| # | Polity | Coded Value | Tags | Year(s) | Edit | Desc |
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In 1708 CE, the Kangxi Emperor ordered the compilation to astronomical observations and astrological triangulation manner, using drawing trapezoidal projection method with ratio of 1/400000. Maps depicting the range to the northeast of Sakhalin, southeast to Taiwan, west to the Ili River, north to the North Sea (Lake Baikal), south cliff (now Hainan Island).
[1]
[1]: (Lingfeng 2007, p.134) |
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The burial grounds "of distinguished war chiefs were marked by an upright tree trunk, painted to record their exploits. To this was tied a small log for each enemy killed by the person it commemorated"
[1]
.
[1]: C. Callender, Illinois, in B. Trigger, Handbook of North American Indians, vol. 15: Northeast (1978), pp. 673-680 |
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Not mentioned by sources.
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Not mentioned by sources.
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"The murals of the capital’s wat increasingly portrayed the city itself, capturing the busyness of daily life as the background of scenes from the Buddha’s life, and occasionally including views of the city, landmarks such as the river, characteristic architecture such as the Chinese shophouse, and even records of historical events"
[1]
.
[1]: (Baker and Phongpaichit 2009, p. 37) |
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Orally transmitted tribal laws were fluid rather than fixed: ’The main task of the chief is the laying down and execution of the bu[unknown]un fanu, that is, the tribal laws. In practice the bu[unknown] is usually illusory, since nobody wants to follow it. Not for nothing do the Truk people say sarcastically about the conditions on their islands: “ en sob me bu[unknown]un, each district has its own laws,” or what is even worse: “ en me bu[unknown]un,” freely translated: “So many heads, so many meanings.” Moreover, it is a duty of the chief to communicate to the people the regulations of the government, to see that they are carried out, and to collect the head tax.’
[1]
Islanders performed poetry and storytelling: ’Performing arts included dancing, storytelling, playing the noseflute and bamboo Jew’s harp (in courtship serenading), singing, and poetry and rhetoric. Other arts were associated with tattooing, woodworking, weaving, and warfare.’
[2]
These may have been rather fluid as well. But Goodenough describes oral traditions that cover myth and past migrations (see also ’general variables’ for material about Chuukese prehistory): ’IN THE ORAL HISTORY OF TRUK AND PONAPE in the Caroline Islands of Micronesia (see Figure 1), a place called Kachaw is the source of some clan ancestors and, especially, of politically important immigrants. Kachaw also appears as a place in Carolinian navigational lore. Until very recently, at least, most Micronesian scholars have accepted as fact that Kachaw is the island of Kosrae (Kusaie), situated about 560 km east southeast of Ponape. This identification has led to historical inferences about the role of Kosrae in Ponapean and Trukese prehistory. Critical examination of the linguistic and contextual evidence, however, indicates that in traditional Micronesian lore Kachaw referred to something quite different, namely the sky or a region of sky. It is as such that Kachaw was important in Trukese and Ponapean cosmology, religion, and legends of origin. Before I develop this argument, let me summarize how Kachaw is talked about in Trukese and Ponapean lore.’
[3]
[1]: Bollig, Laurentius 1927. “Inhabitants Of The Truk Islands: Religion, Life And A Short Grammar Of A Micronesian People”, 126 [2]: Goodenough, Ward and Skoggard 1999) Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/5IETI75E. [3]: Goodenough, Ward Hunt 1986. “Sky World And This World: The Place Of Kachaw In Micronesian Cosmology”, 551 |
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SCCS variable 149 ’Writing and Records’ is coded as ‘1’ or ‘None’, not ‘Mnemonic devices’, or ‘Nonwritten records’, or ’True writing, no records’, or ‘True writing; records’ Orally transmitted tribal laws were fluid rather than fixed: ’The main task of the chief is the laying down and execution of the bu[unknown]un fanu, that is, the tribal laws. In practice the bu[unknown] is usually illusory, since nobody wants to follow it. Not for nothing do the Truk people say sarcastically about the conditions on their islands: “ en sob me bu[unknown]un, each district has its own laws,” or what is even worse: “ en me bu[unknown]un,” freely translated: “So many heads, so many meanings.” Moreover, it is a duty of the chief to communicate to the people the regulations of the government, to see that they are carried out, and to collect the head tax.’
[1]
Islanders performed poetry and storytelling: ’Performing arts included dancing, storytelling, playing the noseflute and bamboo Jew’s harp (in courtship serenading), singing, and poetry and rhetoric. Other arts were associated with tattooing, woodworking, weaving, and warfare.’
[2]
These may have been rather fluid as well. But Goodenough describes oral traditions that cover myth and past migrations (see also ’general variables’ in the FmTrukE sheet (pre-colonial Chuuk) for material about Chuukese prehistory): ’IN THE ORAL HISTORY OF TRUK AND PONAPE in the Caroline Islands of Micronesia (see Figure 1), a place called Kachaw is the source of some clan ancestors and, especially, of politically important immigrants. Kachaw also appears as a place in Carolinian navigational lore. Until very recently, at least, most Micronesian scholars have accepted as fact that Kachaw is the island of Kosrae (Kusaie), situated about 560 km east southeast of Ponape. This identification has led to historical inferences about the role of Kosrae in Ponapean and Trukese prehistory. Critical examination of the linguistic and contextual evidence, however, indicates that in traditional Micronesian lore Kachaw referred to something quite different, namely the sky or a region of sky. It is as such that Kachaw was important in Trukese and Ponapean cosmology, religion, and legends of origin. Before I develop this argument, let me summarize how Kachaw is talked about in Trukese and Ponapean lore.’
[3]
We have identified oral traditions with nonwritten records for the time being.
[1]: Bollig, Laurentius 1927. “Inhabitants Of The Truk Islands: Religion, Life And A Short Grammar Of A Micronesian People”, 126 [2]: Goodenough, Ward H. and Skoggard, Ian: eHRAF Cultural Summary for the Chuuk [3]: Goodenough, Ward Hunt 1986. “Sky World And This World: The Place Of Kachaw In Micronesian Cosmology”, 551 |
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Written records during this period were found only at Kydonia (Chania).
[1]
They consists of clay tablets accidentally baked by the fire that destroyed the complex. The tablets, written in Linear B script, record the economic interest of palatial administration. The contain records of agricultural products and animal husbandry.
