Sumerian Foreign Trade
If agriculture can be showcased as the backbone of the Sumerian economy, its steering wheel was the cross-cultural trade. This sophisticated link, that had tied together the economies of distant lands, was one of the major factors that shaped the earliest complex societies.
The trade is a multi-functional activity; it refers to both utilitarian and elite consumption. The former can be single-staged (cereals consumed as bread or beer) or multi-staged (partially smelted copper ingots to be transformed into refined copper, alloyed with tin to be fashioned into bronze items, recycled as scrap metal and reproduced as another artifact). The latter contains luxury objects which can remain in the family line for several generations and serve as a status marker or can be buried as grave goods accompanying the owner in his eternal journey.
Commercial instincts are inherent to mankind, and to deny the ingenious inter-tribe exchange between hunter-gatherers in the prehistoric society is to disclaim any contacts with strangers. The earliest evidence of trade is hidden at the dustbins of pristine sedentary communities that conducted barter deals with the neighboring nomadic groups. These trans-cultural contacts were individual, sporadic, spontaneous and fragile as the failure in striking a bargain could finish up in an all-out clash.
Foreign trade is a voluntary transfusion of badly needed commodities from the land of plenty to the island of deficiency. It is part of the human nature which gained momentum with the arrival of the Neolithic era. This period created two antagonistic but mutually dependent life-styles (of agriculturists and pastoralists) which were welded by an unbreakable chain of supply and demand.
Some people settled on fertile plains, others continued to wander with their livestock, still others took control of mineral resources. Each group possessed a unique commodity which could be shared with others. The transition to sedentary life led to the accumulation of food surplus-the basic commodity whose value diminishes with time. However, it could be exchanged for what the villagers lacked, namely vital raw materials and fancy items. The early contacts were established by nomads for whom the movement was the way of life and the time was basically non-existent. In case of failure, it was at least worth trying. In a momentum of success, the gain was worth taking the risk. On the other hand, the same dissociated vagabonds could assault passing caravans causing disruption of established routes.
The next stage occurred when advanced village communities discovered the potential of the waterborne trade along rivers and coastlines. Badly needed commodities could be delivered to the bulk-off points on the banks or shores and loaded on boats for further transportation.
The third stage coincided with the Sumerian takeoff when the pristine city-states found themselves involved in an administered trade. By administered trade we mean a well-organized exchange of commodities with fixed values between constant partners at agreed time. This exchange was sponsored by a public household which possessed a surplus of agricultural products and manufactured goods earmarked for long-distance markets. The merchandise was delivered by trade agents who acted under the auspices of the public institution. These agents were entrusted with initial capital, necessary equipment (boats, containers), provisions and servants for load-off service at the point of destination. The traders were supported by the Sumerian trade Diaspora, permanent settlers in the foreign territories who acted as the middlemen to facilitate the exchange of commodities. The fixed profit was delivered to the sponsor organization and redistributed as it thought best.
The so-called 'Sumerian expansion' created a class of merchants, full-time traders who functioned as part-time government agents; they played the crucial role in establishing diplomatic ties between ambitious governments. The life-long journey between the Scylla of high risk and Charybdis of extreme profit opened the window of business opportunities, and messengers gradually transformed into self-employed entrepreneurs. The government acted not only as the major customer but also as the protector of lucrative trade. The emergence of the southern trade Diaspora assumes the existence of firm diplomatic relations between the Sumerian elite and local chieftains.
In the course of the IV millennium BCE, the whole Ancient Near East was embraced by a web of long-distance trade. This web could channel raw materials such as obsidian, ornamental items (lapis lazuli), and manufactured products like chlorite bowls over hundreds of kilometers and dozens of travel days. These and other commodities were passed down the line by numerous intermediaries from Anatolian highlands to the Indus Valley through Mesopotamia and the Gulf region, as well as between the shores of Levant and the deserts of the Central Asia via Mesopotamia, Elam, the Iranian Plateau, and Afghanistan. The world trade network had never stopped transforming. Although it would be an exaggeration to claim that all these far-off territories had bilateral relations, the exchange of commodities took place on a regular basis throughout the entire route. Foreign contacts followed a certain dynamics: extending or shrinking at times, they continued to sparkle. Each territory that formed the Ancient Orient possessed its unique resources, social structure of population, and means of transportation to add to the multi-colored picture.
