field, division’ (Skt.) Rebus 1: Ga. (Oll.) kanḍ, (S.) kanḍu (pl. kanḍkil) stone (ore). Rebus 2: kaṇḍ 'fire-altar' (Santali) Thus, the two divided squares connote furnace for stone (ore).
kuṭi (-pp-, -tt-) to drink, inhale. Rebus: kuṭhi ‘smelting furnace’ (Santali)
ḍangā = small country boat, dug-out canoe (Or.); ḍõgā trough, canoe, ladle (H.)(CDIAL 5568). Rebus: ḍānro term of contempt for a blacksmith (N.); ḍangar (H.) (CDIAL 5524)
Thus, a smelting furnace for stone (ore) is connoted by the seal of a blacksmith, ḍangar :
Stamp seal with a boat scene. Steatite. L. 2 cm. Gulf regio, Failaka, F6 758. Early Dilmun, ca. 2000-1800 BCE. Ntional Council for Culture, Arts and Letters, Kuwait National Museum, 1129 ADY. The subject is a nude male figure standing in the middle of a flat-bottomed boat, facing right. The man's arms are bent at the elbow, perpendicular to his torso. Beside him are two jars stand on the deck of the boat, each containing a long pole to which is attached a hatched square that perhaps represents a banner. Six square stamp seals from Failaka have been published...It is unlikely that the hatched squares represent sails, since the poles to which they are attached emerge from vases. The two diagonal lines on the body of the boat may represent the reed bundles from which these craft were buit. See Kjærum 1983, seal nos. 192, 234, 254, 266, 335, 367. Source: Source: Joan Aruz et al., 2003, Art of the First cities: the third millennium BCE from the Mediterranean to the Indus, New York, Metropolitan Museum of Art (Pages 320, 322).See also: http://ancientworldonline.blogspot.in/2012/10/kuwaiti-slovak-archaeological-mission.html
Similar readings are suggested for all hieroglyphs on Failaka seals treating them as evidences of Indus writing in ancient Near East. The suggested rebus readings for specific hieroglyphs of Failaka seals (akin to Dilmun seal readings) are listed in the following section.
Note:
Rebus readings of hieroglyphs on Failaka seals (akin to Dilmun seal readings):
తంబుర [tambura] or
kolmo ‘paddy plant’ (Santali); kolom = cutting, graft; to graft, engraft, prune; kolma hoṛo = a variety of the paddy plant (Desi)(Santali.) kolom ‘three’ (Mu.) Rebus: kolami ‘furnace, smithy’ (Telugu)
khaṇḍ ‘field, division’ (Skt.) Rebus: Ga. (Oll.) kanḍ, (S.) kanḍu (pl. kanḍkil) stone (DEDR 1298). खडा (Marathi) is ‘metal, nodule, stone, lump’. kaṇi ‘stone’ (Kannada) with Tadbhava khaḍu. khaḍu, kaṇ ‘stone/nodule (metal)’. Rebus: khaṇḍaran, khaṇḍrun ‘pit furnace’ (Santali) kaṇḍ ‘furnace’ (Skt.) लोहकारकन्दुः f. a blacksmith's smelting furnace (Grierson Kashmiri lex.) [khaṇḍa] A piece, bit, fragment, portion.(Marathi) Rebus: khānḍa ‘tools, pots and pans, metal-ware’.
Allographs: Kur. kaṇḍō a stool. Malt. kanḍo stool, seat. (DEDR 1179) खंड [ khaṇḍa ] A piece, bit, fragment, portion.(Marathi) khaṇḍ ‘ivory’ (H.) jaṇḍ khaṇḍ = ivory (Jaṭkī) khaṇḍ ī = ivory in rough (Jaṭkī) kandhi = a lump, a piece (Santali.lex.) kandi (pl. -l) beads, necklace (Pa.); kanti (pl. -l) bead, (pl.) necklace; kandit. bead (Ga.)(DEDR 1215).
Ta. kaṇ eye, aperture, orifice, star of a peacock's tail. (DEDR 1159a) Rebus ‘brazier, bell-metal worker’: கன்னான் kaṉṉāṉ , n. < கன்¹. [M. kannān.] Brazier, bell-metal worker, one of the divisions of the Kammāḷa caste; செம்புகொட்டி. (திவா.) కండె [ kaṇḍe ] kaṇḍe. [Tel.] n. A head or ear of millet or maize. జొన్నకంకి (Telugu) kã̄ṛ ʻstack of stalks of large milletʼ(Maithili) kã̄ḍ 2 काँड् m. a section, part in general; a cluster, bundle, multitude (Śiv. 32). kã̄ḍ 1 काँड् । काण्डः m. the stalk or stem of a reed, grass, or the like, straw. In the compound with dan 5 (p. 221a, l. 13) the word is spelt kāḍ.
Ka. (Hav.) aḍaru twig; (Bark.) aḍïrï small and thin branch of a tree; (Gowda) aḍəri small branches. Tu. aḍaru twig.(DEDR 67) Rebus: aduru gan.iyinda tegadu karagade iruva aduru = ore taken from the mine and not subjected to melting in a furnace (Ka. Siddhānti Subrahmaṇya’ Śastri’s new interpretation of the AmarakoŚa, Bangalore, Vicaradarpana Press, 1872, p.330).
Ka. (Hav.) aḍaru twig; (Bark.) aḍïrï small and thin branch of a tree; (Gowda) aḍəri small branches. Tu. aḍaru twig.(DEDR 67) Rebus: aduru gan.iyinda tegadu karagade iruva aduru = ore taken from the mine and not subjected to melting in a furnace (Ka. Siddhānti Subrahmaṇya’ Śastri’s new interpretation of the AmarakoŚa, Bangalore, Vicaradarpana Press, 1872, p.330).
satthiya ‘svastika glyph’; rebus: satthiya ‘pewter’.
Skt. kuṭī- intoxicating liquor. (DEDR 1654) Ta. kuṭi (-pp-, -tt-) to drink, inhale; n. drinking, beverage,drunkenness; kuṭiyaṉ drunkard. Rebus: kuṭi= smelter furnace (Santali)
gaṇḍ 'four'. kaṇḍ 'bit'. Rebus: kaṇḍ 'fire-altar'. kolmo 'three'. Rebus: kolami 'smithy, forge'.
tagara 'antelope'; rebus 1: tagara 'tin'; rebus 2: tamkāru, damgar 'merchant' (Akkadian)
The bamboo-shoot is tã̄bā read rebus: tamba 'copper'.
tagara 'antelope'; rebus 1: tagara 'tin'; rebus 2: tamkāru, damgar 'merchant' (Akkadian)
The bamboo-shoot is tã̄bā read rebus: tamba 'copper'.
B. Or. bichā 'scorpion', Mth. bīch (CDIAL 12081) Rebus: meṛed-bica = iron stone ore, in contrast to bali-bica, iron sand ore (Mu.lex.)
kamḍa, khamḍa 'copulation' (Santali) Rebus:kaṇḍ ‘furnace, fire altar, consecrated fire’.
mūxā ‘frog’. Rebus: mũh ‘(copper) ingot’ (Santali) mũhã̄ = the quantity of iron produced at one time in a native smelting furnace of the Kolhes; iron produced by the Kolhes and formed like a four-cornered piece a little pointed at each end (Santali) Allographs: mũhe ‘face’ (Santali) मोख [ mōkha ] . Add:--3 Sprout or shoot. (Marathi) Kuwi (Su.) mṛogla shoot of bamboo; (P.) moko sprout (DEDR 4997) Tu. mugiyuni to close, contract, shut up; muguru sprout, shoot, bud; tender, delicate; muguruni, mukuruni to bud, sprout; muggè, moggè flower-bud, germ; (BRR; Bhattacharya, non-brahmin informant) mukkè bud. Kor. (O.) mūke flower-bud. (DEDR 4893)
pajhar. = to sprout from a root (Santali) Rebus: pasra ‘smithy’ (Santali)
ḍangar ‘bull’; rebus: ḍangar ‘blacksmith’ (Hindi)
ḍumgara ‘mountain’ (Pkt.)(CDIAL 5423). Rebus: damgar ‘merchant’.
kangha (IL 1333) kãgherā comb-maker (H.) Rebus: kangar ‘portable furnace’
kangha (IL 1333) kãgherā comb-maker (H.) Rebus: kangar ‘portable furnace’
गोदा [ gōdā ] m A circular brand or mark made by actual cautery (Marathi) गोटा [ gōṭā ] m A roundish stone or pebble. 2 A marble (of stone, lac, wood &c.) 2 A marble. 3 A large lifting stone. Used in trials of strength among the Athletæ. 4 A stone in temples described at length underउचला 5 fig. A term for a round, fleshy, well-filled body. 6 A lump of silver: as obtained by melting down lace or fringe. गोटुळा or गोटोळा [ gōṭuḷā or gōṭōḷā ] a (गोटा) Spherical or spheroidal, pebble-form. (Marathi) Allographs: Ta. kōṭu (in cpds. kōṭṭu-) horn, tusk, branch of tree, cluster, bunch, coil of hair, line, diagram, bank of stream or pool (DEDR 2200) Koḍ. ko·ḷi fowl. Tu. kōri, (B-K. also) kōḷi id. Te. kōḍi id. Nk. (Ch.) gogoḍi, gogoṛi cock (< Go.). Go. (Tr.) gōgōṛi, (Ph.)gugoṛī, (Y.) ghogṛi, (Mu. Ma. S. Ko.) gogoṛ id. (Voc. 1184). Cf. Apabhraṃśa (Jasaharacariu) koḍi- id., fowl. (DEDR 2248). Rebus: khoṭ ‘alloy’ (Marathi). खोट [ khōṭa ] f A mass of metal (unwrought or of old metal melted down); an ingot or wedge (Marathi). P. khoṭ m. ʻalloyʼ M.khoṭā ʻalloyedʼ, (CDIAL 3931) Rebus: khoṭ ‘alloy’ (Marathi). खोट [ khōṭa ] f A mass of metal (unwrought or of old metal melted down); an ingot or wedge (Marathi). P. khoṭ m. ʻalloyʼ M.khoṭā ʻalloyedʼ, (CDIAL 3931)
தமரூசி tamar-ūci, n. < தமர்² +. 1. See தமர்², 2. 2. Bits of a brace; தமரில் மாட்டும் ஆணி. தமர்² tamar , n. [M. tamar.] 1. Hole, as in a plank, commonly bored or cut; கருவியால் அமைத்த துளை. தமரிடு கருவியாம் (திருவிளை. மாணிக்க. 61). 2. Gimlet, spring awl, boring instrument; துளையிடுங் கருவி. Ta. tamar hole in a plank, commonly bored or cut; gimlet, spring awl, boring instrument; tavar (-v-, -nt-) to bore a hole; n. hole in a board. Ma. tamar hole made by a gimlet; a borer, gimlet, drill. ? Ko. tav- (tavd-) to butt with both horns, gore. Tu. tamirů gimlet. Te. tamire, (VPK) tagire the pin in the middle of a yoke. (DEDR 3078)
ayo ‘fish’(Mu.); ayas ‘iron’ (Skt.) Rebus: ayas ‘metal’
ḍato ‘claws or pincers (chelae) of crabs’; ḍaṭom, ḍiṭom to seize with the claws or pincers, as crabs, scorpions; ḍaṭkop = to pinch, nip (only of crabs) (Santali) Rebus: dhātu ‘mineral’ (Vedic); dhatu ‘a mineral, metal’ (Santali)
Allographs:
1. aru m. ʻ sun ʼ lex. Kho. yor Morgenstierne NTS ii 276 with ? <-> Whence y -- ? (CDIAL 612)
2. aru(m), eru(m), harum "branch, frond " of date palm (Akkadian) Akkadian aru/eru may be equivalent of the Hebrew 'rh 'eagle'. The concise dictionary of Akkadian (Jeremy A. Black, 2000) notes: eru, aru, also ru 'eagle'. aru 'granary, storehouse' OA, jB lex. aru(m) 'warrior'.
Rebus: eraka, era, er-a = syn. erka, copper, weapons (Ka.) eruvai ‘copper’ (Ta.); ere dark red (Ka.)(DEDR 446).
Ta. kara-tāḷam palmyra palm. Ka. kara-tāḷa fan-palm, Corypha umbraculifera Lin. Tu. karatāḷa cadjan. Te. (B.) kara-tāḷamu the small-leaved palm tree.(DEDR 1270). karukku teeth of a saw or sickle, jagged edge of palmyra leaf-stalk, sharpness (Ta.) Ka. garasu. / Cf. Skt. karaṭa- a low, unruly, difficult person; karkara- hard, firm; karkaśa- rough, harsh, hard; krakaca-, karapattra- saw; khara- hard, harsh, rough, sharp-edged; kharu- harsh, cruel; Pali kakaca- saw; khara- rough; saw; Pkt.karakaya- saw; Apabhraṃśa (Jasaharacariu) karaḍa- hard. Cf. esp. Turner, CDIAL, no. 2819. Cf. also Skt. karavāla- sword (for second element, cf. 5376 Ta. vāḷ). (DEDR 1265) Allograph: Ta. karaṭi, karuṭi, keruṭi fencing, school or gymnasium where wrestling and fencing are taught. Ka. garaḍi, garuḍi fencing school. Tu.garaḍi, garoḍi id. Te. gariḍi, gariḍī id., fencing.(DEDR 1262)
Ko. meṭ- (mec-) to trample on, tread on; meṭ sole of foot, footstep, footprint (DEDR 5057). Allograph: meḍ ‘dance’ (Santali). mēḍamu. A fight, battle, యుద్ధము. మేడము పొడుచు mēdamu-poḍuṭsu. v. n. To fight a battle. M. meḍhā m. ʻ curl, snarl, twist or tangle in cord or thread ʼ (CDIAL 10312) మేడెము [ mēḍemu ] or మేడియము mēḍemu. [Tel.] n. A spear or dagger. ఈటె, బాకు. mēḍha The polar star. (Marathi)
Rebus: meḍ, mẽṛhẽt 'iron'(Mu.Ho.)
ḍabe, ḍabea ‘large horns, with a sweeping upward curve, applied to buffaloes’ (Santali) Rebus: ḍab, ḍhimba, ḍhompo ‘lump (ingot?)’, clot, make a lump or clot, coagulate, fuse, melt together (Santali)
See:
http://bharatkalyan97.blogspot.in/2013/05/indus-writing-on-gold-disc-kuwait.html Indus writing on gold disc, Kuwait Museum al-Sabah collection: An Indus metalware catalog
http://bharatkalyan97.blogspot.in/2013/05/see-httpbharatkalyan97.html Indus writing in ancient Near East (Dilmun seal readings)
Stamp seal with figures and animals. Steatite. Early Dilmun, ca. 2000-1800 BCE. Dia. 2.9 cm. Gulf region, Bahrain, Karrana, Bahrain National Museum, Manama
Stamp seal from Al-Khidr.
Designs of stamp seals from Al-Khidr are composed of characteristic Early Dilmun stamp seal motifs. This stamp seal depicts human and half-human-half-animal horned figures, monkeys, serpents and birds on either side of a central motif of a standard and a podium at the bottom (drawing of stamp seal impression).
On the obverse of Dilmun seals from Al-Khidr are depicted human or divine figures, half human-half animal creatures, animal figures (such as gazelles, bulls, scorpions, and snakes), celestial bodies (star or sun and moon), sometimes drinking scenes and also other activities (playing musical instruments). Composition of these motifs varies from formal (with ordering the figures and symbols to clear scenes) to chaotic. 
koThAri 'crucible' Rebus: koThAri 'treasurer, warehouse' . मेढ (p. 662) [ mēḍha ] 'polar' star' Rebus: mẽṛhẽt, meḍ 'iron' (Ho.Munda) dula 'pair' rebus: dul 'metal casting' meD 'body' rebus:meD 'iron' Dhangar 'bull' rebus: Dhangar 'blacksmith'
Seals with rotating designs usually bear pure plant, animal or geometric motifs. karaDi 'safflower' Rebus: karaDa 'hard alloy' (Marathi) kaNDa 'divisions' rebus: kaNDa 'implements'.
Until now only one single seaal has been discovered (in 2004) which comes from a non-Dilmun cultural environment. It is a cylinder seal with a cuneiform inscription that refers to "Ab-gina, sailor from a huge ship, the son of Ur-Abba" (F. Rahman). This seal provides further evidence of the existing contacts between Dilmun and ancient Mesopotamia at the end of the 3rd- beginning of the 2nd millennium BCE. 
A minor fragment of a globularly shaped metal sheet may represent a fragment of a vessel. 
Blades are technologically more demanding than awls and fish-hooks. A few complete pieces and some major fragments seem to represent knives and perhaps razors.
Metal awls are made from thin copper rods of circular or rectangular section. Most of them have both ends pointed. A handful of pieces have simple handles from bird and mammal bones. These awls may have been used for various purposes. Large amounts of shells at the site may indicate that the awls could have served to open and take out the flesh from the shells of bivalves and gastropods. 
Two tanged arrowheads have been found. 
From among other utensils, needles with eyes and a pair of tweezers have been uncovered. 
Collection of copper fish-hooks.
Besides vessels, steatite was used for the production of stamp seals and small personal ornaments (pendants). Sherds of broken vessels were further used also as tools (e.g. polishers).
Typical globular bowl with incised decoration (dotted-circles).
Small carnelian bead (pointing to link with Gujarat as the possible source of carnelian).
Net sinker (left) and limestone lid (above). The local limestone was also used for the production of working slabs, grinders and grindstones (below).Pearls were recovered from heavy residue fractions of the soil samples processed by water flotation. They almost exclusively occur in contexts dominated by mother-of-pearl shells.
Stamp seal cut from shell nacre layers (above). Pendant made from a strombus shell (left). Semi-product made from an oyster shell (right).Source. http://www.kuwaitarchaeology.org/gallery/al-khidr-finds-2.html Kuwaiti-Slovak Archaeological Mission
Failaka Island is located approximately 20 km northeast of Kuwait City. The island has a shallow surface measuring 12 km in length and 6 km width. The island proved to be an ideal location for human settlements, because of the wealth of natural resources, including harbours, fresh water, and fertile soil. It was also a strategic maritime commercial route that linked the northern side of the Gulf to the southern side. Studies show that traces of human settlement can be found on Failaka dating back to as early as the end of the 3rd millennium BC and extended through most of the 20th century CE.
Failaka was first known as Agarum, the land of Enzak, the great god of Dilmun civilisation according to Sumerian cuneiform texts found on the island. Dilmun was the leading commercial hub for its powerful neighbours in their need to exchange processed goods for raw materials. Sailing the Arabian Gulf was by far the most convenient trade route at a time as transportation over land meant a much longer and more hazardous journey. As part of Dilmun, Failaka became a hub for the activities which radiated around Dilmun (Bahrain) from the end of the 3rd millennium to the mid-1st millennium BCE.