[1]: Andreadaki-Vlazaki, M. and Hallager, E. 2007. "New and unpublished Linear A and Linear B inscriptions from Khania," Proceeding of the Danish Institute at Athens V, 7-22. |
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"Significantly, however, the oral transmission of the traditions of the past allowed Greek culture to survive this loss [the loss of writing] by continuing its stories and legends as valuable possesions passed down thought time. Storytelling, music, singing, and oral performances of poetry, which surely had been a part of Greek life for longer than we can trace, transmitted the most basic cultural ideas of the Greeks about themselves from generation to generation."
[1]
[1]: Martin, T. R. 1996. Ancient Greece. From Prehistory to Hellenistic Times, New Haven and London, 37. |
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"Significantly, however, the oral transmission of the traditions of the past allowed Greek culture to survive this loss [the loss of writing] by continuing its stories and legends as valuable possesions passed down thought time. Storytelling, music, singing, and oral performances of poetry, which surely had been a part of Greek life for longer than we can trace, transmitted the most basic cultural ideas of the Greeks about themselves from generation to generation."
[1]
[1]: Martin, T. R. 1996. Ancient Greece. From Prehistory to Hellenistic Times, New Haven and London, 37. |
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"Significantly, however, the oral transmission of the traditions of the past allowed Greek culture to survive this loss [the loss of writing] by continuing its stories and legends as valuable possesions passed down thought time. Storytelling, music, singing, and oral performances of poetry, which surely had been a part of Greek life for longer than we can trace, transmitted the most basic cultural ideas of the Greeks about themselves from generation to generation."
[1]
[1]: Martin, T. R. 1996. Ancient Greece. From Prehistory to Hellenistic Times, New Haven and London, 37. |
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"Significantly, however, the oral transmission of the traditions of the past allowed Greek culture to survive this loss [the loss of writing] by continuing its stories and legends as valuable possesions passed down thought time. Storytelling, music, singing, and oral performances of poetry, which surely had been a part of Greek life for longer than we can trace, transmitted the most basic cultural ideas of the Greeks about themselves from generation to generation."
[1]
[1]: Martin, T. R. 1996. Ancient Greece. From Prehistory to Hellenistic Times, New Haven and London, 37. |
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"Archaeological evidence provides us with insights into many key aspects of medieval life: dwellings, fortifications, diet, clothing, tools, and items of daily existence, as well as providing information on the production and distribution of luxury goods."
[1]
Pictures and artifacts are nonwritten records.
[1]: (Haldon 2008, 26) Jeffreys E, Haldon J and Cormack R eds. 2008. The Oxford Handbook of Byzantine Studies. Oxford University Press. Oxford. |
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"Archaeological evidence provides us with insights into many key aspects of medieval life: dwellings, fortifications, diet, clothing, tools, and items of daily existence, as well as providing information on the production and distribution of luxury goods."
[1]
E.g. pictures and artefacts.
[1]: (Haldon 2008, 26) Jeffreys E, Haldon J and Cormack R eds. 2008. The Oxford Handbook of Byzantine Studies. Oxford University Press. Oxford. |
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"Archaeological evidence provides us with insights into many key aspects of medieval life: dwellings, fortifications, diet, clothing, tools, and items of daily existence, as well as providing information on the production and distribution of luxury goods."
[1]
E.g. pictures and artefacts.
[1]: (Haldon 2008, 26) Jeffreys E, Haldon J and Cormack R eds. 2008. The Oxford Handbook of Byzantine Studies. Oxford University Press. Oxford. |
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No khipus have been found in the archaeological record dating to this period.
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According to Alan Covey: "We should not assume that Wari used khipus, as none have been found. The “Wari” khipus that Urton reports from the AMNH are from poorly known coastal provenances, and Wari never really ruled over the coast. The Middle Horizon dates suggest that someone on the coast was using a khipu-like device, but it is a stretch to say that this was an imperial accounting device invented or used by Wari, and there is no evidence for Wari khipus in excavations of well-preserved Wari sites that have yielded abundant textile remains."
[1]
The Wari "employed a system of recording and accounting based on the use of khipus (fiber recording devices).
[2]
A device of knotted strings. Archaeological evidence exists for these "in Middle Horizon contexts."
[3]
[4]
"An intriguing class of stone artifact also found at Hatun Cotuyoc is referred to as "counting stones" for lack of a better term [...] these stones may have been used for accounting purposes, particularly for keeping track of foodstuffs and goods produced in Hatun Cotuyoc."
[5]
[1]: (Alan Covey 2015, personal communication) [2]: (Lumbreras in Bergh 2012, 3) [3]: (Schreiber in Bergh 2012, 43) [4]: (Bergh in Bergh 2012, 189) [5]: (Glowacki 2002, 281) |
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According to Alan Covey: "We should not assume that Wari used khipus, as none have been found. The “Wari” khipus that Urton reports from the AMNH are from poorly known coastal provenances, and Wari never really ruled over the coast. The Middle Horizon dates suggest that someone on the coast was using a khipu-like device, but it is a stretch to say that this was an imperial accounting device invented or used by Wari, and there is no evidence for Wari khipus in excavations of well-preserved Wari sites that have yielded abundant textile remains."
[1]
The Wari "employed a system of recording and accounting based on the use of khipus (fiber recording devices).
[2]
A device of knotted strings. Archaeological evidence exists for these "in Middle Horizon contexts."
[3]
[4]
"An intriguing class of stone artifact also found at Hatun Cotuyoc is referred to as "counting stones" for lack of a better term [...] these stones may have been used for accounting purposes, particularly for keeping track of foodstuffs and goods produced in Hatun Cotuyoc."
[5]
[1]: (Alan Covey 2015, personal communication) [2]: (Lumbreras in Bergh 2012, 3) [3]: (Schreiber in Bergh 2012, 43) [4]: (Bergh in Bergh 2012, 189) [5]: (Glowacki 2002, 281) |
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"The khipu is most often associated with Inca accounting, but it was borrowed from Andean traditions that were developed at least a thousand years before the Incas. Some scholars think that the earliest systematic use of the khipu as a recording tool occurred in Wari or other expansionist states. It may owe its genesis to institutional demands, such as keeping track of supplies (Quilter and Urton 2002; Brokaw 2010). If they are right, then the Incas elaborated a package of administrative techniques developed by their imperial predecessors. It is certainly the case that the tool was well established across the Andes before the Inca empire came along, as different societies reportedly used a variety of knot-tying conventions. The chronicler Murua wrote that, “each province, as it had its own language, also had a different form and logic [razón] of quipo” (translation from Platt 2002: 229). In short, the Incas’ challenge most likely lay in systematizing recording for state institutions and in bringing many thousands of knot-masters up to speed in the preferred format, not in developing a specific inscription technique for state interests from scratch."