This wide web of foreign trade was controlled by local rulers who were placed at different stages of power accumulation. The elite groups needed an external mechanism for channeling prestige commodities and raw materials from the source of abundance to the destination of shortage. The economic bridge of inter-regional trade was built by courageous entrepreneurs who took risk setting off along hazardous itineraries with loads of badly needed goods.
As the control of each community's surplus was in the hands of the VIPs, so the bulk of foreign import served for the elite consumption bridging the gap between concrete economic environment (skilled workforce, effective management, raw materials, means of transportation, potential market) and ardent aspirations of the decision makers for a luxurious life-style.
The idea of urbanization became possible with the formation of the ruling class in the society. This class promoted long-distance trade as a chance of procuring exotic materials to be used as distinct status markers. Inter-cultural trade fed the elite's insatiable appetite for power.
Local governments throughout the route promoted the cross-cultural trade. By following their narrow interests, they participated in the broadest contacts throughout the Fertile Crescent and even beyond. The magnets of these contacts were the complex societies of Egypt, Sumer and the Indus Valley that offered an ever-growing market for all sorts of ideas, items and services. The key position in the external commerce was occupied by mediators whose welfare depended on the development of friendly relations. Merchants often acted both as emissaries of their rulers and independent entrepreneurs. Trade agents were supplied with commodities by the public institution and had to bring back the settled quantity of exotic products or raw materials in due time. Outside the jurisdiction of the central agency, merchants could pursue their own luck making personal profit or suffering private loss. They could extend the borrowed commodity as a short-term loan to other traders or take advantage of their personal property and additional means lent by private investors.
Their activities were protected by diplomatic agreements with local warlords who could benefit from this commerce. Foreign trade had transformed the face of the Western Asia. Many kingdoms mushroomed along the trade routes deriving their power from cities that had emerged as break-off-bulk stations with manufacture centers and travel services. These stations were established for further delivery of sumptuary commodities in small quantities, and their workshops served for clearing impurities and producing finished goods.
The role of the middlemen both in overland delivery and waterborne transportation became decisive. The geographical location was crucial. Susa in Elam happened to stay on the crossroads of caravan routes and was exposed to Sumerian influence since the early IV millennium BCE. Bahrain was an island that could supply freshwater and anchorage facilities for partners engaged in maritime commerce across the Gulf from the mid-III millennium BCE.
To facilitate the trade, mercantile partners needed the services of an interpreter. One Akkadian seal features such a person, a Meluhhan interpreter, who could be a man of mixed origin or even a direct descendant of Indian traders. On his seal, he is mediating between the local ruler and a group of foreign merchants.
The commodity involved in a chain trade could shift many hands before its final absorption. Sumerian trade with Dilmun serves a good example. Sumer received copper and timber and supplied (among other things) bitumen and obsidian-all these items were imported from other lands by immediate trading partners.
Sumerian economy was an amalgam composed of two intertwined and competing systems: the public sector versus the private sector. The public economy sprang up on the crest of the 'urban wave' of the Uruk period. It was run by temple corporations that accumulated a lion's share of the community's surplus (staple foodstuffs and manufactured goods). It was produced by the sweat of local population that delivered cheap compulsory labor for completion of contemporary public projects. The significant part of this share was drawn in commercial circulation according to the fixed prices established in each individual public household.
The private sector flourished in areas uncovered by the clumsy public sector as they were considered too complicated or too risky. One of these areas was import-export operations with foreign markets implemented by bold entrepreneurs who were ready to take chances. The state authorities needed these people to make the state commerce profitable. However, merchants rarely appeared on the temple payrolls being content with the commission fees as a result of a good bargain.