The cities of Sumer in Mesopotamia, the Harappan people from the Indus Valley, the inhabitants of Magan and the Iranian hinterland have left many archaeological traces of their encounters on Failaka Island. More speculative is the ongoing debate among academics on whether Failaka might be the mythical Eden: the place where Sumerian hero Gilgamesh almost unraveled the secret of immortality; the paradise later described in the Bible.
As a result of changes in the balance of political powers in the region towards the end of the 2nd millennium BCE and beginning of 1st millennium BCE, the importance of Failaka began to decline.
Studies indicate that Alexander the Great received reports from missions sent to explore the Arabian shoreline of the Gulf. The reports referenced two islands, one located approximately 120 stadia (almost 19 km) from an estuary; the second island located a complete day and night sailing journey with proper climate conditions. As the historian Aryan stated, “Alexander the Great ordered that the nearer island be named “Ikaros” (now Failaka) and the distant island as “Tylos” (now the Kingdom of Bahrain). Ikaros was described by the explorers as an island covered with rich vegetation and a shelter for numerous wild animals, considered sacred by the inhabitants who dedicate them to their local goddess.
After the collapse of the great empires in western Asia (Greek, Persian, Roman), the first centuries of the Christian era brought new settlers to Failaka. The island became a secure home for a Christian community, possibly Nestorian, until the 9th century CE. At Al- Qusur, in the centre of the island, archaeologists have uncovered two churches, built at an undetermined date, around which a large settlement grew. Its name may have changed again at that time, to Ramatha.
Failaka was continuously inhabited throughout the Islamic period until the 1990s. Excavations on the Island began in 1958 and continue today. Many archaeological expeditions have worked on Failaka and it is considered one of the key sources of knowledge about civilisations emerging from within the Gulf region.
Brochure at http://darmuseum.org.kw/dai/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/Loans-From-KNM-Brochure.pdf
Failaka geography 
The Dilmun temple on Failaka, Kuwait Arabian Archaeology and Epigraphy Volume 23, Issue 2, pages 165–173, November 2012
Failaka (also transcribed as Failakah or Faylakah, and locally known by the names Feileche, Feiliche or Feliche), in antiquity known as Ikaros was mentioned by the Geographer Strabo in ca. 25 AD and later by Arrian. It is the second biggest offshore island of Kuwait situated at the entrance to Kuwait Bay ca. 16 – 17 km far from Ras Al-Ardh in Salmiya and ca. 12 km from Ras As-Sabbiya. It blocks access to the Bay opposite the mouths of the Tigris and Euphrates (Shatt Al-Arab). Failaka has attracted the attention of researchers since 1957 when Danish archaeologists first had the opportunity to study material from the island received from a member of the British political representation to Kuwait. According to the results of up-to-date archaeological research, the ancient history of Failaka goes back to the beginning of the second millennium BC – to the Bronze Age when the Dilmun cultural phenomenon occupied the western shoreline and islands of the Arabian Gulf.
The Dilmun monuments are the most significant antiquities of the history of Failaka and Kuwait. Major Bronze Age sites on Failaka are located on its south-west (Tell Sa’ad/F3; F6; G3), north-west (Al-Khidr) and north-east (Al-Awazim) coasts, one perhaps even being located in the south-east (Al-Sed Al-Aaliy/Matitah) part of the island [6,14]. During the Bronze Age the temple of the god Inzak, tutelary god of Dilmun, existed on Failaka as it is mentioned in the cuneiform and Proto-Aramaic inscriptions on vessel fragments, Dilmun stamp seals and slabs from excavations [5]. In F6, the French excavations revealed buildings interpreted as a tower temple and palace [8].
Kjærum 1983: no. 193
Dilmun seals with bullmen (human torso, bull’s legs and tail, human face with bull’s ears and horns)
Peyronel 2000: no. 4.14 Bull-man holding a crescent standard
Kjærum 1983: no. 208
Kjærum 1983: no. 121
Kjærum 1983: no. 122
al-Sindi 1994: no. 254
Kjærum 1983: no. 274
[Peyronel, Luca, 2008, Some thoughts on iconographic relations between the Arabian Gulf and Syria-Mesopotamia during the Middle Bronze Age, in: Olijdam, E. & RH Spoor, eds., Intercultural relations between south and southwest Asia, studies in commemoration of ECL During Caspers (1934-1996), BAR International Series 1826 (2008): 236-252 “The relationship between bull-men and superimposed bulls or bull and gazelle (Kjærum 1983: nos. 247-249) again suggests the complex pattern of ideological meanings which hides behind the animal repertoire in Dilmun stamp seals. Two crossed bull-men with raised hands stand across a net podium on a unique seal from Failaka (Kjærum 1983: no. 261)…Another meaningful seal is engraved with a schematic shrine or door with symbols inside (hatched podium, sun-ring, hatched lentoid, net podium), flanked by a bull-man and a garbed man grasping the door-frame (Kjærum 1983: no. 51). Rectangular structures appear on 9 seals (Kjærum 1983: nos. 51-54, 126; al-Sindi 1994; nos. 202-203, 205, 263): they have symbols or human figures within and they can be considered schematic gates or chapels/shrines, without doubt linked with pecular ritual functions as revealed also by astral symbols, mythological figures (serpent monsters or bull-men) and worshippers on their sides.” (p.242)
Dilmun seals with a pair of bull-men and other hieroglyphs (in addition to kids): rectangle with divisions, sun, crucible, bun ingot with infixed 3 numeral strokes, a rectangle with four infixed numeral strokes, temple gate (signifying temple).
Kjærum 1983: no. 93
Kjærum 1983: no. 70
Kjærum 1983: no. 248
Kjærum 1983: no. 249
Kjærum 1983: no. 261
Kjærum 1983: no. 51
Dilmun seals with a pair of bull-men and other hieroglyphs (crucible, sun, vase, pair of harrows, aquatic bird; pair of forked stakes)
al-Sindi 1994: no. 115
Hieroglyph: 'kid': करडूं or करडें (p. 137) [ karaḍū or ṅkaraḍēṃ ] n A kid. कराडूं (p. 137) [ karāḍūṃ ] n (Commonly करडूं ) A kid. Rebus: करडा (p. 137) [ karaḍā ] Hard from alloy--iron, silver &c.(Marathi) karaṇḍa 'duck' (Sanskrit) karaṛa 'a very large aquatic bird' (Sindhi) Rebus: करडा [karaḍā] Hard from alloy--iron, silver &c. (Marathi) .
al-Sindi 1994: no. 116kaNDa 'divisions' rebus: kaNDa 'implements'
Hieroglyph: 'kid': करडूं or करडें (p. 137) [ karaḍū or ṅkaraḍēṃ ] n A kid. कराडूं (p. 137) [ karāḍūṃ ] n (Commonly करडूं ) A kid. Rebus: करडा (p. 137) [ karaḍā ] Hard from alloy--iron, silver &c.(Marathi)
al-Sindi 1994: no. 117
Kjærum 1983: no. 115
Kjærum 1983: no. 116
Kjærum 1983: no. 141 (Same as 115?)
“Bull-men are attested in Mesopotamian glyptic from the Early Dynastic II onwards. The iconographic elaboration probably happened at the end of the 4th or at the beginning of the 3rd millennium BCE in the Iranian milieu, where stamp and cylinder seals show hybrid creatures with mixed human and animal features since he prehistoric periods...”(opcit., pp.244-245) It has been noted in Indus Script Cipher that sangaDa ‘joined animals or animal parts’ is rebus sangara ‘proclamations’. The ‘hybrid creatures’ are thus metalwork proclamations detailing, for example, the metals as alloying components.
"Bull-men were represented during the Early Dynastic period only in contest scenes together with rampant animas, the naked hero and the human-headed bull. A lengthy discussion on these figures has involved Near Eastern scholars, some proposing to identify Enkidu and Gilgamesh with the bull-man and the hero with long hair with curls, other preferring to recognize in these figures different aspects of the god Dumuzi. More recently a simplistic correlation between Early Dynastic supernatural beings and those known from mythological tales was submitted to a strong criticism (Lambert 1987), despite the unequivocal connection with the religious sphere. It is now widely accepted that the ‘nude hero’ must be considered a protective and beneficent deity, in later periods associated with Enki (Akkadian period) or Marduk (from the 2nd millennium BCE), known by the name Lahmu…The corpus of seal impressions from Kultepe karum II (ca. 1920-1850 BCE) verifies the occurrence in the Anatolian, Syro-Cappadocian, Old Syrian, and Old Assyrian styles." (opcit. 244-245).
I would not venture critiquing these meanings and art expression evaluations based on faith. I would not also submit to the 'master of animals' metaphor. I would, instead, deploy an Occam's razor, suggest a simple, direct submission of Indus Script cipher based on Meluhha-rebus-metonymy yielding plain texts of metalwork catalogues involving multiple alloying metals and metalcastings to read the hieroglyph-multiplexes as cypher-texts, symbolic hyper-texts (as Dennys Frenez and Massimo Vidale would call them). See:
Dilmun portable braziers with crucibles (offering tables with bull's hooves) and other hieroglyphs: aquatic bird, rice-plant, snake,
Kjærum 1983: no. 163
Kjærum 1983: no. 165
Kjærum 1983: no. 166
Kjærum 1983: no. 167
Kjærum 1983: no. 168
“Dilmunite seal designs with offering tables might testify not only to the iconographic knowledge but also to a circulation of that type of ceremonial furnishing between Western Syria and Arabian Gulf, i.e. as real imports. From an artistic point of view, Dilmun again shows the trend to assimilate themes and figurative motifs pertaining to the ‘Amorite’ Western and Northern Syrian milieu dating from the very beginning of the 2nd millennium till the end of the 17th century BCE...The wide web of intercultural contacts during the second half of the 3rd millennium BCE is well attested, for example, by the distribution of chlorite carved vessels and by imports or objects with Harappan influence in Mesopotamia (i.e. square or circular stamp seals, etched carnelian beads, weights, clay figurines, dice, kidney-shaped inlays. If it is very likely that the people from Meluhha had settled in the alluvium, but it is much more difficult to establish the presence of Mesopotamians in the Indus Valley on the basis of presumed Near Eastern ‘cultural’ traits in a handful of objects from Harappan cities.”(opcit., p.246, 249, fn 9). It is possible that the assimilation of hieroglyphs onto Dilmun seals occurred because of Meluhhan presence and adoption of Meluhhan Indus Script cipher, with rebus-metonymy renderings of cyphertexts as hieroglyph-complexes.
Referencies
[1] Bernard, V. - Callot, O. - Salles, J.-F. 1999: Al-Qusur church at Failaka, State of Kuwait, 1989. Original report translated to Arabic by Khaloud Al-Salem.
[2] Bibby, G. 1969: Looking for Dilmun. New York, 200
[3] Bibby, G. 1969: Looking for Dilmun. New York, 248 sqq.
[4] Bibby, G. 1969: Looking for Dilmun. New York, 248, 251
[5] Bibby, G. 1969: Looking for Dilmun. New York, 254, 332
[6] Callot, O. - Calvet, Y. 1999: Preliminary report on the topographical mission at Failaka, Kuwait (February 26 - March 25 1999). Unpublished report, NCCAL.
[7] Calvet, Y. - Pic, M. 1986: Un nouveau batiment de l'age du bronze sur le tell F6. In: Calvet, Y. - Salles, J.-F. (sous la dir.): Failaka. Fouilles Françaises 1984 - 1985. Lyon - Paris, 13-87.
[8] Calvet, Y. - Pic, M. 1990: Un temple-tour de l'age du bronze a Failaka. In: Calvet, Y. - Gachet, J. (sous la dir.): Failaka. Fouilles Françaises 1986 - 1988. Lyon - Paris, 103-122.
[1] Bernard, V. - Callot, O. - Salles, J.-F. 1999: Al-Qusur church at Failaka, State of Kuwait, 1989. Original report translated to Arabic by Khaloud Al-Salem.
[2] Bibby, G. 1969: Looking for Dilmun. New York, 200
[3] Bibby, G. 1969: Looking for Dilmun. New York, 248 sqq.
[4] Bibby, G. 1969: Looking for Dilmun. New York, 248, 251
[5] Bibby, G. 1969: Looking for Dilmun. New York, 254, 332
[6] Callot, O. - Calvet, Y. 1999: Preliminary report on the topographical mission at Failaka, Kuwait (February 26 - March 25 1999). Unpublished report, NCCAL.
[7] Calvet, Y. - Pic, M. 1986: Un nouveau batiment de l'age du bronze sur le tell F6. In: Calvet, Y. - Salles, J.-F. (sous la dir.): Failaka. Fouilles Françaises 1984 - 1985. Lyon - Paris, 13-87.
[8] Calvet, Y. - Pic, M. 1990: Un temple-tour de l'age du bronze a Failaka. In: Calvet, Y. - Gachet, J. (sous la dir.): Failaka. Fouilles Françaises 1986 - 1988. Lyon - Paris, 103-122.
Research Notes--The Middle Asian Interaction Sphere (Gregory Possehl, 2007, Expedition, Vol. 49, No. 1, Spring 2007)
The Copper Hoards of Northern India Paul Yule, 1997, Copper hoards of northern India, Expedition, Vol. 39, No. 1, Spring 1997)
The Indus Civilization and Dilmun, the Sumerian Paradise Land Samuel Noah Kramer, 1964, Expedition, Vol. 6, No. 3, Spring 1964)
The Mythical Massacre at Mohenjo-daro (George F. Dales, 1964, Expedition, Vol. 6, No. 3, Spring 1964)
Shipping and Maritime Trade of the Indus People (S. R. Rao, 1965, Expedition,Vol.7, No. 3, Spring 1965)
The Ganga-Yamuna Basin in the First Millennium B.C. (Vimala S. Begley, Expedition Volume 9, Number 1 Fall 1966)
South Asia's Earliest Writing--Still Undeciphered (George F. Dales, Expedition Volume 9, Number 4 Summer 1967)
The Early Bronze Age of Iran as Seen from Tepe Yahya (C. C. Lamberg-Karlovsky and Philip L. Kohl, Expedition Volume 13, Number 3 - 4 Spring/Summer 1971)
Aspects of Elamite Art and Archaeology (Edith Porada, Expedition Volume 13, Number 3 - 4 Spring/Summer 1971)
Iran--Eleven Thousand Years of Cultural History Robert H. Dyson, Jr. Expedition Volume 13, Number 3 - 4 Spring/Summer 1971)
Iran, 9000-4000 B.C.--The Neolithic Philip E. L. SmithExpedition Volume 13, Number 3 - 4 Spring/Summer 1971)
An Early Farmers' Village in Central India H. D. Sankalia, Z. D. Ansari, and M. K. Dhavalikar Expedition Volume 17, Number 2 Winter 1975
Origins of Bronze Age Cultures in the Indus Basin--A Geographic Perspective Ahmad Hasan Dani Expedition Volume 17, Number 2 Winter 1975
Kalibangan--A Harappan Metropolis Beyond the Indus Valley B. K. Thapar Expedition Volume 17, Number 2 Winter 1975
The Chronology of Gabarbands and Palas in Western South Asia Gregory L. Possehl Expedition Volume 17, Number 2 Winter 1975
University Museum-Thai Fine Arts Department Northeast Thailand Archaeological Project: Introduction
James D. Muhly Expedition Volume 18, Number 4 Summer 1976
James D. Muhly Expedition Volume 18, Number 4 Summer 1976
Ban Chiang--A Mosaic of Impressions from the First Two Years
Chester Gorman and Pisit Charoenwongsa Expedition Volume 18, Number 4 Summer 1976
Chester Gorman and Pisit Charoenwongsa Expedition Volume 18, Number 4 Summer 1976
Archaeological Survey and Excavation of Ban Chiang Culture Sites in Northeast Thailand
William Schauffler Expedition Volume 18, Number 4 Summer 1976
William Schauffler Expedition Volume 18, Number 4 Summer 1976
The Techniques of the Early Thai Metalsmith
Tamara Stech Wheeler and Robert Maddin Expedition Volume 18, Number 4 Summer 1976
Tamara Stech Wheeler and Robert Maddin Expedition Volume 18, Number 4 Summer 1976
Shell Working at Ancient Balakot, Pakistan
George F. Dales and Jonathan Mark Kenoyer Expedition Volume 19, Number 2 Winter 1976
George F. Dales and Jonathan Mark Kenoyer Expedition Volume 19, Number 2 Winter 1976
Tin in the Ancient Near East--Old Questions and New Finds
Robert Maddin, Tamara Stech Wheeler, and James D. Muhly Expedition Volume 19, Number 2 Winter 1976
Robert Maddin, Tamara Stech Wheeler, and James D. Muhly Expedition Volume 19, Number 2 Winter 1976
Special Issue: Ur
Cover: Photo by William Clough. Gaming board of shell and lapis lazuli from RT. 580 in the Royal Cemetery, now in the University Museum.
Cover: Photo by William Clough. Gaming board of shell and lapis lazuli from RT. 580 in the Royal Cemetery, now in the University Museum.
Features
[Special Issue Introduction]
[Special Issue Introduction]
Recollections of C. Leonard Woolley
Sir Max Mallowan, C.B.E.
Sir Max Mallowan, C.B.E.
Archival Glimpses of the Ur Expedition in the Years 1920 to 1926
Selected by Robert H. Dyson, Jr.
Selected by Robert H. Dyson, Jr.
What Do We Know About the People Buried in the Royal Cemetery?