[1]
According to Alan Covey: "We should not assume that Wari used khipus, as none have been found. The “Wari” khipus that Urton reports from the AMNH are from poorly known coastal provenances, and Wari never really ruled over the coast. The Middle Horizon dates suggest that someone on the coast was using a khipu-like device, but it is a stretch to say that this was an imperial accounting device invented or used by Wari, and there is no evidence for Wari khipus in excavations of well-preserved Wari sites that have yielded abundant textile remains. I would also not infer their use in the LIP (AD 1000-1400)"
[2]
[1]: (D’Altroy 2014, 150) [2]: (Alan Covey 2015, personal communication) |
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"The khipu is most often associated with Inca accounting, but it was borrowed from Andean traditions that were developed at least a thousand years before the Incas. Some scholars think that the earliest systematic use of the khipu as a recording tool occurred in Wari or other expansionist states. It may owe its genesis to institutional demands, such as keeping track of supplies (Quilter and Urton 2002; Brokaw 2010). If they are right, then the Incas elaborated a package of administrative techniques developed by their imperial predecessors. It is certainly the case that the tool was well established across the Andes before the Inca empire came along, as different societies reportedly used a variety of knot-tying conventions. The chronicler Murua wrote that, “each province, as it had its own language, also had a different form and logic [razón] of quipo” (translation from Platt 2002: 229). In short, the Incas’ challenge most likely lay in systematizing recording for state institutions and in bringing many thousands of knot-masters up to speed in the preferred format, not in developing a specific inscription technique for state interests from scratch."
[1]
However, Alan Covey, commenting on the lack of evidence for quipus among the Wari, told us that ’I would also not infer their [quipus’] use in the LIP (AD 1000-1400)’.
[2]
He seems to mean that we shouldn’t automatically assume the Inca were using quipus before the period of imperial expansion began in earnest.
[1]: (D’Altroy 2014, 150) [2]: Alan Covey 2015, personal communication. |
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[1]
Garcilaso (1539-1616 CE) "described two types of keepers of oral tradition, the amautas who transformed historical events into short stories, and the harauicus who recorded these events in poems and songs
[2]
Alan Covey: The references to amautas don’t appear in the early Colonial chronicles. Those sources do refer to praise songs and oral histories, which Inca women and men participated in. According to Sarmiento de Gamboa’s Historia de los Incas (1572 CE) "in lieu of writing, historical events were recorded on quipus (knotted cords) and passed down from father to son."
[3]
Alan Covey: This is completely unfounded, and offers an incorrectly gendered vision of Inca history. Most Inca khipu specialists interviewed by Spanish. were men (although men were almost exclusively represented in early Colonial documents and legal proceedings), but it is clear that Inca women composed and performed praise songs and the dance performances of oral history. After these public performances were suppressed, women were largely excluded from the collection of historical information.
[4]
"Imperial overseers and specialized record keepers produced tribute levies, population counts, and assessments of provincial development potential, using a system of knotted cords (a khipu) as their principal device."
[5]
The quipa accounting method was "based on strings and knots; various colors, lengths, and thicknesses were knotted to represent numbers or as an aide-memoir."
[6]
[1]: (Covey 2003, 333) [2]: (Andrushko 2007, 20-21) [3]: (Andrushko 2007, 21) [4]: (Covey 2015, personal communication) [5]: (Covey 2006, 169) [6]: (Kaufmann and Kaufmann 2012) |
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“The sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries were a golden age in theology and devotional writing as well as politics.”
[1]
[2]
[1]: (Maltby 2009, 91) Maltby, William S. 2009. The Rise and Fall of the Spanish Empire. New York: Palgrave Macmillan. https://www.zotero.org/groups/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/SUSVXWVH [2]: (Cowans 2003, 46) Cowans, John. 2003. Early Modern Spain: A Documentary History. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press. https://www.zotero.org/groups/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/4MRSP5DU |
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The pillar Edicts of Ashoka, the Arthashastra.
[1]
The primary evidence of the writing in use during the period are the inscriptions of Asoka. The two major writing systems seem to have been Brahmi and Kharosthi.
[2]
[1]: Singh, Upinder (2008). A History of Ancient and Early Medieval India: From the Stone Age to the 12th Century. New Delhi: Pearson Education. [2]: Salomon, Richard. "On the origin of the early Indian scripts." Journal of the American Oriental Society (1995): 271-279. |
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Wampum beads served as mnemonic devices: ’Wampum. Of the beads that were manufactured and used by the Iroquois those known as “wampum” are by far the most significant. Though the term wampum has been used in some places to include both the discoidal and the cylindrical beads, the true wampum is an Indian-made shell bead, cylindical in form, averaging about one-quarter of an inch in length by an eighth of an inch in diameter, perfectly straight on the sides, with a hole running through it the long way. Some of the wampum beads prepared for commercial trade were as long as half an inch but none of the long beads has been found in the wampum belts. Wampum was made from the quahaug or hard shell clam (Venus Mercenaria) which provides both white and purple beads. The central axis (columellae) of the great conch shell (pyrula Carica), was used for white wampum.’
[1]
’The longhouse owns “wampums” which validate its position as a ritual center but which are rarely brought out. Wampum occasionally figures in the ritual, such as the string of wampum used in the rite of confession. But the significance of wampum generally is that because it is a valuable object, it is used to indicate the significance of the event, either by giving it as a commemoration of the event or as being shown in remembrance of the event. Wampum belts, for example, were given at treaties to indicate good faith in the making of the treaty, and might be brought out to remind others of the treaty. In and of itself, wampum is not sacred.’
[2]
Wampum encoded regulations and agreements: ’The League of the Iroquois was governed by a carefully worked out constitution that was transmitted orally from one generation to another by certain leaders (lords or sachems) whose business it was to learn and to recite the laws and regulations. For many generations these laws and regulations were recorded in a collection of wampum belts and strings, twenty-five of which are preserved today in the New York State Museum, whose director has been proclaimed “the keeper of the wampums.”’
[3]
Wampum functioned as a constitution of sorts: ’The League of the Iroquois was governed by a carefully worked out constitution that was transmitted orally from one generation to another by certain leaders (lords or sachems) whose business it was to learn and to recite the laws and regulations. For many generations these laws and regulations were recorded in a collection of wampum belts and strings, twenty-five of which are preserved today in the New York State Museum, whose director has been proclaimed “the keeper of the wampums.”’