Commodities were exchanged by barter or by comparing values against a conventional standard of currency. At the early III millennium BCE such standard was copper; towards the end of the millennium it was replaced by silver.
Each sector used its favorite means of exchange. The state sector preferred barley: it was a staple grain, it had several functions and it was plenty so a large portion of each yield was earmarked for external trade. The private sector stuck to silver since it was a precious, portable, non-perishable and reusable metal carried in the form of bars, rings or coils of wire. It was easily divided into smaller parts to ensure precise weight. We even know the exchange rate of the two 'currencies': one silver shekel (8.4 gram) during the Ur III period could buy a load of barley (360 l). Weights were made of hard stone such as hematite and were shaped as a barrel or as a reposing duck.
Sumerian trade was institutionally organized rather than sporadic, was the result of a team spirit rather than an individual effort and included protective measures to safeguard trading routes allowing free flow of products. This trade enterprise aimed at acquiring foreign raw materials as well as fancy items and creating distant markets for Sumerian surplus goods.
The cross-cultural trade assumed the acquisition of prestigious foreign commodities and their transportation, whole and undamaged, to the metropolis. The state involvement assumed protection of trade routes and striking diplomatic accords with foreign powers to ensure the free communication. Trade agents were interested in finding a variety of resources of the same raw material to avoid its dwindling and unstable delivery.
The urban development of the early IV millennium BCE was characterized by unheard-of concentration of population in emerging cities (Uruk championed with 70 ha). Southern urban settlements rose in close vicinity and maintained commercial links. Such high density of population led to the growing power of administration which supervised digging of a vast network of canals, production of workshops, severing of bureaucratic accounting and report, narrowing of market misbalance between demand and supply.
In order to control long-distance trade routes, Sumerians set up settlements deep into foreign territories and stroke up friendly relations with local population on the basis of barter exchange. Sumerians exported the products of their land (cereals, dates), rivers (fish) and manufactured goods (linen and woolen textiles as well as leather items). The situation deteriorated during the Jemdet Nasr period. Colonies were under constant pressure of alien tribes and eventually had to be abandoned. Many former trade routes were locked, and new links and markets were established.
The so-called 'Uruk expansion' featured aggressive commercial interference into resource-rich but poorly organized regions with extended land routes into remote areas loosely connected with the centers of power. The overland transportation was established via donkey caravans.
The palace of the III millennium BCE inherited from the temple the leading role in the economy. The palace household included an enormous industrial complex producing in particular wool and textiles. Leading merchants were commissioned by rulers to sell off products of palace manufacture. More than that, casual foreign trade operations were presented in the 'royal' propaganda as the tribute from dependent territories to the local deity and its human deputy.
Apart from commercial opportunities, the palace used a military option as a steering-wheel of mercantile policy. The border conflicts of the early city-states were a light warm-up before the bloody battles of Akkadian emperors who used warfare not only for consolidation of power but also for uncorking blocked trade routes. However, these emperors were the first rulers who realized the necessity of the unification of commercial network; they introduced the uniform system of measures and weights. The second unification, also in the framework of the empire building, was undertaken by the kings of Ur.
Most of commercial transactions were struck near at hand as merchants utilized friendly ties with their colleagues from neighboring cities. However, some fearless entrepreneurs ventured more risky journeys setting up mutually beneficial relations with alien chieftains. In the Sumerian poem 'Enmerkar and the Lord of Aratta', the emissary of the Urukian ruler acts as a broker assisting in exchanging foreign luxury items for local agricultural production.
A trade network was supported by a number of routes: most of the cities lay at the riverbanks or along feeder canals. These 'liquid thoroughfares' of commerce were navigated by rafts, coracles and river boats. Each respectable city had a quay-a bustling shopping center with a special walled quarter for the residence of foreign merchants. Unwelcome guests at the city premises, they were well-received in the suburbs. An official clerk dubbed 'the innkeeper of the harbor' was appointed to see to their accommodation and allegedly to spy on them.