P. R. S. Moorey
P. R. S. Moorey
The Ur Excavations and Sumerian Literature
Samuel Noah Kramer
Samuel Noah Kramer
Cambay Beadmaking--An Ancient Craft in Modern India
Gregory L. Possehl Expedition Volume 23, Number 4 Summer 1981
Gregory L. Possehl Expedition Volume 23, Number 4 Summer 1981
Early Tin in the Near East--A Reassessment in the Light of New Evidence from Western Afghanistan
Serge Cleuziou and Thierry Berthoud Expedition Volume 25, Number 1 Fall 1982
Serge Cleuziou and Thierry Berthoud Expedition Volume 25, Number 1 Fall 1982
Cattle and the Harappan Chiefdoms of the Indus Valley
Walter Fairservis, Jr. Expedition Volume 28, Number 2 Summer 1986
Walter Fairservis, Jr. Expedition Volume 28, Number 2 Summer 1986
Artisans and Archaeologists--A Special Section on the Study of Crafts in India
Lee Horne Expedition Volume 29, Number 3 Winter 1987
Lee Horne Expedition Volume 29, Number 3 Winter 1987
The Brasscasters of Dariapur, West Bengal--Artisans in a Changing World
Lee Horne Expedition Volume 29, Number 3 Winter 1987
Lee Horne Expedition Volume 29, Number 3 Winter 1987
Modern Statues and Traditional Methods--A Casting Workshop in Chamba, Himachal Pradesh, Northwest India
Chandra L. Reedy Expedition Volume 29, Number 3 Winter 1987
Chandra L. Reedy Expedition Volume 29, Number 3 Winter 1987
Temples Along the Indus
Michael W. Meister Expedition Volume 38, Number 3 Winter 1996
Michael W. Meister Expedition Volume 38, Number 3 Winter 1996
Discovery of a New Temple on the Indus
Michael W. Meister, with Abdur Rehman and Farid Khan Expedition Volume 42, Number 1 Spring 2000
Kalighat Paintings from Nineteenth Century Calcutta in Maxwell Sommerville's "Ethnological East Indian Collection"Michael W. Meister, with Abdur Rehman and Farid Khan Expedition Volume 42, Number 1 Spring 2000
Pika Ghosh Expedition Volume 42, Number 3 Winter 2000
The Multiple Landscapes of Vijayanagara--From the Mythic and the Ritual to the Kingly and the Common
Alexandra Mack Expedition Volume 46, Number 2 Summer 2004
Re-Orienting Yoga
Sarah Strauss Expedition Volume 46, Number 3 Winter 2004
Indus Script hieroglyph 'twisted rope' on 14 Ancient Near East seals/artifacts deciphered, linked to Dhā̆rvā̆ḍ iron-ore town Karnataka, India
'Twisted rope' which is identified as an Indus Script hieroglyph is signified on the following 14 artifacts of Ancient Near East, dated from ca. 2400 to 1650 BCE:
Bogazkoy seal impression with 'twisted rope' hieroglyph (Fig. 13) eruvai 'kite' dula 'pair' eraka 'wing' Rebus: eruvai dul 'copper cast metal' eraka'moltencast' PLUS dhāu 'strand of rope' Rebus: dhāv 'red ore' (ferrite) ti-dhāu 'three strands' Rebus: ti-dhāv 'three ferrite ores: magnetite, hematite, laterite'.
https://tinyurl.com/yafwo3lq
लोखंड lōkhaṇḍa 'metalware', मुँह mũh 'ingot' of Candi Sukuh, Candi Ceto linga; रसायन 'alchemist, name of Garuḍa',are Indus Script Hypertexts.
The word ‘Sukuh’ means ‘to go to war, go on a military expedition, wage war on, attack'. Candi Sukuh and Candi Ceto are temples -- divine blessings of pitr̥-s for a military expedition supported by metal armour produced by artisans of Candi Sukuh & Candi Ceto smithy-forge. kole.l 'smithy, forge' is kole.l'temple' (Kota language).
श्येन m. a hawk , falcon , eagle , any bird of prey (esp. the eagle that brings down सोम to man) RV. (Monier-Williams). This words is expanded in the expression: aśáni f. ʻ thunderbolt ʼ RV., °nī -- f. ŚBr. [Cf. áśan -- m. ʻ sling -- stone ʼ RV.] Pa. asanī -- f. ʻ thunderbolt, lightning ʼ, asana -- n. ʻ stone ʼ; Pk. asaṇi -- m.f. ʻ thunderbolt ʼ; Ash. ašĩˊ ʻ hail ʼ, Wg. ašē˜ˊ, Pr. īšĩ, Bashg. "azhir", Dm. ašin, Paš. ášen, Shum. äˊšin, Gaw. išín, Bshk. ašun, Savi išin, Phal. ã̄šun, L. (Jukes) ahin, awāṇ. &circmacrepsilon;n (both with n, not ṇ), P. āhiṇ, f., āhaṇ, aihaṇ m.f., WPah. bhad. ã̄ṇ, bhal. ´tildemacrepsilon;hiṇi f., N. asino, pl. °nā; Si. sena, heṇa ʻ thunderbolt ʼ Geiger GS 34, but the expected form would be *ā̤n; -- Sh. aĩyĕˊr f. ʻ hail ʼ (X ?). -- For ʻ stone ʼ > ʻ hailstone ʼ cf.upala -- and A. xil s.v. śilā (CDIAL 910) A thunder-bolt maker is: ahan-gār अहन्-गार् (= آهن āhan, s.m. (9th) Iron. Sing. and Pl. آهن ګر āhan gar, s.m. (5th) A smith, a blacksmith. Pl. آهن ګران āhan-garān. آهن ربا āhan-rubā, s.f. (6th) The magnet or loadstone. (E.) Sing. and Pl.); (W.) Pl. آهن رباوي āhan-rubāwī. See اوسپنه .(Pashto). Such a blacksmith, maker of thunderbolt is shown as an anthropomorphic representation on a silver axe with two heads of 'falcons; dula 'two' rebus: dul 'metal casting'; thus, the hieroglyph/hypertext signifies a thunderblt jmetal caster; the associated hieroglyphs to signify metalwork are: kola 'tiger' rebus: kol 'working in iron' ; baḍhia = a castrated boar, a hog; rebus: baḍhi 'a caste who work both in iron and wood':
लोखंड lōkhaṇḍa 'metalware', मुँह mũh 'ingot' of Candi Sukuh, Candi Ceto linga; रसायन 'alchemist, name of Garuḍa',are Indus Script Hypertexts.
The word ‘Sukuh’ means ‘to go to war, go on a military expedition, wage war on, attack'. Candi Sukuh and Candi Ceto are temples -- divine blessings of pitr̥-s for a military expedition supported by metal armour produced by artisans of Candi Sukuh & Candi Ceto smithy-forge. kole.l 'smithy, forge' is kole.l'temple' (Kota language).
श्येन m. a hawk , falcon , eagle , any bird of prey (esp. the eagle that brings down सोम to man) RV. (Monier-Williams). This words is expanded in the expression: aśáni f. ʻ thunderbolt ʼ RV., °nī -- f. ŚBr. [Cf. áśan -- m. ʻ sling -- stone ʼ RV.] Pa. asanī -- f. ʻ thunderbolt, lightning ʼ, asana -- n. ʻ stone ʼ; Pk. asaṇi -- m.f. ʻ thunderbolt ʼ; Ash. ašĩˊ ʻ hail ʼ, Wg. ašē˜ˊ, Pr. īšĩ, Bashg. "azhir", Dm. ašin, Paš. ášen, Shum. äˊšin, Gaw. išín, Bshk. ašun, Savi išin, Phal. ã̄šun, L. (Jukes) ahin, awāṇ. &circmacrepsilon;n (both with n, not ṇ), P. āhiṇ, f., āhaṇ, aihaṇ m.f., WPah. bhad. ã̄ṇ, bhal. ´tildemacrepsilon;hiṇi f., N. asino, pl. °nā; Si. sena, heṇa ʻ thunderbolt ʼ Geiger GS 34, but the expected form would be *ā̤n; -- Sh. aĩyĕˊr f. ʻ hail ʼ (X ?). -- For ʻ stone ʼ > ʻ hailstone ʼ cf.
Shaft-hole axhead with a bird-headed demon, boar,and dragon, late 3rd–early 2nd millennium BCE Central Asia (Bactria-Margiana) Silver, gold foil; 5 7/8 in. (15 cm) Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History | The Metropolitan Museum of Art
Fig. 1 First cylinder seal-impressed jar from Taip 1, Turkmenistan
Fig. 2 Hematite cylinder seal of Old Syria ca. 1820-1730 BCE
Fig. 3 Hematite seal. Old Syria. ca. 1720-1650 BCE
Fig. 4 Cylinder seal modern impression. Mitanni. 2nd millennium BCE
Fig. 5 Cylinder seal modern impression. Old Syria. ca. 1720-1650 BCE
Fig. 6 Cylinder seal. Mitanni. 2nd millennium BCE
Fig. 7 Stone cylinder seal. Old Syria ca. 1720-1650 BCE
Fig. 8 Hematite cylinder seal. Old Syria. ca. early 2nd millennium BCE
Fig. 9 Fragment of an Iranian Chlorite Vase. 2500-2400 BCE
Fig.10 Shahdad standard. ca. 2400 BCE Line drawing
Fig.11 Cylinder seal. 2 seated lions. Twisted rope. Louvre AO7296Fig.
12 Cylinder seal. Sumerian. 18th cent. BCE. Louvre AO 22366
Fig.13 Bogazkoy Seal impression ca. 18th cent. BCE
Fig.14 Dudu plaque.Votive bas-relief of Dudu, priest of Ningirsu in the time of Entemena, prince of Lagash, ca. 2400 BCE Tello (ancient Girsu)
The orthography of the 'twisted rope' is characterised by an endless twist, sometimes signified with three strands of the rope.
Meluhha rebus-metonymy Indus Script cipher on all the 14 seals/artifacts is:
Hieroglyph: ti-dhAtu 'three strands' Rebus: ti-dhAtu 'three red stone ores: magnetite, hematite, laterite'.
The three ores are: poLa 'magnetite', bica 'hematite', goTa 'laterite'. The hieroglyphs signifying these mineral ores are: poLa 'zebu', bica 'scorpion' goTa 'round object or seed'.
Some associated hieroglyphs on the 14 seals/artifacts are:
Hieroglyph: poLa 'zebu' Rebus: poLa 'magnetite' (Fig.1)
Hieroglyph: bica 'scorpion' Rebus: bica 'hematite' (Fig.4)
Hieroglyph: karaNDava 'aquatic bird' Rebus: karaDa 'hard alloy'. (Fig.7)
Hieroglyph: kuThAru 'monkey' Rebus: kuThAru 'armourer'. (Fig.2)
Hieroglyph: arye 'lion' (Akkadian) Rebus: arA 'brass'. (Fig.2)
Hieroglyph: eruvai 'kite' Rebus: eruvai 'copper'. (Fig.13)
Hieroglyph: eraka 'wing' Rebus: eraka 'moltencast copper'. (Fig.14)
Hieroglyph: dhangar 'bull' Rebus: dhangar 'blacksmith' (Fig.2)
Hieroglyph: ranku 'antelope' Rebus: ranku 'tin'. (Fig.4)
Hieroglyph: kolmo 'rice plant' Rebus: kolimi 'smithy/forge' (Fig.1)
Hieroglyph: dula 'pair' Rebus: dul 'cast metal'. (Fig.3)
The semantic elaboration of dhāv 'a red stone ore' is identified in the gloss: dhā̆vaḍ 'iron-smelters'. There is a place-name in Karnataka called dhā̆rvā̆ḍ
The suffix -vā̆ḍ in the place-name is also explained in the context of ‘rope’ hieroglyph: vaṭa2 ʻ string ʼ lex. [Prob. ← Drav. Tam. vaṭam, Kan. vaṭi, vaṭara, &c. DED 4268] vaṭa- string, rope, tie; vaṭāraka-, vaṭākara-, varāṭaka- cord, string(DEDR 5220).
Dhā̆rvā̆ḍ is an ancient major trading down dealing -- even today -- with iron ore and mineral-belt of Sahyadri mountain ranges in western Karnataka. The word dhāv is derived from dhātu which has two meanings: 'strand of rope' (Rigveda)(hieroglyph) and 'mineral' (metalwork ciphertext of Indian sprachbund.)
I suggest that Shahdad which has a standard of ca. 2400 BCE with the 'twisted rope' hieroglyph -- and hence dealing with ferrote ores (magnetite, hematite, laterite) -- should be recognized as a twin iron-ore town of Dhā̆rvā̆ḍ It is hypothesised that further archaeometallurgical researchers into ancient iron ore mines of Dhā̆rvā̆ḍ region are likely to show possible with an archaeological settlement of Sarasvati_Sindhu civilization: Daimabad from where a seal was discovered showing the most-frequently used Indus Script hieroglyph: rim of jar.
Daimabad seal. Rim of jar hieroglyph. karNI 'rim of jar' Rebus: karNI 'supercargo', karNIka 'scribe'.
dhāī wisp of fibers added to a rope (Sindhi) Rebus: dhātu 'mineral ore' (Samskritam) dhāū, dhāv m.f. ʻa partic. soft red stoneʼ (whence dhā̆vaḍ m. ʻ a caste of iron -- smelters ʼ, dhāvḍī ʻ composed of or relating to iron ʼ(Marathi)
Fig. 1 First cylinder seal-impressed jar from Taip 1, Turkmenistan
(Photo: Kohl 1984: Pl. 15c; drawings after Collon 1987: nos. 600, 599. (After Fig. 5 Eric Olijdam, 2008, A possible central Asian origin for seal-impressed jar from the 'Temple Tower' at Failaka, in: Eric Olijdam and Richard H. Spoor, eds., 2008, Intercultural relations between south and southwest Asia, Studies in commemoration of ECL During Caspers (1934-1996), Society for Arabian Studies Monographs No. 7 [eds. D. Kennet & St J. Simpson], BAR International Series 1826 pp. 268-287). https://www.academia.edu/403945/A_Possible_Central_Asian_Origin_for_the_Seal-Impressed_Jar_from_the_Temple_Tower_at_Failaka
(Photo: Kohl 1984: Pl. 15c; drawings after Collon 1987: nos. 600, 599. (After Fig. 5 Eric Olijdam, 2008, A possible central Asian origin for seal-impressed jar from the 'Temple Tower' at Failaka, in: Eric Olijdam and Richard H. Spoor, eds., 2008, Intercultural relations between south and southwest Asia, Studies in commemoration of ECL During Caspers (1934-1996), Society for Arabian Studies Monographs No. 7 [eds. D. Kennet & St J. Simpson], BAR International Series 1826 pp. 268-287). https://www.academia.edu/403945/A_Possible_Central_Asian_Origin_for_the_Seal-Impressed_Jar_from_the_Temple_Tower_at_Failaka
Decipherment of Indus Script hieroglyphs:
Hieroglyphs on the cylinder impression of the jar are: zebu, stalk (tree?), one-horned young bull (?), twisted rope, birds in flight, mountain-range
dhāī wisp of fibers added to a rope (Sindhi) Rebus: dhātu 'mineral ore' (Samskritam) dhāū, dhāv m.f. ʻa partic. soft red stoneʼ (whence dhā̆vaḍ m. ʻ a caste of iron -- smelters ʼ, dhāvḍī ʻ composed of or relating to iron ʼ(Marathi)
poLa 'zebu' Rebus: poLa 'magnetite ore'
kōḍe, kōḍiya. [Tel.] n. A bullcalf. Rebus: koḍ artisan’s workshop (Kuwi) kunda ‘turner’ kundār turner (Assamese)
kolmo 'rice plant' Rebus: kolimi 'smithy, forge'
eruvai 'eagle' Rebus: eruvai 'copper (red)'
dAng 'mountain-range' Rebus: dhangar 'blacksmith'
Thus, the storage jar contents are the message conveyed by the hieroglyph-multiplex: copper smithy workshop magnetite ore, iron castings.
Fig. 2 Hematite cylinder seal of Old Syria ca. 1820-1730 BCE
Fig. 3 Hematite seal. Old Syria. ca. 1720-1650 BCE
Fig. 7 Stone cylinder seal. Old Syria ca. 1720-1650 BCE
The Sumerian/Akkadian word sanga, is a loan from Proto-Prakritam or Meluhha of Indian sprachbund. saṁghapati m. ʻ chief of a brotherhood ʼ Śatr. [saṁghá -- , páti -- ]G. saṅghvī m. ʻ leader of a body of pilgrims, a partic. surname ʼ.(CDIAL 12857) saṁghá m. ʻ association, a community ʼ Mn. [√han 1 ]
Pa. saṅgha -- m. ʻ assembly, the priesthood ʼ; Aś. saṁgha -- m. ʻ the Buddhist community ʼ; Pk. saṁgha -- m. ʻ assembly, collection ʼ; OSi. (Brāhmī inscr.) saga, Si. san̆ga ʻ crowd, collection ʼ. -- Rather <saṅga -- : S. saṅgu m. ʻ body of pilgrims ʼ (whence sã̄go m. ʻ caravan ʼ), L. P. saṅg m. (CDIAL 12854).
kōla = woman (Nahali) Rebus: kol ‘furnace, forge’ (Kuwi) kol ‘alloy of five
kuṭi ‘tree’. Rebus: kuṭhi ‘smelter’ (Santali). The two trees are shown ligatured to
Santali glosses
Twisted rope as hieroglyph on a plaque.
This hieroglyph-multiplex seen on a cylinder seal is deciphered: Hieroglyph: ti-dhātu 'three-strands of rope' Rebus: ti-dhāū, ti-dhāv; dula 'pair' Rebus: dul ''cast metal' PLUS arye 'lion' Rebus: Ara 'brass' (which may be an alloy of copper, zinc and tin minerals and/or arsenopyrites including ferrous ore elements). Thus, the hieoglyph-multiplex composition signifies dul Ara 'cast brass alloy' of ti-dhātu 'three minerals'.
m1406 Seal using three-stranded rope: dhAtu Rebus: iron ore.
Located on the Map of India are regions with Fe (Iron ore) mines: the locations include Dharwad and Ib.