[3]
[1]: Lyford, Carrie A. 1945. “Iroquois Crafts”, 45b [2]: Tooker, Elisabeth 1970. “Iroquois Ceremonial Of Midwinter”, 30 [3]: Lyford, Carrie A. 1945. “Iroquois Crafts”, 9b |
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Wampum beads served as mnemonic devices: ’Wampum. Of the beads that were manufactured and used by the Iroquois those known as “wampum” are by far the most significant. Though the term wampum has been used in some places to include both the discoidal and the cylindrical beads, the true wampum is an Indian-made shell bead, cylindical in form, averaging about one-quarter of an inch in length by an eighth of an inch in diameter, perfectly straight on the sides, with a hole running through it the long way. Some of the wampum beads prepared for commercial trade were as long as half an inch but none of the long beads has been found in the wampum belts. Wampum was made from the quahaug or hard shell clam (Venus Mercenaria) which provides both white and purple beads. The central axis (columellae) of the great conch shell (pyrula Carica), was used for white wampum.’
[1]
’The longhouse owns “wampums” which validate its position as a ritual center but which are rarely brought out. Wampum occasionally figures in the ritual, such as the string of wampum used in the rite of confession. But the significance of wampum generally is that because it is a valuable object, it is used to indicate the significance of the event, either by giving it as a commemoration of the event or as being shown in remembrance of the event. Wampum belts, for example, were given at treaties to indicate good faith in the making of the treaty, and might be brought out to remind others of the treaty. In and of itself, wampum is not sacred.’
[2]
Wampum encoded regulations and agreements: ’The League of the Iroquois was governed by a carefully worked out constitution that was transmitted orally from one generation to another by certain leaders (lords or sachems) whose business it was to learn and to recite the laws and regulations. For many generations these laws and regulations were recorded in a collection of wampum belts and strings, twenty-five of which are preserved today in the New York State Museum, whose director has been proclaimed “the keeper of the wampums.”’
[3]
’Despite the efforts of the Onondagas at Onondaga tohave them returned to Onondaga, the council fire of theConfederacy and its wampum records remained at BuffaloCreek until after that reservation had been sold andCaptain Cold (“The League of the Iroquois: Its History,Politics, and Ritual,” fig. 11, this vol.), keeper of thecouncil fire and the wampum, had died. In 1847 bothwere moved back to Onondaga (Clark 1849, 1:109, 124).However, a number of Onondagas (approximately 150)continued to live on the Seneca and Tuscarora Reservationsin western New York State, the largest number onthe Allegany Reservation (New York (State) Secretary ofState 1857:507; Fletcher 1888:551; New York (State)Legislature. Assembly 1889:59; U.S. Census Office. 11thCensus 1892:6).’
[4]
’After the Revolution, about 225 Onondagas chose tofollow Joseph Brant, the Mohawk chief, to Canada andto settle on the Six Nations Reserve (Johnston 1964:52). [...] Thus, after the Revolution, two separate League councils were established, one in the UnitedStates and the other in Canada, each with its owncomplement of hereditary chieftainships. Each also had its own wampum for the wampum of the League held bythe Onondagas had been divided, half being given to theOnondagas at the Six Nations Reserve and half remainingin New York State (see “The League of the Iroquois:Its History, Politics, and Ritual,” this vol.).’
[5]
Wampum functioned as a constitution of sorts: ’The League of the Iroquois was governed by a carefully worked out constitution that was transmitted orally from one generation to another by certain leaders (lords or sachems) whose business it was to learn and to recite the laws and regulations. For many generations these laws and regulations were recorded in a collection of wampum belts and strings, twenty-five of which are preserved today in the New York State Museum, whose director has been proclaimed “the keeper of the wampums.”’
[3]
[1]: Lyford, Carrie A. 1945. “Iroquois Crafts”, 45b [2]: Tooker, Elisabeth 1970. “Iroquois Ceremonial Of Midwinter”, 30 [3]: Lyford, Carrie A. 1945. “Iroquois Crafts”, 9b [4]: Blau, Harold, Jack Campisi, and Elisabeth Tooker 1978. “Onondaga”, 496 [5]: Blau, Harold, Jack Campisi, and Elisabeth Tooker 1978. “Onondaga”, 495 |
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"Although Early Bronze Age society in Canaan did not [widely] adopt writing, they did have a “standardized symbolic system” that included… cylinder seals - the use of cylinder seals as an administrative tool depends on the types of seals, their context and distribution.… The widespread use of potters’ marks on closed vessels - the two most accepted explanations for potter’s marks are that they indicate the content of the vessel, or that they indicate who produced the vessel (Wood 1990, 45-46)."
[1]
The significant architectural complexity of Canaanite constructions, despite the paucity of writings discovered, strongly suggests some alternative form of recordkeeping.
[2]
[1]: Shai/Uziel (2010:69). [2]: Shai/Uziel (2010). |
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"In the Corpus Inscriptionum Semiticarum mentioned above, of the 6058 Phoenician inscriptions listed, only about one hundred of these had been found in the Phoenician Levantine homeland."
[1]
"The Phoenician alphabetic script was easy to write on papyrus or parchment sheets, and the use of these materials explains why virtually no Phoenician writings - no history, no trading records - have come down to us. In their cities by the sea, the air and soil were damp, and papyrus and leather moldered and rotted away. Thus disappeared the literature of the people who taught a large portion of the earth’s population to write."
[2]
[1]: Dixon (2013:32). [2]: Lipiński (1995:1321-1322) |
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Sources include official and private documents in Old Persian, Elamite, Babylonian, Aramaic, Greek, Egyptian, Hebrew
[1]
and Akkadian.
[2]
Behistun Inscription of Darius I contains 3,000 words. Combined, the other royal inscriptions amount to 2,600 words. Other inscriptions include two texts from Cyrus the Great (8 words), 44 other texts from Darius I (1500 words), 13 texts from Xerxes (850 words), 7 texts from Artaxerxes I and II (180 words), 1 unassigned fragment (8 words). Persepolis fortification tablets from Darius I is an additional, a magnitude larger,source of text.
[3]
[1]: (Nylander 1971, 50-54) [2]: (Encyclopaedia Britannica 2011, [26]) [3]: (Hallock 1958, 256) |
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Both the "square script" (also called ashurit, "Assyrian") and the older Phoenician-style scripts of Hebrew.