The temples and markets were ingredients of a magic glue that combined various spheres of the urban life. Local markets sprang up around ceremonial centers and city gates while foreign markets were focused at the quay.
Commercial instincts are inherent to mankind, and to deny the ingenious inter-tribe exchange between hunter-gatherers in the prehistoric society is to disclaim any contacts with strangers. The earliest evidence of trade is hidden at the dustbins of pristine sedentary communities that conducted barter deals with the neighboring nomadic groups. These trans-cultural contacts were individual, sporadic, spontaneous and fragile as the failure in striking a bargain could finish up in an all-out clash.
Foreign trade is a voluntary transfusion of badly needed commodities from the land of plenty to the island of deficiency. It is part of the human nature which gained momentum with the arrival of the Neolithic era. This period created two antagonistic but mutually dependent life-styles (of agriculturists and pastoralists) which were welded by an unbreakable chain of supply and demand.
Some people settled on fertile plains, others continued to wander with their livestock, still others took control of mineral resources. Each group possessed a unique commodity which could be shared with others. The transition to sedentary life led to the accumulation of food surplus-the basic commodity whose value diminishes with time. However, it could be exchanged for what the villagers lacked, namely vital raw materials and fancy items. The early contacts were established by nomads for whom the movement was the way of life and the time was basically non-existent. In case of failure, it was at least worth trying. In a momentum of success, the gain was worth taking the risk. On the other hand, the same dissociated vagabonds could assault passing caravans causing disruption of established routes.
The next stage occurred when advanced village communities discovered the potential of the waterborne trade along rivers and coastlines. Badly needed commodities could be delivered to the bulk-off points on the banks or shores and loaded on boats for further transportation.
The third stage coincided with the Sumerian takeoff when the pristine city-states found themselves involved in an administered trade. By administered trade we mean a well-organized exchange of commodities with fixed values between constant partners at agreed time. This exchange was sponsored by a public household which possessed a surplus of agricultural products and manufactured goods earmarked for long-distance markets. The merchandise was delivered by trade agents who acted under the auspices of the public institution. These agents were entrusted with initial capital, necessary equipment (boats, containers), provisions and servants for load-off service at the point of destination. The traders were supported by the Sumerian trade Diaspora, permanent settlers in the foreign territories who acted as the middlemen to facilitate the exchange of commodities. The fixed profit was delivered to the sponsor organization and redistributed as it thought best.
The so-called 'Sumerian expansion' created a class of merchants, full-time traders who functioned as part-time government agents; they played the crucial role in establishing diplomatic ties between ambitious governments. The life-long journey between the Scylla of high risk and Charybdis of extreme profit opened the window of business opportunities, and messengers gradually transformed into self-employed entrepreneurs. The government acted not only as the major customer but also as the protector of lucrative trade. The emergence of the southern trade Diaspora assumes the existence of firm diplomatic relations between the Sumerian elite and local chieftains.
In the course of the IV millennium BCE, the whole Ancient Near East was embraced by a web of long-distance trade. This web could channel raw materials such as obsidian, ornamental items (lapis lazuli), and manufactured products like chlorite bowls over hundreds of kilometers and dozens of travel days. These and other commodities were passed down the line by numerous intermediaries from Anatolian highlands to the Indus Valley through Mesopotamia and the Gulf region, as well as between the shores of Levant and the deserts of the Central Asia via Mesopotamia, Elam, the Iranian Plateau, and Afghanistan. The world trade network had never stopped transforming. Although it would be an exaggeration to claim that all these far-off territories had bilateral relations, the exchange of commodities took place on a regular basis throughout the entire route. Foreign contacts followed a certain dynamics: extending or shrinking at times, they continued to sparkle. Each territory that formed the Ancient Orient possessed its unique resources, social structure of population, and means of transportation to add to the multi-colored picture.