The station derives its name from Ib River flowing nearby. Ib railway station came up with the opening of the Nagpur-Asansol main line of Bengal Nagpur Railway in 1891. It became a station on the crosscountry Howrah-Nagpur-Mumbai line in 1900 In 1900, when Bengal Nagpur Railway was building a bridge across the Ib River, coal was accidentally discovered in what later became Ib Valley Coalfield. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ib_railway_station
This etymon indicates the possible reading of the tall flagpost carried by kneeling persons with six locks of hair: baTa 'six' Rebus: bhaTa 'furnace'. Associated with nAga 'serpent' Rebus: nAga 'lead'
Situated at the end of a small delta on a dry plain, Shahdad was excavated by an Iranian team in the 1970s. (Courtesy Maurizio Tosi) 
An Iranian-Italian team, including archaeologist Massimo Vidale (right), surveyed the site in 2009. (Courtesy Massimo Vidale) The peripatetic English explorer Sir Aurel Stein, famous for his archaeological work surveying large swaths of Central Asia and the Middle East, slipped into Persia at the end of 1915 and found the first hints of eastern Iran's lost cities. Stein traversed what he described as "a big stretch of gravel and sandy desert" and encountered "the usual...robber bands from across the Afghan border, without any exciting incident." What did excite Stein was the discovery of what he called "the most surprising prehistoric site" on the eastern edge of the Dasht-e Lut. Locals called it Shahr-i-Sokhta ("Burnt City") because of signs of ancient destruction. It wasn't until a half-century later that Tosi and his team hacked their way through the thick salt crust and discovered a metropolis rivaling those of the first great urban centers in Mesopotamia and the Indus. Radiocarbon data showed that the site was founded around 3200 B.C., just as the first substantial cities in Mesopotamia were being built, and flourished for more than a thousand years. During its heyday in the middle of the third millennium B.C., the city covered more than 150 hectares and may have been home to more than 20,000 people, perhaps as populous as the large cities of Umma in Mesopotamia and Mohenjo-Daro on the Indus River. A vast shallow lake and wells likely provided the necessary water, allowing for cultivated fields and grazing for animals. Built of mudbrick, the city boasted a large palace, separate neighborhoods for pottery-making, metalworking, and other industrial activities, and distinct areas for the production of local goods. Most residents lived in modest one-room houses, though some were larger compounds with six to eight rooms. Bags of goods and storerooms were often "locked" with stamp seals, a procedure common in Mesopotamia in the era. Shahr-i-Sokhta boomed as the demand for precious goods among elites in the region and elsewhere grew. Though situated in inhospitable terrain, the city was close to tin, copper, and turquoise mines, and lay on the route bringing lapis lazuli from Afghanistan to the west. Craftsmen worked shells from the Persian Gulf, carnelian from India, and local metals such as tin and copper. Some they made into finished products, and others were exported in unfinished form. Lapis blocks brought from the Hindu Kush mountains, for example, were cut into smaller chunks and sent on to Mesopotamia and as far west as Syria. Unworked blocks of lapis weighing more than 100 pounds in total were unearthed in the ruined palace of Ebla, close to the Mediterranean Sea. Archaeologist Massimo Vidale of the University of Padua says that the elites in eastern Iranian cities like Shahr-i-Sokhta were not simply slaves to Mesopotamian markets. They apparently kept the best-quality lapis for themselves, and sent west what they did not want. Lapis beads found in the royal tombs of Ur, for example, are intricately carved, but of generally low-quality stone compared to those of Shahr-i-Sokhta. Pottery was produced on a massive scale. Nearly 100 kilns were clustered in one part of town and the craftspeople also had a thriving textile industry. Hundreds of wooden spindle whorls and combs were uncovered, as were well-preserved textile fragments made of goat hair and wool that show a wide variation in their weave. According to Irene Good, a specialist in ancient textiles at Oxford University, this group of textile fragments constitutes one of the most important in the world, given their great antiquity and the insight they provide into an early stage of the evolution of wool production. Textiles were big business in the third millennium B.C., according to Mesopotamian texts, but actual textiles from this era had never before been found.
A metal flag found at Shahdad, one of eastern Iran's early urban sites, dates to around 2400 B.C. The flag depicts a man and woman facing each other, one of the recurrent themes in the region's art at this time. (Courtesy Maurizio Tosi) 
This plain ceramic jar, found recently at Shahdad, contains residue of a white cosmetic whose complex formula is evidence for an extensive knowledge of chemistry among the city's ancient inhabitants. (Courtesy Massimo Vidale) The artifacts also show the breadth of Shahr-i-Sokhta's connections. Some excavated red-and-black ceramics share traits with those found in the hills and steppes of distant Turkmenistan to the north, while others are similar to pots made in Pakistan to the east, then home to the Indus civilization. Tosi's team found a clay tablet written in a script called Proto-Elamite, which emerged at the end of the fourth millennium B.C., just after the advent of the first known writing system, cuneiform, which evolved in Mesopotamia. Other such tablets and sealings with Proto-Elamite signs have also been found in eastern Iran, such as at Tepe Yahya. This script was used for only a few centuries starting around 3200 B.C. and may have emerged in Susa, just east of Mesopotamia. By the middle of the third millennium B.C., however, it was no longer in use. Most of the eastern Iranian tablets record simple transactions involving sheep, goats, and grain and could have been used to keep track of goods in large households. While Tosi's team was digging at Shahr-i-Sokhta, Iranian archaeologist Ali Hakemi was working at another site, Shahdad, on the western side of the Dasht-e Lut. This settlement emerged as early as the fifth millennium B.C. on a delta at the edge of the desert. By the early third millennium B.C., Shahdad began to grow quickly as international trade with Mesopotamia expanded. Tomb excavations revealed spectacular artifacts amid stone blocks once painted in vibrant colors. These include several extraordinary, nearly life-size clay statues placed with the dead. The city's artisans worked lapis lazuli, silver, lead, turquoise, and other materials imported from as far away as eastern Afghanistan, as well as shells from the distant Persian Gulf and Indian Ocean. Evidence shows that ancient Shahdad had a large metalworking industry by this time. During a recent survey, a new generation of archaeologists found a vast hill—nearly 300 feet by 300 feet—covered with slag from smelting copper. Vidale says that analysis of the copper ore suggests that the smiths were savvy enough to add a small amount of arsenic in the later stages of the process to strengthen the final product. Shahdad's metalworkers also created such remarkable artifacts as a metal flag dating to about 2400 B.C. Mounted on a copper pole topped with a bird, perhaps an eagle, the squared flag depicts two figures facing one another on a rich background of animals, plants, and goddesses. The flag has no parallels and its use is unknown. Vidale has also found evidence of a sweet-smelling nature. During a spring 2009 visit to Shahdad, he discovered a small stone container lying on the ground. The vessel, which appears to date to the late fourth millennium B.C., was made of chlorite, a dark soft stone favored by ancient artisans in southeast Iran. Using X-ray diffraction at an Iranian lab, he discovered lead carbonate—used as a white cosmetic—sealed in the bottom of the jar. He identified fatty material that likely was added as a binder, as well as traces of coumarin, a fragrant chemical compound found in plants and used in some perfumes. Further analysis showed small traces of copper, possibly the result of a user dipping a small metal applicator into the container. Other sites in eastern Iran are only now being investigated. For the past two years, Iranian archaeologists Hassan Fazeli Nashli and Hassain Ali Kavosh from the University of Tehran have been digging in a small settlement a few miles east of Shahdad called Tepe Graziani, named for the Italian archaeologist who first surveyed the site. They are trying to understand the role of the city's outer settlements by examining this ancient mound, which is 30 feet high, 525 feet wide, and 720 feet long. Excavators have uncovered a wealth of artifacts including a variety of small sculptures depicting crude human figures, humped bulls, and a Bactrian camel dating to approximately 2900 B.C. A bronze mirror, fishhooks, daggers, and pins are among the metal finds. There are also wooden combs that survived in the arid climate. "The site is small but very rich," says Fazeli, adding that it may have been a prosperous suburban production center for Shahdad. Sites such as Shahdad and Shahr-i-Sokhta and their suburbs were not simply islands of settlements in what otherwise was empty desert. Fazeli adds that some 900 Bronze Age sites have been found on the Sistan plain, which borders Afghanistan and Pakistan. Mortazavi, meanwhile, has been examining the area around the Bampur Valley, in Iran's extreme southeast. This area was a corridor between the Iranian plateau and the Indus Valley, as well as between Shahr-i-Sokhta to the north and the Persian Gulf to the south. A 2006 survey along the Damin River identified 19 Bronze Age sites in an area of less than 20 square miles. That river periodically vanishes, and farmers depend on underground channels called qanats to transport water. Despite the lack of large rivers, ancient eastern Iranians were very savvy in marshaling their few water resources. Using satellite remote sensing data, Vidale has found remains of what might be ancient canals or qanats around Shahdad, but more work is necessary to understand how inhabitants supported themselves in this harsh climate 5,000 years ago, as they still do today.
Fig. 2 Hematite cylinder seal of Old Syria ca. 1820-1730 BCE
Period: Old Syrian
Date: ca. 1820–1730 B.C.E
Geography: Syria
Medium: Hematite
Dimensions: H. 1 1/16 in. (2.7 cm); Diam. 1/2 in. (1.2 cm)
Classification: Stone-Cylinder Seals
Credit Line: Gift of Nanette B. Kelekian, in memory of Charles Dikran and Beatrice Kelekian, 1999
Accession Number: 1999.325.142 Metmuseum
Fig. 3 Hematite seal. Old Syria. ca. 1720-1650 BCE
Period: Old Syrian
Date: ca. 1720–1650 B.C.E
Geography: Syria
Medium: Hematite
Dimensions: H. 15/16 in. (2.4 cm); Diam. 3/8 in. (1 cm)
Classification: Stone-Cylinder Seals
Credit Line: Gift of Nanette B. Kelekian, in memory of Charles Dikran and Beatrice Kelekian, 1999
Accession Number: 1999.325.155 Metmuseum
Fig. 4 Cylinder seal modern impression. Mitanni. 2nd millennium BCE
(male and griffin demon slaying animal; terminal: animal attack scenes, guilloche)
Period: Mitanni
Date: 2nd millennium B.C.E
Geography: Mesopotamia or Syria
Culture: Mitanni
Medium: Hematite
Dimensions: H. 13/16 in. (2 cm); Diam. 7/16 in. (1.1 cm)
Classification: Stone-Cylinder Seals
Credit Line: Gift of Nanette B. Kelekian, in memory of Charles Dikran and Beatrice Kelekian, 1999
Accession Number: 1999.325.165 Metmuseum
Fig. 5 Cylinder seal modern impression. Old Syria. ca. 1720-1650 BCE
(royal figures approaching weather god; divinities)
Period: Old Syrian
Date: ca. 1720–1650 B.C.E
Geography: Syria
Medium: Hematite
Dimensions: H, 1 1/8 in. (2.9 cm); Diam. 7/16 in. (1.1 cm)
Classification: Stone-Cylinder Seals
Credit Line: Gift of Nanette B. Kelekian, in memory of Charles Dikran and Beatrice Kelekian, 1999
Accession Number: 1999.325.147 Metmuseum
Fig. 6 Cylinder seal. Mitanni. 2nd millennium BCE
Period: Mitanni
Date: ca. late 2nd millennium B.C.E
Geography: Mesopotamia or Syria
Culture: Mitanni
Medium: Hematite
Dimensions: H. 1 in. (2.6 cm); Diam. 1/2 in. (1.2 cm)
Classification: Stone-Cylinder Seals
Credit Line: Gift of Nanette B. Kelekian, in memory of Charles Dikran and Beatrice Kelekian, 1999
Accession Number: 1999.325.190 Metmuseum
Fig. 7 Stone cylinder seal. Old Syria ca. 1720-1650 BCE
Period: Old Syrian
Date: ca. 1720–1650 B.C.
Geography: Syria
Medium: Stone
Dimensions: H. 1.9 cm x Diam. 1.1 cm
Classification: Stone-Cylinder Seals
Credit Line: Bequest of W. Gedney Beatty, 1941
Accession Number: 41.160.189 Metmuseum
Fig. 8 Hematite cylinder seal. Old Syria. ca. early 2nd millennium BCE
Period: Old Syrian
Date: ca. early 2nd millennium B.C.E
Geography: Syria
Medium: Hematite
Dimensions: H. 11/16 in. (1.7 cm); Diam. 5/16 in. (0.8 cm)
Classification: Stone-Cylinder Seals
Credit Line: Gift of Nanette B. Kelekian, in memory of Charles Dikran and Beatrice Kelekian, 1999
Accession Number: 1999.325.161 Metmuseum
- Fig. 9 Fragment of an Iranian Chlorite Vase. 2500-2400 BCE
- Decorated with the lion headed eagle (Imdugud) found in the temple of Ishtar during the 1933 - 1934 fieldwork by Parrot. Dated 2500 - 2400 BCE. Louvre Museum collection AO 17553.
Fig. 10 Shahdad standard. ca. 2400 BCE Line drawing
Fig. 11 Cylinder seal. 2 seated lions. Twisted rope. Louvre AO7296
Fig. 11 Cylinder seal. 2 seated lions. Twisted rope. Louvre AO7296
Fig.12 Cylinder seal. Sumerian. 18th cent. BCE. Louvre AO 22366
Fig. 13 Bogazkoy Seal impression ca. 18th cent. BCE
(Two-headed eagle, a twisted cord below. From Bogazköy . 18th c. BCE (Museum Ankara).
Fig. 13 Bogazkoy Seal impression Decipherment:
eruvai 'kite' Rebus: eruvai 'copper' dhAtu 'strands of rope' Rebus: dhAtu 'mineral' (Note the three strands of the rope hieroglyph on the seal impression from Bogazkoy; it is read: tridhAtu 'three mineral elements'). It signifies copper compound of three minerals; maybe, arsenic copper? or arsenic bronze, as distinct from tin bronze?
Sulfide deposits frequently are a mix of different metal sulfides, such as copper, zinc, silver, lead, arsenic and other metals. (Sphalerite (ZnS2), for example, is not uncommon in copper sulfide deposits, and the metal smelted would be brass, which is both harder and more durable than bronze.)The metals could theoretically be separated out, but the alloys resulting were typically much stronger than the metals individually.
| Ore name | Chemical formula |
|---|---|
| Arsenopyrite | FeAsS |
| Enargite | Cu3AsS4 |
| Olivenite | Cu2(AsO4)OH |
| Tennantite | Cu12As4S13 |
| Malachite | Cu2(OH)2CO3 |
| Azurite | Cu3(OH)2(CO3)2 |
Mirror: http://tinyurl.com/nuceor7
Dudu plaque ca. 2400 BCE signifies sanga of Ningirsu.
Shahdad standard ca. 2400 BCE signifies dhāvaḍ 'iron-smelters'. (Note: the gloss explains the place name Dharwar close to the iron ore mines in Deccan Plateau of India).
The continuum of Sarasvati-Sindhu civilization in an extensive civilizational contact area from 3rd millennium BCE and the metalwork competence of Bhāratam Janam is explained by this link of Dharwar city of Karnataka to the artifacts of over 4000 years Before Present found in Ancient Near East (Sumer/Elam/Mesopotamia). This is a moment for celebration of Dharwar and Shahdad as twin cities from ancient Bronze Age times.
Both artifacts -- Dudu plaque and Shahdad standard -- signify a three-stranded twisted rope hieroglyph, (together with other metalwork signifying hieroglyphs). The hieroglyph-multiplexes on both artifacts signify workers with tridhātu 'three minerals (metals of soft red stones)'.
These inscribed artifacts herald a Bronze Age advance into the Iron Age of Ancient Iran. The language used to render the Indus Script cipher is Proto-Prakritam. No wonder, speakers of Proto-Prakritam were present in Ancient Iran.
sanga 'priest' is a loanword in Sumerian/Akkadian. The presence of such a sanga may also explain Gudea as an Assur, in the tradition of ancient metalworkers speaking Proto-Prakritam of Indian sprachbund.
The Sumerian/Akkadian word sanga, is a loan from Proto-Prakritam or Meluhha of Indian sprachbund. saṁghapati m. ʻ chief of a brotherhood ʼ Śatr. [
Pa. saṅgha -- m. ʻ assembly, the priesthood ʼ; Aś. saṁgha -- m. ʻ the Buddhist community ʼ; Pk. saṁgha -- m. ʻ assembly, collection ʼ; OSi. (Brāhmī inscr.) saga, Si. san̆ga ʻ crowd, collection ʼ. -- Rather <
dhātu (f.) [Sk. dhātu to dadhāti, Idg. *dhē, cp. Gr. ti/qhmi, a)na/ -- qhma , Sk. dhāman, dhāṭr (=Lat. conditor); Goth. gadēds; Ohg. tāt, tuom (in meaning -- ˚=dhātu, cp. E. serf -- dom "condition of . . .") tuon=E. to do; & with k -- suffix Lat. facio, Gr. (e)/ )qhk (a ), Sk. dhāka; see also dhamma] element... -- kusala skilled in the elements M iii. 62; ˚kusalatā proficiency in the (18) elements D iii. 212; Dhs 1333; -- ghara "house for a relic," a dagoba SnA 194. -- cetiya a shrine over a relic DhA iii. 29 (Pali)
Ti˚ [Vedic tris, Av. priś, Gr. tri/s , Lat. ter (fr. ters>*tris, cp. testis>*tristo, trecenti>*tricenti), Icl. prisvar, Ohg. driror] base of numeral three in compn ; consisting of three, threefold; in numerical cpds. also= three (3 times)...-- vidha 3 fold, of sacrifice (yañña) D i. 128, 134, 143; of aggi (fire) J i. 4 & Miln 97; Vism 147 (˚kalyāṇatā). (Pali)
Hieroglyph: 'three strands of rope': tridhāˊtu -- ʻ threefold ʼ RV (CDIAL 6283) ti-dhātu (Proto-Prakritam, Meluhha) signifies three elements (minerals of 'soft red stones').The Meluhha glosses: dhāū, dhāv connote a soft red stone. (See cognate etyma of Indian sprachbund appended).
I suggest that the 'twist' hieroglyphs on Dudu plaque and on Shahdad standard signify ti-dhātu 'three strands of rope' Rebus: ti-dhātu 'three minerals'. The dhā- suffix signifies 'elements, minerals': dhāvaḍ 'iron-smelters'. dhāvḍī ʻcomposed of or relating to ironʼ. Thus, the hieroglyph 'twist' is signified by the Proto-Prakritam gloss: ti-dhātu semantically 'three metal/mineral elements.' Thus Dudu, sanga of Ningirsu and the sanga 'priest' shown on Shahdad standard can be identified as dhāvaḍ 'iron (metal)-smelters'.
This decipherment is consistent with other hieroglyphs shown the Dudu plaque and on Shahdad standard.
Location of Lagash. At the time of Hammurabi, Lagash was located near the shoreline of the gulf.
Location of Shahdad
Oldest standard in the world. Shahdad standard, 2400 BCE (Prof. Mahmoud Rexa Maheri, Prof. Dept. of Civil Engineering, Shiraz University, dates this to ca. 3000 BCE Oct. 15, 2015 "Following an archeological survey of the South-East Iran in 1930's by Sir Auriel Stein, in 1960's and 1970's a number of archeological expeditions spent a few seasons digging at different locations through the
The upper section of the Shahdad Standard, grave No. 114, Object No. 1049 (p.24)
Three pots are shown of three sizes in the context of kneeling adorants seated in front of the person seated on a stool. meṇḍā 'kneeling position' (Gondi) Rebus: meḍ 'iron' (Munda)
eruvai 'kite' Rebus:eruvai 'copper'
dula 'pair' Rebus: dul 'cast metal'
arya 'lion' (Akkadian) Rebus: Ara 'brass'
kul, kOla 'tiger' Rebus: kol 'working in iron'
poLa 'zebu' Rebus: poLa 'magnetite'
kōla = woman (Nahali) Rebus: kol ‘furnace, forge’ (Kuwi) kol ‘alloy of five
metals, pañcaloha’ (Tamil) kol ‘working in iron’ (Tamil)
kaṇḍō a stool. Malt. Kanḍo stool, seat. (DEDR 1179) Rebus: kaṇḍ = a furnace,
kaṇḍō a stool. Malt. Kanḍo stool, seat. (DEDR 1179) Rebus: kaṇḍ = a furnace,
altar (Santali)
If the date palm denotes tamar (Hebrew language), ‘palm tree, date palm’ the rebus reading would be: tam(b)ra, ‘copper’ (Pkt.)
