University of Copenhagen Unveils 4,000-Year-Old Beer Receipt Detailing 123 Liters in 2 Days
Updated
Updated · Fox News · May 31
University of Copenhagen Unveils 4,000-Year-Old Beer Receipt Detailing 123 Liters in 2 Days
1 articles · Updated · Fox News · May 31
A 4,000-year-old Mesopotamian tablet reanalyzed by University of Copenhagen and National Museum of Denmark researchers records beer deliveries over two successive days, including both high-quality and ordinary beer.
NMC 7962 lists 16 liters of high-quality beer and 55 liters of ordinary beer on one day, then 12 liters and 40 liters the next—123 liters total, or more than 30 gallons.
The tablet dates to the Ur III period, around 2112-2004 B.C., and was digitized through the joint Hidden Treasures project after sitting largely unstudied in museum archives.
Researchers said such receipts were routine administrative records, underscoring beer's central role in Mesopotamian urban life; the shipment was received by a provincial governor, whose cylinder seal appears on the clay tablet.
Why was a 4,000-year-old beer receipt, not a crown, the true symbol of a Mesopotamian king's power?
If ancient beer was a nutritious food, have we misunderstood one of history's most important beverages?
Ancient workers were paid in beer. What can this 4,000-year-old payroll reveal about the origins of economic inequality?