This wide web of foreign trade was controlled by local rulers who were placed at different stages of power accumulation. The elite groups needed an external mechanism for channeling prestige commodities and raw materials from the source of abundance to the destination of shortage. The economic bridge of inter-regional trade was built by courageous entrepreneurs who took risk setting off along hazardous itineraries with loads of badly needed goods.
As the control of each community's surplus was in the hands of the VIPs, so the bulk of foreign import served for the elite consumption bridging the gap between concrete economic environment (skilled workforce, effective management, raw materials, means of transportation, potential market) and ardent aspirations of the decision makers for a luxurious life-style.
The idea of urbanization became possible with the formation of the ruling class in the society. This class promoted long-distance trade as a chance of procuring exotic materials to be used as distinct status markers. Inter-cultural trade fed the elite's insatiable appetite for power.
Local governments throughout the route promoted the cross-cultural trade. By following their narrow interests, they participated in the broadest contacts throughout the Fertile Crescent and even beyond. The magnets of these contacts were the complex societies of Egypt, Sumer and the Indus Valley that offered an ever-growing market for all sorts of ideas, items and services. The key position in the external commerce was occupied by mediators whose welfare depended on the development of friendly relations. Merchants often acted both as emissaries of their rulers and independent entrepreneurs. Trade agents were supplied with commodities by the public institution and had to bring back the settled quantity of exotic products or raw materials in due time. Outside the jurisdiction of the central agency, merchants could pursue their own luck making personal profit or suffering private loss. They could extend the borrowed commodity as a short-term loan to other traders or take advantage of their personal property and additional means lent by private investors.
Their activities were protected by diplomatic agreements with local warlords who could benefit from this commerce. Foreign trade had transformed the face of the Western Asia. Many kingdoms mushroomed along the trade routes deriving their power from cities that had emerged as break-off-bulk stations with manufacture centers and travel services. These stations were established for further delivery of sumptuary commodities in small quantities, and their workshops served for clearing impurities and producing finished goods.
The role of the middlemen both in overland delivery and waterborne transportation became decisive. The geographical location was crucial. Susa in Elam happened to stay on the crossroads of caravan routes and was exposed to Sumerian influence since the early IV millennium BCE. Bahrain was an island that could supply freshwater and anchorage facilities for partners engaged in maritime commerce across the Gulf from the mid-III millennium BCE.
To facilitate the trade, mercantile partners needed the services of an interpreter. One Akkadian seal features such a person, a Meluhhan interpreter, who could be a man of mixed origin or even a direct descendant of Indian traders. On his seal, he is mediating between the local ruler and a group of foreign merchants.
The commodity involved in a chain trade could shift many hands before its final absorption. Sumerian trade with Dilmun serves a good example. Sumer received copper and timber and supplied (among other things) bitumen and obsidian-all these items were imported from other lands by immediate trading partners.
Sumerian economy was an amalgam composed of two intertwined and competing systems: the public sector versus the private sector. The public economy sprang up on the crest of the 'urban wave' of the Uruk period. It was run by temple corporations that accumulated a lion's share of the community's surplus (staple foodstuffs and manufactured goods). It was produced by the sweat of local population that delivered cheap compulsory labor for completion of contemporary public projects. The significant part of this share was drawn in commercial circulation according to the fixed prices established in each individual public household.
The private sector flourished in areas uncovered by the clumsy public sector as they were considered too complicated or too risky. One of these areas was import-export operations with foreign markets implemented by bold entrepreneurs who were ready to take chances. The state authorities needed these people to make the state commerce profitable. However, merchants rarely appeared on the temple payrolls being content with the commission fees as a result of a good bargain.
Commodities were exchanged by barter or by comparing values against a conventional standard of currency. At the early III millennium BCE such standard was copper; towards the end of the millennium it was replaced by silver.