If the date palm denotes tamar (Hebrew language), ‘palm tree, date palm’ the rebus reading would be: tam(b)ra, ‘copper’ (Pkt.)
kuṭi ‘tree’. Rebus: kuṭhi ‘smelter’ (Santali). The two trees are shown ligatured to
a rectangle with ten square divisions and a dot in each square. The dot may
denote an ingot in a furnace mould.
Hieroglyph: BHSk. gaṇḍa -- m. ʻ piece, part ʼ(CDIAL 3791)
Hieroglyph: Paš. lauṛ. khaṇḍā ʻ cultivated field ʼ, °ḍī ʻ small do. ʼ (→ Par. kheṇ ʻ field ʼ IIFL i 265); Gaw. khaṇḍa ʻ hill pasture ʼ (see also bel.)(CDIAL 3792)
Rebus: khaṇḍa 'implements'
Santali glosses
Glyph of rectangle with divisions: baṭai = to divide, share (Santali) [Note the
glyphs of nine rectangles divided.] Rebus: bhaṭa = an oven, kiln, furnace
(Santali)
Three sets of entwined 'glyphs (like twisted ropes) are shown around the entire narrative of the Shahdad standard.
ḍāḷ= a branch of a tree (G.) Rebus: ḍhāḷako = a large ingot (G.) ḍhāḷakī = a metal heated and poured into a mould; a solid piece of metal; an ingot (G.)
Three sets of entwined 'glyphs (like twisted ropes) are shown around the entire narrative of the Shahdad standard.
Twisted rope as hieroglyph:
Rebus: dhāˊtu n. ʻ substance ʼ RV., m. ʻ element ʼ MBh., ʻ metal, mineral, ore (esp. of a red colour) ʼ Mn.Pk. dhāu -- m. ʻ metal, red chalk ʼ; N. dhāu ʻ ore (esp. of copper) ʼ; Or. ḍhāu ʻ red chalk, red ochre ʼ (whence ḍhāuā ʻ reddish ʼ; M. dhāū, dhāv m.f. ʻ a partic. soft red stone ʼ (whence dhā̆vaḍ m. ʻ a caste of iron -- smelters ʼ, dhāvḍī ʻ composed of or relating to iron ʼ)(CDIAL 6773).
- Votive relief of Dudu, priest of Ningirsu, in the days of King Entemena of Lagash.
- Mésopotamie, room 1a: La Mésopotamie du Néolithique à l'époque des Dynasties archaïques de Sumer. Richelieu, ground floor.
This work is part of the collections of the Louvre (Department of Near Eastern Antiquities).Louvre Museum: excavated by Ernest de Sarzec. Place: Girsu (modern city of Telloh, Iraq). Musée du Louvre, Atlas database: entry 11378 Votive relief of Dudu, priest of Ningirsu, in the days of King Entemena of Lagash. Oil shale, ca. 2400 BC. Found in Telloh, ancient city of Girsu. |H. 25 cm (9 ¾ in.), W. 23 cm (9 in.), D. 8 cm (3 in.) 
- Votive bas-relief of Dudu, priest of Ningirsu in the time of Entemena, prince of Lagash C. 2400 BCE Tello (ancient Girsu) Bituminous stone H. 25 cm; W. 23 cm; Th. 8 cm De Sarzec excavations, 1881 AO 2354
- Hieroglyph: dhA 'rope strand' Rebus: dhAtu 'mineral element' Alternative: मेढा [ mēḍhā ] 'a curl or snarl; twist in thread' (Marathi) Rebus: mẽṛhẽt, meḍ ‘iron’ (Mu.Ho.) eruvai 'eagle'
- Rebus: eruvai 'copper'.
- eraka 'wing' Rebus: erako 'moltencast copper'.
- Plaques perforated in the center and decorated with scenes incised or carved in relief were particularly widespread in the 2nd and 3rd Early Dynastic Periods (2800-2340 BC), and have been found at many sites in Mesopotamian and more rarely in Syria or Iran. The perforated plaque of Dudu, high priest of Ningirsu in the reign of Entemena, prince of Lagash (c.2450 BC), belongs to this tradition. It has some distinctive features, however, such as being made of bitumen.
Dudu, priest of Ningirsu
The bas-relief is perforated in the middle and divided into four unequal sections. A figure occupying the height of two registers faces right, leaning on what appears to be a long staff. He is dressed in the kaunakes, a skirt of sheepskin or other material tufted in imitation of it. His name is inscribed alongside: Dudu, rendered by the pictograph for the foot, "du," repeated. Dudu was high priest of the god Ningirsu at the time of Entemena, prince of Lagash (c.2450 BC). Incised to his left is the lion-headed eagle, symbol of the god Ningirsu and emblem of Lagash, as found in other perforated plaques from Telloh, as well as on other objects such as the mace head of Mesilim, king of Kish, and the silver vase of Entemena, king of Lagash. On this plaque, however, the two lions, usually impassive, are reaching up to bite the wings of the lion-headed eagle. Lower down is a calf, lying in the same position as the heifers on Entemena's vase. The lower register is decorated with a plait-like motif, according to some scholars a symbol of running water.Perforated plaques
This plaque belongs to the category of perforated plaques, widespread throughout Phases I and II of the Early Dynastic Period, c.2800-2340 BCE, and found at many sites in Mesopotamia (especially in the Diyala region), and more rarely in Syria (Mari) and Iran (Susa). Some 120 examples are known, of which about 50 come from religious buildings. These plaques are usually rectangular in form, perforated in the middle and decorated with scenes incised or carved in relief. They are most commonly of limestone or gypsum: this plaque, being of bitumen, is an exception to the rule.Bibliography
André B, Naissance de l'écriture : cunéiformes et hiéroglyphes, (notice), Paris, Exposition du Grand Palais, 7 mai au 9 août 1982, Paris, Editions de la Réunion des musées nationaux, 1982, p. 85, n 42.Contenau G., Manuel d'archéologie orientale, Paris, Picard, 1927, p. 487, fig. 357.Heuzey L., Les Antiquités chaldéennes, Paris, Librairie des Imprimeries Réunies, 1902, n 12.Orthmann W., Der Alte Orient, Berlin, Propylaën (14), 1975, pl. 88. Sarzec É., Découvertes en Chaldée, Paris, Leroux, 1884-1912, pp. 204-209.Thureau-Dangin, Les inscriptions de Sumer et d'Akkad, Paris, Leroux, 1905, p. 59.
The image may be read as a series of rebuses or ideograms. A priest dedicates an object to his god, represented by his symbol, and flanked perhaps by representations of sacrificial offerings: an animal for slaughter and a libation of running water. The dedicatory inscription, confined to the area left free by the image in the upper part , runs over the body of the calf: "For Ningirsu of the Eninnu, Dudu, priest of Ningirsu ... brought [this material] and fashioned it as a mace stand." See alternative readings provided for the 'twist' hieroglyph. Maybe, the calf is NOT an animal for slaughter but a gloss which sounds similar to the name of the sanga, 'priest': Dudu. The calf is called dUDa (Indian sprachbund). It may also have sounded: dāmuri ʻcalfʼ evoking the rebus of dAv 'strands of rope' rebus: dhAtu 'mineral elements'.
The precise function of such plaques is unknown, and the purpose of the central perforation remains a mystery. The inscription here at first led scholars to consider them as mace stands, which seems unlikely. Some have thought they were to be hung on a wall, the hole in the center taking a large nail or peg. Others have suggested they might be part of a door-closing mechanism. Perforated plaques such as this are most commonly organized in horizontal registers, showing various ceremonies, banquets (particularly in the Diyala), the construction of buildings (as in the perforated plaque of Ur-Nanshe), and scenes of cultic rituals (as in the perforated plaque showing "the Libation to the Goddess of Fertility"). The iconography is often standardized, almost certainly an indication that they represent a common culture covering the whole of Mesopotamia, and that they had a specific significance understood by all." http://www.louvre.fr/en/oeuvre-notices/perforated-plaque-dudu- Perforated plaque of Dudu with 'twisted rope' and other Indus Script hieroglyphsI suggest that the hieroglyphs on the Dudu plaque are: eagle, pair of lions, twisted rope, calfHieroglyph: eruvai 'kite' Rebus: eruvai 'copper'Hieroglyph: arye 'lion' (Akkadian) Rebus: Ara 'brass'Hieroglyph: dām m. ʻ young ungelt ox ʼ: damya ʻ tameable ʼ, m. ʻ young bullock to be tamed ʼ Mn. [~ *
dāmiya -- . -- √dam ]Pa. damma -- ʻ to be tamed (esp. of a young bullock) ʼ; Pk. damma -- ʻ to be tamed ʼ; S. ḍ̠amu ʻ tamed ʼ; -- ext. -- ḍa -- : A. damrā ʻ young bull ʼ, dāmuri ʻ calf ʼ; B.dāmṛā ʻ castrated bullock ʼ; Or. dāmaṛī ʻ heifer ʼ, dāmaṛiā ʻ bullcalf, young castrated bullock ʼ, dāmuṛ, °ṛi ʻ young bullock ʼ.Addenda: damya -- : WPah.kṭg. dām m. ʻ young ungelt ox ʼ.(CDIAL 6184). This is a phonetic determinative of the 'twisted rope' hieroglyph: dhāī˜ f.dāˊman1 ʻ rope ʼ (Rigveda)Dudu, sanga priest of Ningirsu, dedicatory plaque with image of Anzud (Imdugud) Fig. 14 Dudu plaque. Votive bas-relief of Dudu, priest of Ningirsu in the time of Entemena, prince of Lagash, ca. 2400 BCE Tello (ancient Girsu) - Bituminous stoneH. 25 cm; W. 23 cm; Th. 8 cm
- De Sarzec excavations, 1881 , 1881AO 2354
- Anzud with two lions.
- Hieroglyph: endless knot motif
After Fig. 52, p.85 in Prudence Hopper opcit. Plaque with male figures, serpents and quadruped. Bitumen compound. H. 9 7/8 in (25 cm); w. 8 ½ in. (21.5 cm); d. 3 3/8 in. (8.5 cm). ca. 2600-2500 BCE. Acropole, temple of Ninhursag Sb 2724. The scene is described: “Two beardless, long-haired, nude male figures, their heads in profile and their bodies in three-quarter view, face the center of the composition…upper centre, where two intertwined serpents with their tails in their mouths appear above the upraised hands. At the base of the plaque, between the feet of the two figures, a small calf or lamb strides to the right. An irregular oblong cavity or break was made in the centre of the scene at a later date.”The hieroglyphs on this plaque are: kid and endless-knot motif (or three strands of rope twisted).Hieroglyph: 'kid': करडूं or करडें (p. 137) [ karaḍū or ṅkaraḍēṃ ] n A kid. कराडूं (p. 137) [ karāḍūṃ ] n (Commonlyकरडूं ) A kid. Rebus: करडा (p. 137) [ karaḍā ] Hard from alloy--iron, silver &c.(Marathi)I suggest that the center of the composition is NOT set of intertwined serpents, but an endless knot motif signifying a coiled rope being twisted from three strands of fibre.
Twisted rope as hieroglyph on a plaque.
Alternative hieroglyph: मेढा [ mēḍhā ] 'a curl or snarl; twist in thread' (Marathi) Rebus: mẽṛhẽt, meḍ ‘iron’ (Mu.Ho.) eruvai 'eagle' Rebus: eruvai 'copper'. kōḍe, kōḍiya. [Tel.] n. A bullcalf. Rebus: koḍ artisan’s workshop (Kuwi) kunda ‘turner’ kundār turner (Assamese) मेढा [ mēḍhā ] A twist or tangle arising in thread or cord, a curl or snarl.(Marathi)(CDIAL 10312).L. meṛh f. ʻrope tying oxen to each other and to post on threshing floorʼ(CDIAL 10317) Rebus: mẽṛhẽt, meḍ ‘iron’ (Mu.Ho.)
A stranded rope as a hieroglyph signifies dhAtu rebus metal, mineral, ore. This occurs on Ancient Near East objects with hieroglyphs such as votive bas-relief of Dudu, priest of Ningirsu in the time of Entemena, prince of Lagash C. 2400 BCE Tello (ancient Girsu), eagle and stranded rope from Bogazhkoy. Indus Script decipherment of these hieroglyph-multiplexes confirms the underlying Prakritam as an Indo-European language and Indus Script Corpora is emphatically catalogus catalogorum of metalwork of the Bronze Age in Ancient Near East.
m1406 Seal using three-stranded rope: dhAtu Rebus: iron ore.
Hieroglyph: धातु [p= 513,3] m. layer , stratum Ka1tyS3r. Kaus3. constituent part , ingredient (esp. [ and in RV. only] ifc. , where often = " fold " e.g. त्रि-ध्/आतु , threefold &c ; cf.त्रिविष्टि- , सप्त- , सु-) RV. TS. S3Br. &c (Monier-Williams) dhāˊtu *strand of rope ʼ (cf. tridhāˊtu -- ʻ threefold ʼ RV., ayugdhātu -- ʻ having an uneven number of strands ʼ KātyŚr.).; S. dhāī f. ʻ wisp of fibres added from time to time to a rope that is being twisted ʼ, L. dhāī˜ f.(CDIAL 6773)
Rebus: M. dhāū, dhāv m.f. ʻ a partic. soft red stone ʼ (whence dhā̆vaḍ m. ʻ a caste of iron -- smelters ʼ, dhāvḍī ʻ composed of or relating to iron ʼ); dhāˊtu n. ʻ substance ʼ RV., m. ʻ element ʼ MBh., ʻ metal, mineral, ore (esp. of a red colour) ʼ; Pk. dhāu -- m. ʻ metal, red chalk ʼ; N. dhāu ʻ ore (esp. of copper) ʼ; Or. ḍhāu ʻ red chalk, red ochre ʼ (whence ḍhāuā ʻ reddish ʼ; (CDIAL 6773) धातु primary element of the earth i.e. metal , mineral, ore (esp. a mineral of a red colour) Mn. MBh. &c element of words i.e. grammatical or verbal root or stem Nir. Pra1t. MBh. &c (with the southern Buddhists धातु means either the 6 elements [see above] Dharmas. xxv ; or the 18 elementary spheres [धातु-लोक] ib. lviii ; or the ashes of the body , relics L. [cf. -गर्भ]) (Monier-Williams. Samskritam)
There are two Railway stations in India called Dharwad and Ib. Both are related to Prakritam words with the semantic significance: iron worker, iron ore.
dhā̆vaḍ m. ʻ a caste of iron -- smelters ʼ, dhāvḍī ʻ composed of or relating to iron ʼ (Marathi)(CDIAL 6773)
ib 'iron' (Santali) karba 'iron'; ajirda karba 'native metal iron' (Tulu) karabha 'trunk of elephant' Rebus: karba 'iron' ibha 'elephant' Rebus: ib 'iron ore' (Santali) The gloss ajirda (Tulu) is cognate with aduru, ayas. Hence, it is likely that the gloss ayas of Rigveda signifies native, unsmelted metal of iron ore.
Glazed steatite . Cylinder seal. 3.4cm high; imported from Indus valley. Rhinoceros, elephant, crocodile (lizard? ).Tell Asmar (Eshnunna), Iraq. Elephant, rhinoceros, crocodile hieroglyphs: ib 'elephant' Rebus: ib 'iron' kANDa 'rhinoceros' Rebus: kANDa 'iron implements' karA 'crocodile' Rebus: khAr 'blacksmith' (Kashmiri)
Located on the Map of India are regions with Fe (Iron ore) mines: the locations include Dharwad and Ib.
Dharwad is the district headquarters of Dharwad district in the state of Karnataka, India. It was merged with the city of Hubli in 1961 to form the twin cities of Hubli-Dharwad. It covers an area of 200.23 km² and is located 425 km northwest of Bengaluru, onNH 4, between Bengaluru and Pune...The word "Dharwad" means a place of rest in a long travel or a small habitation. For centuries, Dharwad acted as a gateway between the Malenaadu (western mountains) and the Bayalu seeme (plains) and it became a resting place for travellers. Inscriptions found near Durga Devi temple in Narendra (a nearby village) and RLS High School date back to the 12th century and have references to Dharwad. This makes Dharwad at least 900 years old. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dharwad The place is located in the region of hematite (iron ore) -- e.g. Sandur taluk
The station derives its name from Ib River flowing nearby. Ib railway station came up with the opening of the Nagpur-Asansol main line of Bengal Nagpur Railway in 1891. It became a station on the crosscountry Howrah-Nagpur-Mumbai line in 1900 In 1900, when Bengal Nagpur Railway was building a bridge across the Ib River, coal was accidentally discovered in what later became Ib Valley Coalfield. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ib_railway_station
dhAtu is a gloss which signifies metal, mineral, ore. It is likely that in early Bronze Age, the mineral specifically referred to is iron ore or meteoric iron as naturally occurring native, unsmelted metal called aduru, ayas. A gloss dhāvaḍ has the meaning: iron smelters. This gloss derived rom dhAtu can be explained in an archaeometallurgical context with evidences from Indus Script Corpora.
This suggestion is premised on a Marathi gloss (Prakritam, Meluhha pronunciation) cognate with dhAtu: dhāū, dhāv m.f. ʻa partic. soft red stoneʼ (Marathi)
This note suggests that the place names in India of Dharwad and Ib are related to nearby iron ore regions and lived in by iron workers. The names are derived from two etyma streams: 1 dhāū, dhāv m.f. ʻ a partic. soft red stone ʼ
(whence dhā̆vaḍ m. ʻa caste of iron -- smeltersʼ, dhāvḍī ʻ composed of or relating to iron ʼ); dhātu n. ʻ substance ʼ RV., m. ʻ element ʼ 2. ib 'iron' kara +iba, karba 'iron'. For example, the place name Dharwad is relatable to dhāvaḍ 'iron-smelters'. Archaeological explorations near Dharwad and Ib may indicate evidences for iron smelting.