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‘The fact that the Garos migrated from Tibet to India is recorded in their own traditional literature; the memory of their leaders Jappa Jalimpa, Sukpa Bonggepa and the manner of their journey awakened again each time their history is narrated by the bards. Research into their origin and language during the British rule confirmed their tradition though the exact place of their former home could not be located. Scholars differ on the routes they followed; Playfair holds the view that the present settlers in Garo hills came in separate batches along the river Brahmaputra. D.S. Rongmuthu, who has done research in traditional Garo literature is of the opinion that they came through Garhwal. According to some scholars their migration dates back to the Vedic period. In the course of their migration over the years they became scattered all over North-East India and Bangladesh. The bulk of the tribe eventually settled down in Garo Hills and gave the place its name.’
[1]
‘The oral literature thus evolved has been tenaciously handed down from one generation to another, which thus assumes the character of an indispensable link between the past and a particular generation. Through it any generation can trace back its own origin and history.’
[2]
‘The oral literature has also been indispensable in another sense to the life of the Garos, it has permeated the very fabric of the life of the community. Though the primary object of the bards in narrating the history, legends and myths is undeniably to entertain, the desire to inform and to create awareness, too, might be another. The literature is not merely to entertain, it is part and parcel of festival, various ceremonies, rites and rituals and important occasions. Without it, they cannot be complete, just as the various ceremonies, religious and otherwise, is incomplete without the rice beer and the Wangala without the dance. Literature, thus, in the traditional society, by which I mean the community practising traditional religion, customs and ways of life, pervades a great deal of the activities of life. Its role is comparable to that of the written literature which has emerged recently.’
[2]
[1]: Marak, Caroline R. 1995. “Garo Poetry”, 171 [2]: Marak, Caroline R. 1995. “Garo Poetry”, 172 |
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‘THE fact that the Garos migrated from Tibet to India is recorded in their own traditional literature; the memory of their leaders Jappa Jalimpa, Sukpa Bonggepa and the manner of their journey awakened again each time their history is narrated by the bards. Research into their origin and language during the British rule confirmed their tradition though the exact place of their former home could not be located. Scholars differ on the routes they followed; Playfair holds the view that the present settlers in Garo hills came in separate batches along the river Brahmaputra. D.S. Rongmuthu, who has done research in traditional Garo literature is of the opinion that they came through Garhwal. According to some scholars their migration dates back to the Vedic period. In the course of their migration over the years they became scattered all over North-East India and Bangladesh. The bulk of the tribe eventually settled down in Garo Hills and gave the place its name.’
[1]
‘The oral literature thus evolved has been tenaciously handed down from one generation to another, which thus assumes the character of an indispensable link between the past and a particular generation. Through it any generation can trace back its own origin and history.’
[2]
‘The oral literature has also been indispensable in another sense to the life of the Garos, it has permeated the very fabric of the life of the community. Though the primary object of the bards in narrating the history, legends and myths is undeniably to entertain, the desire to inform and to create awareness, too, might be another. The literature is not merely to entertain, it is part and parcel of festival, various ceremonies, rites and rituals and important occasions. Without it, they cannot be complete, just as the various ceremonies, religious and otherwise, is incomplete without the rice beer and the Wangala without the dance. Literature, thus, in the traditional society, by which I mean the community practising traditional religion, customs and ways of life, pervades a great deal of the activities of life. Its role is comparable to that of the written literature which has emerged recently.’
[2]
[1]: Marak, Caroline R. 1995. “Garo Poetry”, 171 [2]: Marak, Caroline R. 1995. “Garo Poetry”, 172 |
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The Akan had ’officialized’ oral traditions about lineage ancestors and past royal exploits: ’Every Akan state has official custodians of its history. These include the heralds, the drummers and the executioners, said to have been created by Odomankoma, the creator, before the ruler himself (Rattray, 1923: 263), and the minstrels. The herald is present at all state occasions and has thereby become a storehouse of knowledge about public affairs; the drummer ‘drums’ the history of the state on public occasions; and the executioner is a policeman, a protocol officer and a bard (Wilks, 1967: 231).’
[1]
[1]: Arhin, Kwame 1986. “Asante Praise Poems: The Ideology Of Patrimonialism”, 166 |
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SCCS variable 149 ’Writing and Records’ lists no mnemonic devices or nonwritten records or ’True writing, no writing’ The Akan had ’officialized’ oral traditions about lineage ancestors and past royal exploits: ’Every Akan state has official custodians of its history. These include the heralds, the drummers and the executioners, said to have been created by Odomankoma, the creator, before the ruler himself (Rattray, 1923: 263), and the minstrels. The herald is present at all state occasions and has thereby become a storehouse of knowledge about public affairs; the drummer ‘drums’ the history of the state on public occasions; and the executioner is a policeman, a protocol officer and a bard (Wilks, 1967: 231).’
[1]
[1]: Arhin, Kwame 1986. “Asante Praise Poems: The Ideology Of Patrimonialism”, 166 |
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Odner refers to oral literature: ’While literacy became widespread in Iceland during the two centuries prior to the writing of the sagas, the evidence suggests that writing continued to be connected to chieftains and landowners. As literacy was taught by the Church, most chieftains had clerical training, and many of them were ordained priests (Sveinsson 1953). Although the international outlook of Christianity was inimical to the kin-based and locally-based Icelandic civilization, at that time it was probably not regarded as too radical. Actually, when Christianity was first introduced to Iceland, it was probably considered to be a resource which the chieftains could exploit [Page 127] to their own benefit, and literacy was part of it. At the turn of the twelfth and the thirteenth centuries, when they began to write sagas, relations between the lay and Church authorities became strained. The literature of the twelfth century is half-secular, half-ecclesiastic (Sveinsson 1953:103). The tension between the Church and the chieftains created an independent secular literature in Iceland in the thirteenth century (Lönnroth 1991). Increasingly, people turned to the oral literature which existed in the secular social environment. The context of literacy continued to be closely associated to the dominant social class.’
[1]
Later written records, such as sagas, at least in part reflected older oral traditions (see below). The legal code was initially transmitted orally (see above): ’As Hastrup points out (1985:189) the principal of allodial or adal land, family ownership of land, was not transplanted to Iceland, for one reason, because there was no history of prior occupation on which to base such claims. She agrees with those who argue that the reason for the writing of Landnámabók, the Book of Settlements, which lists many settlers, their land claims, genealogies, and events of the Settlement Period, in the twelfth century was to provide evidence for claims to hereditary rights in land (p. 192). This work was written some time after the first recording of law began in 1117. The collection of laws is known as Grágás. According to this code, [Page 246] written nearly two-hundred years after the establishment of the Alþing and the adoption of an oral code of laws, land ownership was individual (Hastrup 1985:189). Hastrup argues that there was a contradiction between the legal code of individual ownership and informal concepts of family ownership which developed during the period after the settlement.’