Each sector used its favorite means of exchange. The state sector preferred barley: it was a staple grain, it had several functions and it was plenty so a large portion of each yield was earmarked for external trade. The private sector stuck to silver since it was a precious, portable, non-perishable and reusable metal carried in the form of bars, rings or coils of wire. It was easily divided into smaller parts to ensure precise weight. We even know the exchange rate of the two 'currencies': one silver shekel (8.4 gram) during the Ur III period could buy a load of barley (360 l). Weights were made of hard stone such as hematite and were shaped as a barrel or as a reposing duck.
Sumerian trade was institutionally organized rather than sporadic, was the result of a team spirit rather than an individual effort and included protective measures to safeguard trading routes allowing free flow of products. This trade enterprise aimed at acquiring foreign raw materials as well as fancy items and creating distant markets for Sumerian surplus goods.
The cross-cultural trade assumed the acquisition of prestigious foreign commodities and their transportation, whole and undamaged, to the metropolis. The state involvement assumed protection of trade routes and striking diplomatic accords with foreign powers to ensure the free communication. Trade agents were interested in finding a variety of resources of the same raw material to avoid its dwindling and unstable delivery.
The urban development of the early IV millennium BCE was characterized by unheard-of concentration of population in emerging cities (Uruk championed with 70 ha). Southern urban settlements rose in close vicinity and maintained commercial links. Such high density of population led to the growing power of administration which supervised digging of a vast network of canals, production of workshops, severing of bureaucratic accounting and report, narrowing of market misbalance between demand and supply.
In order to control long-distance trade routes, Sumerians set up settlements deep into foreign territories and stroke up friendly relations with local population on the basis of barter exchange. Sumerians exported the products of their land (cereals, dates), rivers (fish) and manufactured goods (linen and woolen textiles as well as leather items). The situation deteriorated during the Jemdet Nasr period. Colonies were under constant pressure of alien tribes and eventually had to be abandoned. Many former trade routes were locked, and new links and markets were established.
The so-called 'Uruk expansion' featured aggressive commercial interference into resource-rich but poorly organized regions with extended land routes into remote areas loosely connected with the centers of power. The overland transportation was established via donkey caravans.
The palace of the III millennium BCE inherited from the temple the leading role in the economy. The palace household included an enormous industrial complex producing in particular wool and textiles. Leading merchants were commissioned by rulers to sell off products of palace manufacture. More than that, casual foreign trade operations were presented in the 'royal' propaganda as the tribute from dependent territories to the local deity and its human deputy.
Apart from commercial opportunities, the palace used a military option as a steering-wheel of mercantile policy. The border conflicts of the early city-states were a light warm-up before the bloody battles of Akkadian emperors who used warfare not only for consolidation of power but also for uncorking blocked trade routes. However, these emperors were the first rulers who realized the necessity of the unification of commercial network; they introduced the uniform system of measures and weights. The second unification, also in the framework of the empire building, was undertaken by the kings of Ur.
Most of commercial transactions were struck near at hand as merchants utilized friendly ties with their colleagues from neighboring cities. However, some fearless entrepreneurs ventured more risky journeys setting up mutually beneficial relations with alien chieftains. In the Sumerian poem 'Enmerkar and the Lord of Aratta', the emissary of the Urukian ruler acts as a broker assisting in exchanging foreign luxury items for local agricultural production.
A trade network was supported by a number of routes: most of the cities lay at the riverbanks or along feeder canals. These 'liquid thoroughfares' of commerce were navigated by rafts, coracles and river boats. Each respectable city had a quay-a bustling shopping center with a special walled quarter for the residence of foreign merchants. Unwelcome guests at the city premises, they were well-received in the suburbs. An official clerk dubbed 'the innkeeper of the harbor' was appointed to see to their accommodation and allegedly to spy on them.
The temples and markets were ingredients of a magic glue that combined various spheres of the urban life. Local markets sprang up around ceremonial centers and city gates while foreign markets were focused at the quay.
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