This etymon indicates the possible reading of the tall flagpost carried by kneeling persons with six locks of hair: baTa 'six' Rebus: bhaTa 'furnace'. Associated with nAga 'serpent' Rebus: nAga 'lead'
The banner flagpost carried by four flag-bearers includes a banner associated with fish. aya 'fish' Rebus: aya 'iron' (Gujarati) ayas 'metal' (Rigveda) http://bharatkalyan97.blogspot.in/2015/08/indus-script-unravels-announcement-of.html presents the picture of a 11-ft tall banner from Girsu (Telloh)
Red jasper H. 1 1/8 in. (2.8 cm), Diam. 5/8 in. (1.6 cm) cylinder Seal with four hieroglyphs and four kneeling persons (with six curls on their hair) holding flagposts, c. 2220-2159 B.C.E., Akkadian (Metropolitan Museum of Art) Cylinder Seal (with modern impression). The four hieroglyphs are: from l. to r. 1. crucible PLUS storage pot of ingots, 2. sun, 3. narrow-necked pot with overflowing water, 4. fish A hooded snake is on the edge of the composition. (The dark red color of jasper reinforces the semantics: eruvai 'dark red, copper' Hieroglyph: eruvai 'reed'; see four reedposts held.
If the hieroglyph on the leftmost is moon, a possible rebus reading: قمر ḳamar
A قمر ḳamar, s.m. (9th) The moon. Sing. and Pl. See سپوږمي or سپوګمي (Pashto) Rebus: kamar 'blacksmith'
Situated at the end of a small delta on a dry plain, Shahdad was excavated by an Iranian team in the 1970s. (Courtesy Maurizio Tosi) 
An Iranian-Italian team, including archaeologist Massimo Vidale (right), surveyed the site in 2009. (Courtesy Massimo Vidale) The peripatetic English explorer Sir Aurel Stein, famous for his archaeological work surveying large swaths of Central Asia and the Middle East, slipped into Persia at the end of 1915 and found the first hints of eastern Iran's lost cities. Stein traversed what he described as "a big stretch of gravel and sandy desert" and encountered "the usual...robber bands from across the Afghan border, without any exciting incident." What did excite Stein was the discovery of what he called "the most surprising prehistoric site" on the eastern edge of the Dasht-e Lut. Locals called it Shahr-i-Sokhta ("Burnt City") because of signs of ancient destruction. It wasn't until a half-century later that Tosi and his team hacked their way through the thick salt crust and discovered a metropolis rivaling those of the first great urban centers in Mesopotamia and the Indus. Radiocarbon data showed that the site was founded around 3200 B.C., just as the first substantial cities in Mesopotamia were being built, and flourished for more than a thousand years. During its heyday in the middle of the third millennium B.C., the city covered more than 150 hectares and may have been home to more than 20,000 people, perhaps as populous as the large cities of Umma in Mesopotamia and Mohenjo-Daro on the Indus River. A vast shallow lake and wells likely provided the necessary water, allowing for cultivated fields and grazing for animals. Built of mudbrick, the city boasted a large palace, separate neighborhoods for pottery-making, metalworking, and other industrial activities, and distinct areas for the production of local goods. Most residents lived in modest one-room houses, though some were larger compounds with six to eight rooms. Bags of goods and storerooms were often "locked" with stamp seals, a procedure common in Mesopotamia in the era. Shahr-i-Sokhta boomed as the demand for precious goods among elites in the region and elsewhere grew. Though situated in inhospitable terrain, the city was close to tin, copper, and turquoise mines, and lay on the route bringing lapis lazuli from Afghanistan to the west. Craftsmen worked shells from the Persian Gulf, carnelian from India, and local metals such as tin and copper. Some they made into finished products, and others were exported in unfinished form. Lapis blocks brought from the Hindu Kush mountains, for example, were cut into smaller chunks and sent on to Mesopotamia and as far west as Syria. Unworked blocks of lapis weighing more than 100 pounds in total were unearthed in the ruined palace of Ebla, close to the Mediterranean Sea. Archaeologist Massimo Vidale of the University of Padua says that the elites in eastern Iranian cities like Shahr-i-Sokhta were not simply slaves to Mesopotamian markets. They apparently kept the best-quality lapis for themselves, and sent west what they did not want. Lapis beads found in the royal tombs of Ur, for example, are intricately carved, but of generally low-quality stone compared to those of Shahr-i-Sokhta. Pottery was produced on a massive scale. Nearly 100 kilns were clustered in one part of town and the craftspeople also had a thriving textile industry. Hundreds of wooden spindle whorls and combs were uncovered, as were well-preserved textile fragments made of goat hair and wool that show a wide variation in their weave. According to Irene Good, a specialist in ancient textiles at Oxford University, this group of textile fragments constitutes one of the most important in the world, given their great antiquity and the insight they provide into an early stage of the evolution of wool production. Textiles were big business in the third millennium B.C., according to Mesopotamian texts, but actual textiles from this era had never before been found.
A metal flag found at Shahdad, one of eastern Iran's early urban sites, dates to around 2400 B.C. The flag depicts a man and woman facing each other, one of the recurrent themes in the region's art at this time. (Courtesy Maurizio Tosi) 
This plain ceramic jar, found recently at Shahdad, contains residue of a white cosmetic whose complex formula is evidence for an extensive knowledge of chemistry among the city's ancient inhabitants. (Courtesy Massimo Vidale) The artifacts also show the breadth of Shahr-i-Sokhta's connections. Some excavated red-and-black ceramics share traits with those found in the hills and steppes of distant Turkmenistan to the north, while others are similar to pots made in Pakistan to the east, then home to the Indus civilization. Tosi's team found a clay tablet written in a script called Proto-Elamite, which emerged at the end of the fourth millennium B.C., just after the advent of the first known writing system, cuneiform, which evolved in Mesopotamia. Other such tablets and sealings with Proto-Elamite signs have also been found in eastern Iran, such as at Tepe Yahya. This script was used for only a few centuries starting around 3200 B.C. and may have emerged in Susa, just east of Mesopotamia. By the middle of the third millennium B.C., however, it was no longer in use. Most of the eastern Iranian tablets record simple transactions involving sheep, goats, and grain and could have been used to keep track of goods in large households. While Tosi's team was digging at Shahr-i-Sokhta, Iranian archaeologist Ali Hakemi was working at another site, Shahdad, on the western side of the Dasht-e Lut. This settlement emerged as early as the fifth millennium B.C. on a delta at the edge of the desert. By the early third millennium B.C., Shahdad began to grow quickly as international trade with Mesopotamia expanded. Tomb excavations revealed spectacular artifacts amid stone blocks once painted in vibrant colors. These include several extraordinary, nearly life-size clay statues placed with the dead. The city's artisans worked lapis lazuli, silver, lead, turquoise, and other materials imported from as far away as eastern Afghanistan, as well as shells from the distant Persian Gulf and Indian Ocean. Evidence shows that ancient Shahdad had a large metalworking industry by this time. During a recent survey, a new generation of archaeologists found a vast hill—nearly 300 feet by 300 feet—covered with slag from smelting copper. Vidale says that analysis of the copper ore suggests that the smiths were savvy enough to add a small amount of arsenic in the later stages of the process to strengthen the final product. Shahdad's metalworkers also created such remarkable artifacts as a metal flag dating to about 2400 B.C. Mounted on a copper pole topped with a bird, perhaps an eagle, the squared flag depicts two figures facing one another on a rich background of animals, plants, and goddesses. The flag has no parallels and its use is unknown. Vidale has also found evidence of a sweet-smelling nature. During a spring 2009 visit to Shahdad, he discovered a small stone container lying on the ground. The vessel, which appears to date to the late fourth millennium B.C., was made of chlorite, a dark soft stone favored by ancient artisans in southeast Iran. Using X-ray diffraction at an Iranian lab, he discovered lead carbonate—used as a white cosmetic—sealed in the bottom of the jar. He identified fatty material that likely was added as a binder, as well as traces of coumarin, a fragrant chemical compound found in plants and used in some perfumes. Further analysis showed small traces of copper, possibly the result of a user dipping a small metal applicator into the container. Other sites in eastern Iran are only now being investigated. For the past two years, Iranian archaeologists Hassan Fazeli Nashli and Hassain Ali Kavosh from the University of Tehran have been digging in a small settlement a few miles east of Shahdad called Tepe Graziani, named for the Italian archaeologist who first surveyed the site. They are trying to understand the role of the city's outer settlements by examining this ancient mound, which is 30 feet high, 525 feet wide, and 720 feet long. Excavators have uncovered a wealth of artifacts including a variety of small sculptures depicting crude human figures, humped bulls, and a Bactrian camel dating to approximately 2900 B.C. A bronze mirror, fishhooks, daggers, and pins are among the metal finds. There are also wooden combs that survived in the arid climate. "The site is small but very rich," says Fazeli, adding that it may have been a prosperous suburban production center for Shahdad. Sites such as Shahdad and Shahr-i-Sokhta and their suburbs were not simply islands of settlements in what otherwise was empty desert. Fazeli adds that some 900 Bronze Age sites have been found on the Sistan plain, which borders Afghanistan and Pakistan. Mortazavi, meanwhile, has been examining the area around the Bampur Valley, in Iran's extreme southeast. This area was a corridor between the Iranian plateau and the Indus Valley, as well as between Shahr-i-Sokhta to the north and the Persian Gulf to the south. A 2006 survey along the Damin River identified 19 Bronze Age sites in an area of less than 20 square miles. That river periodically vanishes, and farmers depend on underground channels called qanats to transport water. Despite the lack of large rivers, ancient eastern Iranians were very savvy in marshaling their few water resources. Using satellite remote sensing data, Vidale has found remains of what might be ancient canals or qanats around Shahdad, but more work is necessary to understand how inhabitants supported themselves in this harsh climate 5,000 years ago, as they still do today.
A Proto-Dilmun seal? Source: https://www.academia.edu/7837834/From_rags_to_riches_three_crucial_steps_in_Dilmun_s_rise_to_fame_poster_-_HIGH_RESOLUTION_FIGS._1-4
kolmo 'rice-plant' Rebus: kolimi 'smithy, forge' melh 'goat' Rebus: milakkhu
'copper' bica 'scorpion' Rebus: bica 'laterite' kulA 'hooded serpent' Rebus: kolhe
'smelter'.
The legs are made of copper. The vase features an image of Anzud (also known as Imdugud), the lion-headed eagle, grasping two lions with his talons.
Detail drawing of the Enmetena vase. Lions kisse the antelopes.
Inscribed vase of silver and copper of Entemena, king of Lagash, with dedication to the god Ningirsu, around 2400 BC, Musée du Louvre, Paris. Found in Telloh, ancient city of Girsu.
The dedicatory inscriptions wrap around the neck of the vase:
.
Translation of the inscriptions from the CDLI (P222539):
For Ningirsu, the hero of Enlil,
Enmetena, ruler of Lagash,
chosen by the heart of Nanshe,
chief ruler of Ningirsu,
son of Enannatum, ruler of Lagash,
for the king who loved him, Ningirsu,
(this) gurgur-vessel of refined silver,
from which Ningirsu will consume the monthly oil (offering),
he had fashioned for him.
For his life, before Ningirsu of the Eninnu (temple)
he had it set up.
At that time Dudu
was the temple administrator of Ningirsu.
Votive relief of Ur-Nanshe, king of Lagash. Limestone, Early Dynastic III (2550–2500 BC). Found in Telloh (ancient city of Girsu).Louvre AO2344 At the top he creates the foundation for a shrine, at the bottom he presides over the dedication (Louvre).
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lagash#/media/File:Relief_Ur-Nanshe_Louvre_AO2344.jpg Inscription: “Ur-Nanshe, king of Lagash, son of Gunidu, built the temple of Ningirsu; he built the temple of Nanshe; he built Apsubanda...boats from the (distant) land of Dilmun carried the wood (for him)”. This is the oldest known written record of Dilmun and importation of goods intoMesopotamia. ( Pouysségur, Patrick , ed. "Perforated Relief of King Ur-Nanshe." Lourve Museum. Louvre Museum). http://cdli.ox.ac.uk/wiki/doku.php?id=ur-nanshe
Votive relief of Ur-Nanshe, king of Lagash, representing the bird-god Anzu (or Im-dugud) as a lion-headed eagle. Alabaster, Early Dynastic III (2550–2500 BC). Found in Telloh, ancient city of Girsu https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ur-Nanshe#/media/File:Relief_Im-dugud_Louvre_AO2783.jpg
Decipherment:
Hieroglyph: eraka 'wing' Rebus: eraka 'moltencast copper'; kola 'tiger' Rebus: kolhe 'smelter' kol 'working in iron'; arya 'lion' Rebus: Ara 'brass' dula 'pair' Rebus: dul 'cast metal'.
Etyma: Indian sprachbund
kul ‘tiger’ (Santali); kōlu id. (Te.) kōlupuli = Bengal tiger (Te.)Pk. Kolhuya -- , kulha — m. ʻ jackal ʼ < *kōḍhu -- ; H.kolhā, °lā m. ʻ jackal ʼ, adj. ʻ crafty ʼ; G. kohlũ, °lũ n. ʻ jackal ʼ, M. kolhā, °lā m. krōṣṭŕ̊ ʻ crying ʼ BhP., m. ʻ jackal ʼ RV. = krṓṣṭu — m. Pāṇ. [√kruś] Pa. koṭṭhu -- , °uka — and kotthu -- , °uka — m. ʻ jackal ʼ, Pk. Koṭṭhu — m.; Si. Koṭa ʻ jackal ʼ, koṭiya ʻ leopard ʼ GS 42 (CDIAL 3615). कोल्हा [ kōlhā ] कोल्हें [ kōlhēṃ ] A jackal (Marathi) Rebus: kol ‘furnace, forge’ (Kuwi) kol ‘alloy of five metals, pañcaloha’ (Ta.)
meṛhao = v.a.m. entwine itself; wind round, wrap round roll up (Santali); maṛhnā cover, encase (Hindi) (Santali.lex.Bodding) Rebus: meḍ ‘iron’ (Mu.Ho.) mẽṛh t iron; ispat m. = steel; dul m. = cast iron (Mu.) meṛed-bica = iron stone ore, in contrast to bali-bica, iron sand ore (Munda) mẽṛhẽt ‘iron’; mẽṛhẽt icena ‘the iron is rusty’; ispat mẽṛhẽt ‘steel’, dul mẽṛhẽt ‘cast iron’;mẽṛhẽt khaṇḍa ‘iron implements’ (Santali) meḍ. (Ho.)(Santali.lex.Bodding) meṛed, mṛed, mṛdiron; enga meṛed soft iron; sanḍi meṛed hard iron; ispāt meṛed steel; dul meṛed cast iron; i meṛed rusty iron, also the iron of which weights are cast; bica meṛed iron extracted from stone ore; bali meṛed iron extracted from sand ore (Mu.lex.)
měď (copper)(Czech) mіdʹ (copper, cuprum, orichalc)(Ukrainian) medʹ (copper, cuprum, Cu), mednyy (copper, cupreous, brassy, brazen, brass), omednyatʹ (copper, coppering), sulʹfatmedi (Copper), politseyskiy (policeman, constable, peeler, policemen, redcap), pokryvatʹ medʹyu (copper), payalʹnik (soldering iron, copper, soldering pen, soldering-iron), mednyy kotel (copper), medno-krasnyy (copper), mednaya moneta (copper). медь (copper, cuprum, Cu), медный (copper, cupreous, brassy, brazen, brass), омеднять (copper, coppering), Сульфатмеди (Copper), полицейский (policeman, constable, peeler, policemen, redcap), покрывать медью (copper), паяльник (soldering iron, copper, soldering pen, soldering-iron), медный котел (copper), медно-красный (copper), медная монета (copper).(Russian)
పోలడు [ pōlaḍu ] , పోలిగాడు or దూడలపోలడు pōlaḍu. [Tel.] n. An eagle. పసులపోలిగాడు the bird called the Black Drongo. Dicrurus ater. (F.B.I.)