[2]
[1]: Odner, Knut 1992. “Þógunna’S Testament: A Myth For Moral Contemplation And Social Apathy”, 126 [2]: Durrenberger, E. Paul 1988. “Stratification Without A State: The Collapse Of The Icelandic Commonwealth", 245 |
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Medieval Icelanders composed narrative poetry: ’After the disappearance of the scaldic drápur about 1300 a new kind of narrative poems, the rímur, began to appear in the fourteenth century. Alliteration and scaldic figures of speech were still used; but the rímur were written in rhymed verse, clearly an imitation of Latin hymns and religious songs. These poems are really ballads, based for the most part on mythological sagas and romantic foreign traditions, though a few also deal with persons from Norwegian and Icelandic history. The rímur were recited for the entertainment of the people in the home; but they were also sung, and were then usually accompanied by dance. As a form of entertainment the rímur became very popular and continued to flourish even into modern times.’
[1]
[1]: Gjerset, Knut [1924]. "History of Iceland", 256 |
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Possehl states that there was no writing before the urban phase in the Indus valley.
[1]
While seals have been found in Mehrgarh III layers, these show no evidence of script or writing.
[2]
[1]: Gregory L. Possehl. The Indus Civilization. A Contemporary Perspective. Walnut Creek, Altamira, 2002, p. 51. [2]: , C. A. (in press) Chapter 11, Case Study: Mehrgarh. In, Barker, G and Goucher, C (eds.) Cambridge World History, Volume 2: A World with Agriculture, 12,000 BCE - 500 CE. Cambridge University Press: Cambridge. |
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In the wider context of the concurrent Early Vedic, the Rig Veda had not yet been written down
[1]
and was composed and transmitted orally.
[1]
[2]
[1]: Singh, Upinder, A History of Ancient and Early Medieval India: From the Stone Age to the 12th Century (New Delhi: Pearson Education, 2008) p.184. [2]: Avari, B. (2007) India: The Ancient Past: A history of the India sub-continent from c. 7,000 BC to AD 1200. Routledge: London and New York. p76 |
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Terracotta seals.
[1]
[2]
[1]: (Jarrige & Enault 1976, 33-36) Jarrige, Jean-François, and Jean-François Enault. 1976. “Fouilles de Pirak - Baluchistan.” Arts Asiatiques 32 (1):29-70. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/Q32UJUPX. [2]: Ceccarelli, pers. comm. to E. Cioni, February 2017. |
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The Parthians had administrative documents.
[1]
The ’various and heterogeneous’ writing in Parthian times consisted mainly of epigraphic material, including over 2,000 documents written on pot sherds at Nisā.
[2]
The Chinese Shiji notes "To make records they cut leather and write horizontally."
[3]
Pahlavi parchment from Avroman in Kurdistan.
[4]
[1]: (Raschke 1976, 825) Raschke, Manfred G. in Haase, Wolfgang ed. 1976. Politische Geschichte (Provinzen und Randvölker: Mesopotamien, Armenien, Iran, Südarabien, Rom und der Ferne Osten). Walter de Gruyter. [2]: Lukonin, V.G., ‘Political, Social and Administrative Institutions: Taxes and Trade’, in The Cambridge history of Iran: the Seleucid, Parthian and Sasanian periods. Part 2, ed. by Ehsan Yar-Shater (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1983), vol. III, p.681. [3]: (Tao 2007) Tao, Wang in Josef in Curtis, Vesta Sarkhosh and Stewart, Sarah eds. 2007. The Age of the Parthians. I.B.Tauris & Co Ltd. London. [4]: (Debevoise 1938, xxxv) Debevoise, Neilson C. 1938. A Political History of Parthia. University of Chicago Press Chicago. https://oi.uchicago.edu/sites/oi.uchicago.edu/files/uploads/shared/docs/political_history_parthia.pdf |
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The Indo-Greeks straddled a crossroads of writing systems and written language traditions. Inscriptions written with the Greek alphabet, use of cuneiform in legal documents and exposure to records in Prakrit are all recorded. Further evidence is found in the Kharosthi inscriptions and the Asokan edicts. Further evidence exist of a transmissions of writing systems to other groups in the North Indian area.
[1]
[1]: Neelis, Jason. Early Buddhist Transmission and Trade Networks: Mobility and Exchange Within and Beyond the Northwestern Borderlands of South Asia. Vol. 2. Brill, 2010, pp. 98-107 |
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the state chancery used both "Bactrian written in Greek script and Gandhari written in Kharoshthi".
[1]
There also was a "formulae transmitted from the Achaemenians."
[2]
"Bactrian writing was widely used throughout the Kushan Empire both for official purposes and for everyday life."
[3]
Conningham reinforces the code of present by discussing the assortment of leather documents with Bactrian writing.
[4]
[1]: (Grenet 2012, 1-2) Grenet, Franz. 2012. The Nomadic Element in the Kushan Empire. (1st-3rd Century AD). Journal of Central Eurasian Studies. Volume 3. Center for Central Eurasian Studies. Seoul National University. [2]: (Grenet 2012, 2) Grenet, Franz. 2012. The Nomadic Element in the Kushan Empire. (1st-3rd Century AD). Journal of Central Eurasian Studies. Volume 3. Center for Central Eurasian Studies. Seoul National University. [3]: (Harmatta 1994, 413) Harmatta, J. Languages and literature in the Kushan Empire. in Harmatta, Janos. Puri, B. N. Etemadi, G. F. eds. 1994. History of Civilizations of Central Asia. Volume II. The development of sedentary and nomadic civilizations 700 B.C. to A.D. 250. UNESCO Publishing. [4]: Conningham, Robin, pers. comm. Interview with Harvey Whitehouse and Christina Collins, Jan 2017 |
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"The most widespread languages during the Sasanian era were Middle Persian (or Pahlavi), Parthian, Sogdian, Khwarizmian, Khotanese Saka and Bactrian; various texts in these languages are extant."