Te. dūḍa a calf. Go. (ASu.) ḍuḍḍe female young of buffalo. Konḍa dūṛa calf (< Te.). (DEDR 3378) దూడ (p. 0604) [ dūḍa ] dūḍa. [Tel.] n. A calf. దూడలు అరిచినవి the calves were bleating. దూడలగొట్టిగాడు dūḍala-goṭṭi-gāḍu. n. The bird called an Adjutant, Leptoptilus dubius (F.B.I.) దూడలపోలిగాడు dūḍala-pōligāḍu. n. An eagle. Te. kōḍiya, kōḍe young bull; adj. male (e.g. kōḍe dūḍa bull calf), young, youthful; kōḍekã̄ḍu a young man. Kol.(Haig) kōḍē bull. Nk. khoṛe male calf. Konḍa kōḍi cow; kōṛe young bullock. Pe. kōḍi cow. Manḍ. kūḍi id. Kui kōḍi id., ox.Kuwi (F.) kōdi cow; (S.) kajja kōḍi bull; (Su. P.) kōḍi cow(DEDR 2199)
Ta. eruvai blood, (?) copper. Ka. ere a dark-red or dark-brown colour, a dark or dusky colour; (Badaga) erande sp. fruit, red in colour. Te. rēcu, rēcu-kukka a sort of ounce or lynx said to climb trees and to destroy tigers; (B.) a hound or wild dog.Kol. resn a·te wild dog (i.e. *res na·te; see 3650). Pa. iric netta id. Ga. (S.3 ) rēs nete hunting dog, hound. Go. (Ma.) erm ney, (D.) erom nay, (Mu.) arm/aṛm nay wild dog (Voc. 353); (M.) rac nāī, (Ko.) rasi ney id. (Voc. 3010). For 'wild dog', cf. 1931 Ta. ce- red, esp. the items for 'red dog, wild dog'. (DEDR 817)
Ta. eruvai a kind of kite whose head is white and whose body is brown; eagle. Ma. eruva eagle, kite.(DEDR 818)
Ta. eruvai European bamboo reed; a species of Cyperus; straight sedge tuber. Ma. eruva a kind of grass.(DEDR 819)
dhāˊtu ʻ *strand of rope ʼ (cf.tridhāˊtu -- ʻ threefold ʼ RV., ayugdhātu -- ʻ having an uneven number of strands ʼ KātyŚr.).S. dhāī f. ʻ wisp of fibres added from time to time to a rope that is being twisted ʼ, L. dhāī˜ f. (CDIAL 6773)
Dāma (nt.) [Sk. dāman to dyati to bind (Gr. di/dhmi ), *dē, as in Gr. de/sma (rope), dia/dhma (diadem), u(po/dhma (sandal)] a bond, fetter, rope; chain, wreath, garland S iv. 163 (read dāmena for damena), 282, (id.); A iii. 393 (dāmena baddho); Sn 28 (=vacchakānaŋ bandhanatthāya katā ganthitā nandhipasayuttā rajjubandhanavisesā); Vism 108. Usually -- ˚, viz. anoja -- puppha˚ J i. 9; vi. 227; olambaka˚ VvA 32; kusuma˚ J iii. 394; gandha˚ J i. 178; VvA 173, 198; puppha˚ Ji. 397; VvA 198; mālā˚ J ii. 104; rajata˚ J i. 50; iii. 184; iv. 91; rattapuppha˚ J iii. 30; sumana˚ J iv. 455. (Pali) दामन् n. [दो-मनिन्] 1 A string, thread, fillet, rope. -2 A chaplet, a garland in general; आद्ये बद्धा विरहदिवसे या शिखा दाम हित्वा Me.93; कनकचम्पकदामगौरीम् Ch. P.1; Śi.4.5. -3 A line, streak (as of lightning); वुद्युद्- दाम्ना हेमराजीव विन्ध्यम् M.3.2; Me.27. -4 A large bandage. -5 Ved. A gift. -6 A portion, share. -7 A girdle. -Comp. -अञ्चलम्, -अञ्जनम् a foot-rope for horses, &c.; सस्रुः सरोषपरिचारकवार्यमाणा दामाञ्चलस्खलितलोलपदं तुरङ्गाः Śi.5.61. -उदरः an epithet of Kṛiṣṇa. dāmanī दामनी A foot-rope. dāmā दामा A string, cord. धामन् dhāman A fetter. dāˊman1 ʻ rope ʼ RV. 2. *dāmana -- , dāmanī -- f. ʻ long rope to which calves are tethered ʼ Hariv. 3. *dāmara -- . [*dāmara -- is der. fr. n/r n. stem. -- √dā 2 ]1. Pa. dāma -- , inst. °mēna n. ʻ rope, fetter, garland ʼ, Pk. dāma -- n.; Wg. dām ʻ rope, thread, bandage ʼ; Tir. dām ʻ rope ʼ; Paš.lauṛ. dām ʻ thick thread ʼ, gul. dūm ʻ net snare ʼ (IIFL iii 3, 54 ← Ind. or Pers.); Shum. dām ʻ rope ʼ; Sh.gil. (Lor.) dōmo ʻ twine, short bit of goat's hair cord ʼ, gur. dōm m. ʻ thread ʼ (→ Ḍ. dōṅ ʻ thread ʼ); K. gu -- dômu m. ʻ cow's tethering rope ʼ; P. dã̄u, dāvã̄ m. ʻ hobble for a horse ʼ; WPah.bhad. daũ n. ʻ rope to tie cattle ʼ, bhal. daõ m., jaun. dã̄w; A. dāmā ʻ peg to tie a buffalo -- calf to ʼ; B. dām, dāmā ʻ cord ʼ; Or. duã̄ ʻ tether ʼ, dāĩ ʻ long tether to which many beasts are tied ʼ; H. dām m.f. ʻ rope, string, fetter ʼ, dāmā m. ʻ id., garland ʼ; G. dām n. ʻ tether ʼ, M. dāvẽ n.; Si. dama ʻ chain, rope ʼ, (SigGr) dam ʻ garland ʼ. -- Ext. in Paš.dar. damaṭāˊ, °ṭīˊ, nir. weg. damaṭék ʻ rope ʼ, Shum.ḍamaṭik, Woṭ. damṓṛ m., Sv. dåmoṛīˊ; -- with -- ll -- : N. dāmlo ʻ tether for cow ʼ, dã̄wali, dāũli, dāmli ʻ bird -- trap of string ʼ, dã̄wal, dāmal ʻ coeval ʼ (< ʻ tied together ʼ?); M. dã̄vlī f. ʻ small tie -- rope ʼ.
2. Pk. dāvaṇa -- n., dāmaṇī -- f. ʻ tethering rope ʼ; S. ḍ̠āvaṇu, ḍ̠āṇu m. ʻ forefeet shackles ʼ, ḍ̠āviṇī, ḍ̠āṇī f. ʻ guard to support nose -- ring ʼ; L. ḍã̄vaṇ m., ḍã̄vaṇī, ḍāuṇī(Ju. ḍ̠ -- ) f. ʻ hobble ʼ, dāuṇī f. ʻ strip at foot of bed, triple cord of silk worn by women on head ʼ, awāṇ. dāvuṇ ʻ picket rope ʼ; P. dāuṇ, dauṇ, ludh. daun f. m. ʻ string for bedstead, hobble for horse ʼ, dāuṇī f. ʻ gold ornament worn on woman's forehead ʼ; Ku. dauṇo m., °ṇī f. ʻ peg for tying cattle to ʼ, gng. dɔ̃ṛ ʻ place for keeping cattle, bedding for cattle ʼ; A. dan ʻ long cord on which a net or screen is stretched, thong ʼ, danā ʻ bridle ʼ; B. dāmni ʻ rope ʼ; Or. daaṇa ʻ string at the fringe of a casting net on which pebbles are strung ʼ, dāuṇi ʻ rope for tying bullocks together when threshing ʼ; H. dāwan m. ʻ girdle ʼ, dāwanī f. ʻ rope ʼ, dã̄wanī f. ʻ a woman's orna<-> ment ʼ; G. dāmaṇ, ḍā° n. ʻ tether, hobble ʼ, dāmṇũ n. ʻ thin rope, string ʼ, dāmṇī f. ʻ rope, woman's head -- ornament ʼ; M. dāvaṇ f. ʻ picket -- rope ʼ. -- Words denoting the act of driving animals to tread out corn are poss. nomina actionis from *dāmayati 2 .
3. L. ḍãvarāvaṇ, (Ju.) ḍ̠ã̄v° ʻ to hobble ʼ; A. dāmri ʻ long rope for tying several buffalo -- calves together ʼ, Or. daũ̈rā, daürā ʻ rope ʼ; Bi. daũrī ʻ rope to which threshing bullocks are tied, the act of treading out the grain ʼ, Mth. dã̄mar, daũraṛ ʻ rope to which the bullocks are tied ʼ; H. dã̄wrī f. ʻ id., rope, string ʼ, dãwrī f. ʻ the act of driving bullocks round to tread out the corn ʼ. -- X *dhāgga <-> q.v.*dāmayati2 ; *dāmakara -- , *dāmadhāra -- ; uddāma -- , prōddāma -- ; *antadāmanī -- , *galadāman -- , *galadāmana -- , *gōḍḍadāman -- , *gōḍḍadāmana -- , *gōḍḍadāmara -- .dāmán -- 2 m. (f.?) ʻ gift ʼ RV. [√dā 1 ]. See dāˊtu -- .*dāmana -- ʻ rope ʼ see dāˊman -- 1 .Addenda: dāˊman -- 1 . 1. Brj. dã̄u m. ʻ tying ʼ.3. *dāmara -- : Brj. dã̄wrī f. ʻ rope ʼ.(CDIAL 6283)
धातुः [धा-आधारे तुन्] -कुशल a. skilful in working in metals, metallurgist.
धम dhama a. (-मा, -मी f.) [धम् ध्माने-अच्] (Usually at the end of comp.)
1 Blowing; अग्निंधम, नाडिंधम. -2 Melting, fusing. -मः 1 The moon. -2 An epithet of Kṛiṣṇa. -3 Of Yama, the god of death. -4 Of Brahmā.धमकः dhamakḥ A blacksmith. धमनिः नी f. 1 A reed, blow-pipe; वेणुधमन्या प्रबोध्य Vaiśvadeva. धामनिका धामनी See धमनी.
dhāˊtu n. ʻ substance ʼ RV., m. ʻ element ʼ MBh., ʻ metal, mineral, ore (esp. of a red colour) ʼ Mn., ʻ ashes of the dead ʼ lex., [√dhā ]Pa. dhātu -- m. ʻ element, ashes of the dead, relic ʼ; KharI. dhatu ʻ relic ʼ; Pk. dhāu -- m. ʻ metal, red chalk ʼ; N. dhāu ʻ ore (esp. of copper) ʼ; Or. ḍhāu ʻ red chalk, red ochre ʼ (whence ḍhāuā ʻ reddish ʼ; M. dhāū, dhāv m.f. ʻ a partic. soft red stone ʼ (whence dhā̆vaḍ m. ʻ a caste of iron -- smelters ʼ, dhāvḍī ʻ composed of or relating to iron ʼ); -- Si. dā ʻ relic ʼ; -- (CDIAL 6773)
dhākḥ धाकः [धा-उणा ˚ क तस्य नेत्वम्] 1 An ox. -2 A receptacle, reservoir. -3 Food, boiled rice. -4 A post, pillar, column. -5 Brahman. -6 A supporter.
See:
.The legs are made of copper. The vase features an image of Anzud (also known as Imdugud), the lion-headed eagle, grasping two lions with his talons.Detail drawing of the Enmetena vase. Lions kisse the antelopes..Translation of the inscriptions from the CDLI (P222539):
For Ningirsu, the hero of Enlil,
Enmetena, ruler of Lagash,
chosen by the heart of Nanshe,
chief ruler of Ningirsu,
son of Enannatum, ruler of Lagash,
for the king who loved him, Ningirsu,
(this) gurgur-vessel of refined silver,
from which Ningirsu will consume the monthly oil (offering),
he had fashioned for him.
For his life, before Ningirsu of the Eninnu (temple)
he had it set up.
At that time Dudu
was the temple administrator of Ningirsu.
Votive relief of Ur-Nanshe, king of Lagash. Limestone, Early Dynastic III (2550–2500 BC). Found in Telloh (ancient city of Girsu).Louvre AO2344 At the top he creates the foundation for a shrine, at the bottom he presides over the dedication (Louvre).
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lagash#/media/File:Relief_Ur-Nanshe_Louvre_AO2344.jpg Inscription: “Ur-Nanshe, king of Lagash, son of Gunidu, built the temple of Ningirsu; he built the temple of Nanshe; he built Apsubanda...boats from the (distant) land of Dilmun carried the wood (for him)”. This is the oldest known written record of Dilmun and importation of goods intoMesopotamia. ( Pouysségur, Patrick , ed. "Perforated Relief of King Ur-Nanshe." Lourve Museum. Louvre Museum). http://cdli.ox.ac.uk/wiki/doku.php?id=ur-nanshe
Votive relief of Ur-Nanshe, king of Lagash, representing the bird-god Anzu (or Im-dugud) as a lion-headed eagle. Alabaster, Early Dynastic III (2550–2500 BC). Found in Telloh, ancient city of Girsu https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ur-Nanshe#/media/File:Relief_Im-dugud_Louvre_AO2783.jpg
Decipherment:
Hieroglyph: eraka 'wing' Rebus: eraka 'moltencast copper'; kola 'tiger' Rebus: kolhe 'smelter' kol 'working in iron'; arya 'lion' Rebus: Ara 'brass' dula 'pair' Rebus: dul 'cast metal'.
Etyma: Indian sprachbund
kul ‘tiger’ (Santali); kōlu id. (Te.) kōlupuli = Bengal tiger (Te.)Pk. Kolhuya -- , kulha — m. ʻ jackal ʼ < *kōḍhu -- ; H.kolhā, °lā m. ʻ jackal ʼ, adj. ʻ crafty ʼ; G. kohlũ, °lũ n. ʻ jackal ʼ, M. kolhā, °lā m. krōṣṭŕ̊ ʻ crying ʼ BhP., m. ʻ jackal ʼ RV. = krṓṣṭu — m. Pāṇ. [√kruś] Pa. koṭṭhu -- , °uka — and kotthu -- , °uka — m. ʻ jackal ʼ, Pk. Koṭṭhu — m.; Si. Koṭa ʻ jackal ʼ, koṭiya ʻ leopard ʼ GS 42 (CDIAL 3615). कोल्हा [ kōlhā ] कोल्हें [ kōlhēṃ ] A jackal (Marathi) Rebus: kol ‘furnace, forge’ (Kuwi) kol ‘alloy of five metals, pañcaloha’ (Ta.)
meṛhao = v.a.m. entwine itself; wind round, wrap round roll up (Santali); maṛhnā cover, encase (Hindi) (Santali.lex.Bodding) Rebus: meḍ ‘iron’ (Mu.Ho.) mẽṛh t iron; ispat m. = steel; dul m. = cast iron (Mu.) meṛed-bica = iron stone ore, in contrast to bali-bica, iron sand ore (Munda) mẽṛhẽt ‘iron’; mẽṛhẽt icena ‘the iron is rusty’; ispat mẽṛhẽt ‘steel’, dul mẽṛhẽt ‘cast iron’;mẽṛhẽt khaṇḍa ‘iron implements’ (Santali) meḍ. (Ho.)(Santali.lex.Bodding) meṛed, mṛed, mṛdiron; enga meṛed soft iron; sanḍi meṛed hard iron; ispāt meṛed steel; dul meṛed cast iron; i meṛed rusty iron, also the iron of which weights are cast; bica meṛed iron extracted from stone ore; bali meṛed iron extracted from sand ore (Mu.lex.)
měď (copper)(Czech) mіdʹ (copper, cuprum, orichalc)(Ukrainian) medʹ (copper, cuprum, Cu), mednyy (copper, cupreous, brassy, brazen, brass), omednyatʹ (copper, coppering), sulʹfatmedi (Copper), politseyskiy (policeman, constable, peeler, policemen, redcap), pokryvatʹ medʹyu (copper), payalʹnik (soldering iron, copper, soldering pen, soldering-iron), mednyy kotel (copper), medno-krasnyy (copper), mednaya moneta (copper). медь (copper, cuprum, Cu), медный (copper, cupreous, brassy, brazen, brass), омеднять (copper, coppering), Сульфатмеди (Copper), полицейский (policeman, constable, peeler, policemen, redcap), покрывать медью (copper), паяльник (soldering iron, copper, soldering pen, soldering-iron), медный котел (copper), медно-красный (copper), медная монета (copper).(Russian)
měď (copper)(Czech) mіdʹ (copper, cuprum, orichalc)(Ukrainian) medʹ (copper, cuprum, Cu), mednyy (copper, cupreous, brassy, brazen, brass), omednyatʹ (copper, coppering), sulʹfatmedi (Copper), politseyskiy (policeman, constable, peeler, policemen, redcap), pokryvatʹ medʹyu (copper), payalʹnik (soldering iron, copper, soldering pen, soldering-iron), mednyy kotel (copper), medno-krasnyy (copper), mednaya moneta (copper). медь (copper, cuprum, Cu), медный (copper, cupreous, brassy, brazen, brass), омеднять (copper, coppering), Сульфатмеди (Copper), полицейский (policeman, constable, peeler, policemen, redcap), покрывать медью (copper), паяльник (soldering iron, copper, soldering pen, soldering-iron), медный котел (copper), медно-красный (copper), медная монета (copper).(Russian)
పోలడు [ pōlaḍu ] , పోలిగాడు or దూడలపోలడు pōlaḍu. [Tel.] n. An eagle. పసులపోలిగాడు the bird called the Black Drongo. Dicrurus ater. (F.B.I.)
Te. dūḍa a calf. Go. (ASu.) ḍuḍḍe female young of buffalo. Konḍa dūṛa calf (< Te.). (DEDR 3378) దూడ (p. 0604) [ dūḍa ] dūḍa. [Tel.] n. A calf.దూడలు అరిచినవి the calves were bleating. దూడలగొట్టిగాడు dūḍala-goṭṭi-gāḍu. n. The bird called an Adjutant, Leptoptilus dubius (F.B.I.) దూడలపోలిగాడు dūḍala-pōligāḍu. n. An eagle. Te. kōḍiya, kōḍe young bull; adj. male (e.g. kōḍe dūḍa bull calf), young, youthful; kōḍekã̄ḍu a young man. Kol.(Haig) kōḍē bull. Nk. khoṛe male calf. Konḍa kōḍi cow; kōṛe young bullock. Pe. kōḍi cow. Manḍ. kūḍi id. Kui kōḍi id., ox.Kuwi (F.) kōdi cow; (S.) kajja kōḍi bull; (Su. P.) kōḍi cow(DEDR 2199)
Ta. eruvai blood, (?) copper. Ka. ere a dark-red or dark-brown colour, a dark or dusky colour; (Badaga) erande sp. fruit, red in colour. Te. rēcu, rēcu-kukka a sort of ounce or lynx said to climb trees and to destroy tigers; (B.) a hound or wild dog.Kol. resn a·te wild dog (i.e. *res na·te; see 3650). Pa. iric netta id. Ga. (S.3 ) rēs nete hunting dog, hound. Go. (Ma.) erm ney, (D.) erom nay, (Mu.) arm/aṛm nay wild dog (Voc. 353); (M.) rac nāī, (Ko.) rasi ney id. (Voc. 3010). For 'wild dog', cf. 1931 Ta. ce- red, esp. the items for 'red dog, wild dog'. (DEDR 817)
Ta. eruvai a kind of kite whose head is white and whose body is brown; eagle. Ma. eruva eagle, kite.(DEDR 818)
Ta. eruvai European bamboo reed; a species of Cyperus; straight sedge tuber. Ma. eruva a kind of grass.(DEDR 819)
dhāˊtu ʻ *strand of rope ʼ (cf.tridhāˊtu -- ʻ threefold ʼ RV., ayugdhātu -- ʻ having an uneven number of strands ʼ KātyŚr.).S. dhāī f. ʻ wisp of fibres added from time to time to a rope that is being twisted ʼ, L. dhāī˜ f. (CDIAL 6773)
Dāma (nt.) [Sk. dāman to dyati to bind (Gr. di/dhmi ), *dē, as in Gr. de/sma (rope), dia/dhma (diadem), u(po/dhma (sandal)] a bond, fetter, rope; chain, wreath, garland S iv. 163 (read dāmena for damena), 282, (id.); A iii. 393 (dāmena baddho); Sn 28 (=vacchakānaŋ bandhanatthāya katā ganthitā nandhipasayuttā rajjubandhanavisesā); Vism 108. Usually -- ˚, viz. anoja -- puppha˚ J i. 9; vi. 227; olambaka˚ VvA 32; kusuma˚ J iii. 394; gandha˚ J i. 178; VvA 173, 198; puppha˚ Ji. 397; VvA 198; mālā˚ J ii. 104; rajata˚ J i. 50; iii. 184; iv. 91; rattapuppha˚ J iii. 30; sumana˚ J iv. 455. (Pali) दामन् n. [दो-मनिन्] 1 A string, thread, fillet, rope. -2 A chaplet, a garland in general; आद्ये बद्धा विरहदिवसे या शिखा दाम हित्वा Me.93; कनकचम्पकदामगौरीम् Ch. P.1; Śi.4.5. -3 A line, streak (as of lightning); वुद्युद्- दाम्ना हेमराजीव विन्ध्यम् M.3.2; Me.27. -4 A large bandage. -5 Ved. A gift. -6 A portion, share. -7 A girdle. -Comp. -अञ्चलम्, -अञ्जनम् a foot-rope for horses, &c.; सस्रुः सरोषपरिचारकवार्यमाणा दामाञ्चलस्खलितलोलपदं तुरङ्गाः Śi.5.61. -उदरः an epithet of Kṛiṣṇa. dāmanī दामनी A foot-rope. dāmā दामा A string, cord. धामन् dhāman A fetter. dāˊman1 ʻ rope ʼ RV. 2. *dāmana -- , dāmanī -- f. ʻ long rope to which calves are tethered ʼ Hariv. 3. *dāmara -- . [*dāmara -- is der. fr. n/r n. stem. -- √dā 2 ]1. Pa. dāma -- , inst. °mēna n. ʻ rope, fetter, garland ʼ, Pk. dāma -- n.; Wg. dām ʻ rope, thread, bandage ʼ; Tir. dām ʻ rope ʼ; Paš.lauṛ. dām ʻ thick thread ʼ, gul. dūm ʻ net snare ʼ (IIFL iii 3, 54 ← Ind. or Pers.); Shum. dām ʻ rope ʼ; Sh.gil. (Lor.) dōmo ʻ twine, short bit of goat's hair cord ʼ, gur. dōm m. ʻ thread ʼ (→ Ḍ. dōṅ ʻ thread ʼ); K. gu -- dômu m. ʻ cow's tethering rope ʼ; P. dã̄u, dāvã̄ m. ʻ hobble for a horse ʼ; WPah.bhad. daũ n. ʻ rope to tie cattle ʼ, bhal. daõ m., jaun. dã̄w; A. dāmā ʻ peg to tie a buffalo -- calf to ʼ; B. dām, dāmā ʻ cord ʼ; Or. duã̄ ʻ tether ʼ, dāĩ ʻ long tether to which many beasts are tied ʼ; H. dām m.f. ʻ rope, string, fetter ʼ, dāmā m. ʻ id., garland ʼ; G. dām n. ʻ tether ʼ, M. dāvẽ n.; Si. dama ʻ chain, rope ʼ, (SigGr) dam ʻ garland ʼ. -- Ext. in Paš.dar. damaṭāˊ, °ṭīˊ, nir. weg. damaṭék ʻ rope ʼ, Shum.ḍamaṭik, Woṭ. damṓṛ m., Sv. dåmoṛīˊ; -- with -- ll -- : N. dāmlo ʻ tether for cow ʼ, dã̄wali, dāũli, dāmli ʻ bird -- trap of string ʼ, dã̄wal, dāmal ʻ coeval ʼ (< ʻ tied together ʼ?); M. dã̄vlī f. ʻ small tie -- rope ʼ. dhāgga <-> q.v.*dāmayati2 ; *dāmakara -- , *dāmadhāra -- ; uddāma -- , prōddāma -- ; *antadāmanī -- , *galadāman -- , *galadāmana -- , *gōḍḍadāman -- , *gōḍḍadāmana -- , *gōḍḍadāmara -- .dāmán -- 2 m. (f.?) ʻ gift ʼ RV. [√dā 1 ]. See dāˊtu -- .*dāmana -- ʻ rope ʼ see dāˊman -- 1 .Addenda: dāˊman -- 1 . 1. Brj. dã̄u m. ʻ tying ʼ.3. *dāmara -- : Brj. dã̄wrī f. ʻ rope ʼ.(CDIAL 6283)
1 Blowing; अग्निंधम, नाडिंधम. -2 Melting, fusing. -मः 1 The moon. -2 An epithet of Kṛiṣṇa. -3 Of Yama, the god of death. -4 Of Brahmā.धमकः dhamakḥ A blacksmith. धमनिः नी f. 1 A reed, blow-pipe; वेणुधमन्या प्रबोध्य Vaiśvadeva. धामनिका धामनी See धमनी.