[1]
[1]: (Tafazzoli 1996, 91) Tafazzoli, A. and Khromov, A. L. Sasanian Iran: Intellectual Life. in Litvinsky, B. A. ed. and Iskender-Mochiri, I. ed. 1996. History of Civilizations of Central Asia. Volume III. The crossroads of civilizations: A.D. 250 to 750. pp.82-105. unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0010/001046/104612e.pdf |
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Many written documents, such as those listed under Kinds of Written Documents. "The most widespread languages during the Sasanian era were Middle Persian (or Pahlavi), Parthian, Sogdian, Khwarizmian, Khotanese Saka and Bactrian; various texts in these languages are extant."
[1]
[1]: (Tafazzoli 1996, 91) Tafazzoli, A. and Khromov, A. L. Sasanian Iran: Intellectual Life. in Litvinsky, B. A. ed. and Iskender-Mochiri, I. ed. 1996. History of Civilizations of Central Asia. Volume III. The crossroads of civilizations: A.D. 250 to 750. pp.82-105. unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0010/001046/104612e.pdf |
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"To all appearances, writing as such, in the form of Chinese Classics, was introduced into Japan early in the fifth century as part of the great cultural influx from Paekche."
[1]
However, ’now and then Chinese characters appeared on Yayoi pottery, showing a degree of literacy among craftsmen.’
[2]
[1]: (Frellesvig 2010, 11) [2]: Kidder Jr., J. Edward, 2007. Himiko and Japan’s Elusive Kingdom of Yamatai Honolulu: Hawaii University Press. p. 113 |
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Not mentioned by sources.
|
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Not mentioned by sources, though seems reasonably likely.
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Not mentioned by sources.
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The Iban transmitted song cycles about deities and other mythical figures: ’To the Iban mind, the deities are the messengers between the principal god of creation, Bunsu Petara , and man and are similar in power to the prophets of the proselytizing religions of Islam and Christianity. In folklore and the song cycles deities are remembered and celebrated by the Iban. Each deity taught the people the way to worship God ( Bunsu Petara ) with offerings in various festivals and smaller ceremonies [...]’
[1]
Oral histories were present in the form of genealogies: ’From what has already been said it will be clear that the contents of this study have been drawn from many different types of oral sources and then organised along lines that are quite alien to any traditional Iban form. The author has gathered much simply by talking to informants, but he has relied equally upon his knowledge of various specific forms of Iban oral literature. These include tusut genealogies as well as a wide range of song and story types.’
[2]
[1]: Sandin, Benedict, and Clifford Sather 1980. “Iban Adat And Augury”, 40 [2]: Sandin, Benedict 1967. “Sea Dayaks Of Borneo: Before White Rajah Rule”, xvi |
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|
SCCS variable 149 ’Writing and Records’ lists no mnemonic devices or nonwritten records or ’True writing, no writing’ The Iban transmitted song cycles about deities and other mythical figures: ’To the Iban mind, the deities are the messengers between the principal god of creation, Bunsu Petara , and man and are similar in power to the prophets of the proselytizing religions of Islam and Christianity. In folklore and the song cycles deities are remembered and celebrated by the Iban. Each deity taught the people the way to worship God ( Bunsu Petara ) with offerings in various festivals and smaller ceremonies [...]’
[1]
Oral histories were present in the form of genealogies: ’From what has already been said it will be clear that the contents of this study have been drawn from many different types of oral sources and then organised along lines that are quite alien to any traditional Iban form. The author has gathered much simply by talking to informants, but he has relied equally upon his knowledge of various specific forms of Iban oral literature. These include tusut genealogies as well as a wide range of song and story types.’
[2]
[1]: Sandin, Benedict, and Clifford Sather 1980. “Iban Adat And Augury”, 40 [2]: Sandin, Benedict 1967. “Sea Dayaks Of Borneo: Before White Rajah Rule”, xvi |
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In Çatalhöyük houses archaeologists found wall paintings and reliefs depicting geometric, anthropomorfic and zoomorphic motifs
[1]
, but its role as some kind of communication or writing system is quite unknown.
[1]: Hodder I. 2007.The Leopard’s Tale: Revealing the Mysteries of Çatalhöyük, London. pg. 174, 180-181. |
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Paintings on the walls. Mud was applied to the brick. On a white background, the paintings are painted with red ocher patterns. Gray and blue are used too, but rarely. Only geometric patterns. We do not know whether there was overall design paintings (there are only fragments of plaster). Fragments of plaster show what might be called " irrational Meanders ". We do not know whether they transmit any information.
[1]
[1]: Excavations at Can Hasan: First Preliminary Report, 1961. D. H. French Source: Anatolian Studies, Vol. 12 (1962), British Institute at Ankara, pp. 33 |
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A clay stamp-seal was found in a sealed deposit of late Early Brone Age in Beycesultan
[1]
, and button seals in Royal Tombs at Alaca Höyük site
[2]
.
[1]: Mellart J., "The End of the Early Bronze Age in Anatolia and the Aegean", In: "American Journal of Archaeology", Vol. 62, No. 1 (Jan., 1958). [2]: Joukowsky M. S., "Early Turkey. And Introduction to the Archeology of Anatolia from Prehistory through the Lydian Period", USA 1996, p. 169. |
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[1]
All texts are written in Old Assyrian dialect of Akkadian and they refer mostly to economic transactions and resemble private correspondence [1] . [1]: Dercksen J. G. 2004. Some Elements of Old Anatolian Sofiety in Kaniš. [in:] J. G. Dercksen (ed.) Assyria and beyond: studies presented to Mogens Trolle Larsen. Leiden: NINO, pg. 137-139 |
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(1) The relief carvings: the Hittites also expressed some messages through relief carvings that were characteristic during the New Kingdom. Usually represent a single character (king or deity) or cult scene involving a ruler. Among some of the reliefs, especially those located at the communication routes, symbols of royal power were represented - e. g. Yazılıkaya, Sirkeli, Firaktin
[1]
. (2) Hittite royal seals - seals of punching are a distinctive type for Hittites. After period of medium bronze, cylinder seals were used sporadically. Royal seals can be clearly distinguished, showing the image of the monarch. In the Suppiluliumma, a distinctive cartouche appears, which also has the name of the ruler and his titulary. Sometimes the ruler is shown in the arms of one of the most important deities in the country or its tutelary deity. There are also royal seals with representations of the king dressed as a priest or a warrior, or together with the queen
[2]
. (3) Sculpture and bas-relief - Stone sculptures date primarily from the New Kingdom, and are represented by statues of lions and sphinxes made in sculpture semi-double, and partly in relief. They were part of the city gates (Gates of Lions at Hattusa, Gates of Sphinxes at Alaca Höyük) and temples’ entrances. Submit lions served as apotropaic and sphinxes emphasized a symbolic move from a profane zone to a sacred zone.