dhāˊtu n. ʻ substance ʼ RV., m. ʻ element ʼ MBh., ʻ metal, mineral, ore (esp. of a red colour) ʼ Mn., ʻ ashes of the dead ʼ lex., [√dhā ]Pa. dhātu -- m. ʻ element, ashes of the dead, relic ʼ; KharI. dhatu ʻ relic ʼ; Pk. dhāu -- m. ʻ metal, red chalk ʼ; N. dhāu ʻ ore (esp. of copper) ʼ; Or. ḍhāu ʻ red chalk, red ochre ʼ (whence ḍhāuā ʻ reddish ʼ; M. dhāū, dhāv m.f. ʻ a partic. soft red stone ʼ (whence dhā̆vaḍ m. ʻ a caste of iron -- smelters ʼ, dhāvḍī ʻ composed of or relating to iron ʼ); -- Si. dā ʻ relic ʼ; -- (CDIAL 6773)
Te. dūḍa a calf. Go. (ASu.) ḍuḍḍe female young of buffalo. Konḍa dūṛa calf (< Te.). (DEDR 3378) దూడ (p. 0604) [ dūḍa ] dūḍa. [Tel.] n. A calf.
Ta. eruvai blood, (?) copper. Ka. ere a dark-red or dark-brown colour, a dark or dusky colour; (Badaga) erande sp. fruit, red in colour. Te. rēcu, rēcu-kukka a sort of ounce or lynx said to climb trees and to destroy tigers; (B.) a hound or wild dog.Kol. resn a·te wild dog (i.e. *res na·te; see 3650). Pa. iric netta id. Ga. (S.
Ta. eruvai a kind of kite whose head is white and whose body is brown; eagle. Ma. eruva eagle, kite.(DEDR 818)
Ta. eruvai European bamboo reed; a species of Cyperus; straight sedge tuber. Ma. eruva a kind of grass.(DEDR 819)
2. Pk. dāvaṇa -- n., dāmaṇī -- f. ʻ tethering rope ʼ; S. ḍ̠āvaṇu, ḍ̠āṇu m. ʻ forefeet shackles ʼ, ḍ̠āviṇī, ḍ̠āṇī f. ʻ guard to support nose -- ring ʼ; L. ḍã̄vaṇ m., ḍã̄vaṇī, ḍāuṇī(Ju. ḍ̠ -- ) f. ʻ hobble ʼ, dāuṇī f. ʻ strip at foot of bed, triple cord of silk worn by women on head ʼ, awāṇ. dāvuṇ ʻ picket rope ʼ; P. dāuṇ, dauṇ, ludh. daun f. m. ʻ string for bedstead, hobble for horse ʼ, dāuṇī f. ʻ gold ornament worn on woman's forehead ʼ; Ku. dauṇo m., °ṇī f. ʻ peg for tying cattle to ʼ, gng. dɔ̃ṛ ʻ place for keeping cattle, bedding for cattle ʼ; A. dan ʻ long cord on which a net or screen is stretched, thong ʼ, danā ʻ bridle ʼ; B. dāmni ʻ rope ʼ; Or. daaṇa ʻ string at the fringe of a casting net on which pebbles are strung ʼ, dāuṇi ʻ rope for tying bullocks together when threshing ʼ; H. dāwan m. ʻ girdle ʼ, dāwanī f. ʻ rope ʼ, dã̄wanī f. ʻ a woman's orna<-> ment ʼ; G. dāmaṇ, ḍā° n. ʻ tether, hobble ʼ, dāmṇũ n. ʻ thin rope, string ʼ, dāmṇī f. ʻ rope, woman's head -- ornament ʼ; M. dāvaṇ f. ʻ picket -- rope ʼ. -- Words denoting the act of driving animals to tread out corn are poss. nomina actionis from *dāmayati 2 .
3. L. ḍãvarāvaṇ, (Ju.) ḍ̠ã̄v° ʻ to hobble ʼ; A. dāmri ʻ long rope for tying several buffalo -- calves together ʼ, Or. daũ̈rā, daürā ʻ rope ʼ; Bi. daũrī ʻ rope to which threshing bullocks are tied, the act of treading out the grain ʼ, Mth. dã̄mar, daũraṛ ʻ rope to which the bullocks are tied ʼ; H. dã̄wrī f. ʻ id., rope, string ʼ, dãwrī f. ʻ the act of driving bullocks round to tread out the corn ʼ. -- X *
धातुः [धा-आधारे तुन्] -कुशल a. skilful in working in metals, metallurgist.
धम dhama a. (-मा, -मी f.) [धम् ध्माने-अच्] (Usually at the end of comp.)
dhāˊtu n. ʻ substance ʼ RV., m. ʻ element ʼ MBh., ʻ metal, mineral, ore (esp. of a red colour) ʼ Mn., ʻ ashes of the dead ʼ lex., [√
dhākḥ धाकः [धा-उणा ˚ क तस्य नेत्वम्] 1 An ox. -2 A receptacle, reservoir. -3 Food, boiled rice. -4 A post, pillar, column. -5 Brahman. -6 A supporter.
See:
http://bharatkalyan97.blogspot.in/2013/07/ancient-near-east-shahdad-bronze-age.html Ancient Near East: Shahdad bronze-age inscriptional evidence, a tribute to Ali Hakemi
See:
http://bharatkalyan97.blogspot.in/2015/10/indus-script-hieroglyph-twisted-rope-on.html
Sea-faring Meluhhan business in Mesopotamia
It is commonly understood that Meluhhan were sea-faring merchants from the Sarasvati-Sindhu civilization. What was the business of the Meluhhan Ur-Lamma and others in Meluhhan villages in Mesopotamia, in a seaport of Guabba with a temple for Ninmar? Meluhhan bronze is hinted in a text: bronze (uruda) with the Meluhhan village: 6 ma-na uruda me-luh-ha.
Here is a remarkable account by Prof. PS Vermaak on the business of Meluhhan villages in Mesopotamia:
“The Meluhhan granaries. The Meluhhan village was known for its granaries (i-dub e-duru me-luh-ha) and the large amounts of royal barley that were delivered to the town of Girsu. When one calculates the amounts delivered by the Meluhhan granaries in comparison to other regions, towns or villages it was surprisingly high. It cannot exactly be determined why they delivered more barley (up to three times more) than most of the other granaries. It might be that the Meluhhan granaries had a larger region under their premises or perhaps they had to deliver more to the Girsu authorities due to their foreign origin, but this is pure speculation at this stage. There are, however, two t0065ts dating from the sixth year of Amar-Sin (AS 6-vii) and the eighth year of Shu-Sin (SS 8) respectively (from Girsu) where the Meluhhan granary was the only deliverer of the royal barley and it seems that the various granaries had separate monthly instalments to pay (text ASJ 03 152 107). The Meluhhan garden. Some references can be found to the Meluhhan garden (kiri me-luh-ha) in the Neo-Sumerian period, but no more specific details can be derived from these texts except to note that they were connected to the temple of Ninmar. However, several types of Meluhhan artefacts have been identified which probably made up the Meluhhan garden, especially the ab-ba me-luh-ha which is a sort o Meluhhan wood, or the ab-ba could refer to some kind of water feature in a garden…The Meluhhan temples. Two temples have been connected to the Meluhhan village in Ur III Girsu, namely those of the gods’ Nanshe and Nin-mar. In a text where a number of scribes (dub-sar-me) are listed it has been summarized in three interesting lines, namely shu-nigin 6 gurush, arad Nanshe-me, ugula me-luhha (A total of 6 men, servants of the god, Nanshe, while the overseer is a Meluhhan) which definitely seems to connect the Meluhhan village with the temple of Nanshe. This text relates to the temple of Nanshe and the Meluhhan official, which is a good illustration of the Meluhhan s being incorporated into the society of southern Mesopotamia. Another text suggests that the Meluhhans worked in the temple of Nanshe: dumu me-luh-ha erin e Nanshe (‘The Meluhhan worker in the house of Nanshe’). In a balanced account (nig-kas-ak) regarding the different types of barley delivered to the temple of Ninmar (nig-kas ak Lu-Shul-gi shabra she e Nin-MAR.KI) the seal of the well-known Meluhhan appears twice in the text (Kishib Ur-Lamma dumu me-luh-ha). The royal barley deliveries sent to the different gardens (kiri en-ne) in the region of Girsu (year 48 of Shulgi) and the Meluhhan garden was again connected to the temple of Nin-Mar (kiri me-luh-ha Nin-MAR.KI) which was not connected to the Meluhhan temple. This means there had to be two gardens in the same temple of Ninmarki, one as a Meluhhan garden and another one not. The Meluhhan avifauna. The Meluhhan bird (dar me-luh-ha) appears five times in the Ur III texts, only once with the determinative of a bid (mushen). In most of the cases the dar has been listed together with images (alan) which indicates that in these instances the dar probably does not refer to a real bird, but to an image of a bird, maybe as a carved bird (as curio) from wood or ivory. In all instances these texts came from Ur and date from the thirteenth year of Ibbi-Sin. It has been speculated that the dar might be a ‘multi-coloured’ Meluhhan bird, described by Leemans (1960: 166) as a ‘peacock’, but he (Leemans 1968: 222) later corrected himself and regarded it as a kind of a ‘hen’ due to his understanding of it as a bird from ‘India’. The Meluhhan fauna. Although in earlier and later texts references are made to the Meluhhan fauna species from other periods such as the multicoloured Meluhhan dog which was given as a gift to Ibbi-Sin and a Meluhhan cat (Akkadian shuranu) in a Babylonian proverb (Lambert 1960: 272). The only Meluhhan fauna in the Ur III texts is a reference to the goat: mash ga me-luh-ha, ‘the Meluhhan milk goat’. The Meluhhan timber/woods. Special kinds of timber/woods came into southern Mesopotamia from various places such as Magan and Meluhha from the Early Dynastic III to the Gudea period. Lexical texts confirm the import of Meluhhan timber which entered via the ports in the Gulf. Various kinds of Meluhhan wood have been identified during the Ur III and other periods and they were mostly used for different kinds of furniture. The mes-me-luh-ha wood only occurs twice in the Ur III texts, but also continued to be used for furniture and household utensils during the Old Babylonian period (Leemans 160: 126). Its Akkadian equivalent musukkannu was referred to as a Magan and Meluhhan import and it was probably a hard and/or black wood. However, it was locally available during the first millennium BCE (Maxwell-Hyslop 1983: 70-71). The ab-ba me-luh-ha wood had a special purpose to make inter alia special chairs or thrones with ivory inlays. Heimpel (1993: 54) describes it as ‘Meerholz’ which indicates the usage as boat building material, but its Akkadian equivalent is even more well known kushabku.” The Meluhhan bronzes. Since the Uruk III period upto the Gudea period the acquiring of bronzes from the three places Dilmun, Magan en Meluhha was well documented, however during the Ur III period only one reference was found which connects the bronze (uruda) with the Meluhhan village: 6 ma-na uruda me-luh-ha. The Meluhhan village of Guabba.According to the electronic UR III databases there are more than four hundred references in texts mentioning the place name Gu-ab-ba and the texts mostly originate from Girsu/Lagash. Several features immediately come forward when you retrieve these texts, but we will only outline some of these features in order to find the common business of the area concerned…MVN 7 420 = ITT 4 8024…the Meluhhan village often referred to is now connected to the well-known place/village of Gu-ab-ba which is also mentioned twice in this text. It is also linked with a person called Ur-Lamma who has often been mentioned in several other Ur III texts and seals as a Meluhhan (dumu me-luh-ha)...Currently, all 44 texts have been published and are available electronically referring to Meluhha as a place or as a qualifier (a so-called ‘adjective’). On the other hand the place Gu-ab-ba is to be found several hundred times in the Sargonic and Ur III texts…Guabba continued with Meluhha temples…these temples, especially the one of Ninmar, have also been associated with the place of Guabba in earlier periods. One oyal inscription during the time of Ur-Bau in Lagash II dates the year according to the building of temple of Ninmar in Guabba: mu e-nin-mar –ka gu-ab-ba –ka ba-du-a ‘year in which the temple of Ninmar in Guabba was built’ (AO 3355)…In a Sumerian temple hymn (TH 23) Guabba is twice mentioned in connection with the temple of Ninmar…Guabba as a Meluhhan textile hub. .. During the UR III period Guabba provides the largest group of people from Girsu working in the weaving sector, mainly women and children. In one text 4272 women and 1800 children from Guabba are listed as being in the weaving industry (cf. Waetzoldt 1972-94)…if Guabba was indeed a Meluhhan village then one could speculate that this group could have been ancestors of a distant group which diffused into this area, bringing their skills of textiles into the region or being used as cheap labour…Ur-Lamma the Meluhhan of Guabba. Although the name Ur-Lamma occurs several hundred times in the UR III texts, it seems that several persons carried the name Ur-Lamma, because there are often references to the names of their fathers or sons, thus several could be distinguished. However, Ur-Lamma the Meluhhan occurs in a few texts and in seals, but Meluhha occurs only once as a personal name from Guabba…According to the references in texts the personal name Ur-Lamma occurs at least twice in seals from texts, namely Kishib Ur-Lamma dumu me-luh-ha (OBTR 242 = JESHO 20, 135 02)(SH 40)(2x in text) in a financial ‘balanced account’ (nig-kas-ak) and Kishib Ur-Lamma dumu me-luh-ha (UDT 64=CBCY 3, NBC 64). Guabba as a Meluhhan seaport. Guabba has been interpreted as a harbor town under the jurisdiction of Girsu/Lagas due to the literal meaning of the reading gu-ab-ba which did not include the determinative KI for the place name in text SRT 49 II 4, thus gu-ab-ba (‘sea-shore’) instead of the normal gu-ab-ba…Since pre-Sargonic and Sargonic times, references to ‘large boats’ hint at a trading colony which initially had direct contact with their distant ancestors. The following literary document (Lamentation of Sumer and Ur. Michalowski 1989) confirms the previous status: Line 168-169: nin-mar –ra esh gu-ab-ba-ka izi im-ma-da-an-te ku za-gin-bi ma-gal-gal-la bala-she i-ak-e (‘Fire approached Ninmarki in the shrine Guabba (and) large boats were transporting precious metals and gem stones’…one might be able to say that Guabba is a Meluhhan village in southern Mesopotamia…(pp. 556-568) Excerpts from:http://www.scribd.com/doc/21340164/Guabbasemit-v17-n2-a12
Meluhhan (mleccha) speakers were all over India, and also established villages close to Guabba, seaport (not far from Tigris-Euphrates): “In order to form a comprehensive view of the Meluhhan remnants (in Mesopotamia) a variety of texts could be consulted, although they display a picture of a people that have been integrated into the Sumerian and Babylonian cultures much earlier than the Ur III period. ” [i.e., earlier than (2112-2004 BC)] (cf. PS Vermaak, 2008, Guabba, the Meluhhan village in Mesopotamia, Journal of Semitics, 17/2, pp. 553-570). It should be possible to identify mleccha (meluhha) substratum words in Sumerian/Akkadian. One substrate word is sanga 'priest' (Akkadian); cognate with sanghvi 'priest accompanying pilgrims' (Gujarati).
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