[2]
Eflatun Pınar Orthostates, quadrilateral stone slabs set vertically along the wall monumental buildings, usually decorated with reliefs. Orthostates are characteristic of Hittite art and decorated with temples, palaces, gates(Hattusa and Alaca Höyük).(4) Vessels relief - Vase from the vicinity of Inandik depicting a festival celebration.
[1]: Makowski M. (2009) Świat późnej epoki brązu. pp.162 [In:] A. Smogorzewska (ed.) Archeologia starożytnego Bliskiego Wschodu, Warszawa: Instytut Archeologii UW, pp. 151-187 [2]: Makowski M. (2009) Świat późnej epoki brązu. pp.164 [In:] A. Smogorzewska (ed.) Archeologia starożytnego Bliskiego Wschodu, Warszawa: Instytut Archeologii UW, pp. 151-187 |
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(1) The relief carvings: the Hittites also expressed some messages through relief carvings that were characteristic during the New Kingdom. Usually represent a single character (king or deity) or cult scene involving a ruler. Among some of the reliefs, especially those located at the communication routes, symbols of royal power were represented - e. g. Yazılıkaya, Sirkeli, Firaktin
[1]
. (2) Hittite royal seals - seals of punching are a distinctive type for Hittites. After period of medium bronze, cylinder seals were used sporadically. Royal seals can be clearly distinguished, showing the image of the monarch. In the Suppiluliumma, a distinctive cartouche appears, which also has the name of the ruler and his titulary. Sometimes the ruler is shown in the arms of one of the most important deities in the country or its tutelary deity. There are also royal seals with representations of the king dressed as a priest or a warrior, or together with the queen
[2]
. (3) Sculpture and bas-relief - Stone sculptures date primarily from the New Kingdom, and are represented by statues of lions and sphinxes made in sculpture semi-double, and partly in relief. They were part of the city gates (Gates of Lions at Hattusa, Gates of Sphinxes at Alaca Höyük) and temples’ entrances. Submit lions served as apotropaic and sphinxes emphasized a symbolic move from a profane zone to a sacred zone.
[2]
Eflatun Pınar Orthostates, quadrilateral stone slabs set vertically along the wall monumental buildings, usually decorated with reliefs. Orthostates are characteristic of Hittite art and decorated with temples, palaces, gates(Hattusa and Alaca Höyük).(4) Vessels relief - Vase from the vicinity of Inandik depicting a festival celebration.
[1]: Makowski M. (2009) Świat późnej epoki brązu. pp.162 [In:] A. Smogorzewska (ed.) Archeologia starożytnego Bliskiego Wschodu, Warszawa: Instytut Archeologii UW, pp. 151-187 [2]: Makowski M. (2009) Świat późnej epoki brązu. pp.164 [In:] A. Smogorzewska (ed.) Archeologia starożytnego Bliskiego Wschodu, Warszawa: Instytut Archeologii UW, pp. 151-187 |
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|
(1) The relief carvings: the Hittites also expressed some messages through relief carvings that were characteristic during the New Kingdom. Usually represent a single character (king or deity) or cult scene involving a ruler. Among some of the reliefs, especially those located at the communication routes, symbols of royal power were represented - e. g. Yazılıkaya, Sirkeli, Firaktin
[1]
. (2) Hittite royal seals - seals of punching are a distinctive type for Hittites. After period of medium bronze, cylinder seals were used sporadically. Royal seals can be clearly distinguished, showing the image of the monarch. In the Suppiluliumma, a distinctive cartouche appears, which also has the name of the ruler and his titulary. Sometimes the ruler is shown in the arms of one of the most important deities in the country or its tutelary deity. There are also royal seals with representations of the king dressed as a priest or a warrior, or together with the queen
[2]
. (3) Sculpture and bas-relief - Stone sculptures date primarily from the New Kingdom, and are represented by statues of lions and sphinxes made in sculpture semi-double, and partly in relief. They were part of the city gates (Gates of Lions at Hattusa, Gates of Sphinxes at Alaca Höyük) and temples’ entrances. Submit lions served as apotropaic and sphinxes emphasized a symbolic move from a profane zone to a sacred zone.
[2]
Eflatun Pınar Orthostates, quadrilateral stone slabs set vertically along the wall monumental buildings, usually decorated with reliefs. Orthostates are characteristic of Hittite art and decorated with temples, palaces, gates(Hattusa and Alaca Höyük).(4) Vessels relief - Vase from the vicinity of Inandik depicting a festival celebration.
[1]: Makowski M. (2009) Świat późnej epoki brązu. pp.162 [In:] A. Smogorzewska (ed.) Archeologia starożytnego Bliskiego Wschodu, Warszawa: Instytut Archeologii UW, pp. 151-187 [2]: Makowski M. (2009) Świat późnej epoki brązu. pp.164 [In:] A. Smogorzewska (ed.) Archeologia starożytnego Bliskiego Wschodu, Warszawa: Instytut Archeologii UW, pp. 151-187 |
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The only surviving written records about Cappadocia are from the historians writing from outside Cappadocia either at the time of the kingdom or later.
[1]
Detailed information about the written records of Cappadocia cannot, therefore, be given.
[1]: Bowder, D. (ed.) (1982) Who was Who in the Greek World, 776 BC - 30 BC. Phaidon: Oxford. p171-172, 196 |
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e.g. the writings of Rašid al-Din one of the main sources for Mongolian history as well as the Il-Khans.
[1]
This period is seen as one of flourishing production of illustrated manuscripts sponsored by the court and senior officials. At first Baghdad was the centre of production, before it moved to Tabriz after the court converted to Islam. A Chinese influence is clearly seen on manuscript illustration at this time.
[2]
[1]: REUVEN AMITAI, ’IL-KHANIDS i. DYNASTIC HISTORY’ http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/il-khanids-i-dynastic-history [2]: Stefano Carboni, ’IL-KHANIDS iii. Book Illustration’ http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/il-khanids-iii-book-illustration |
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Inferred from the fact that "most [Italian peoples before the Romans] were not even literate"
[1]
, although some writing has been found in association with elite graves
[2]
.
[1]: T.J. Cornell, The Beginnings of Rome (1995), p. 37 [2]: G. Forsythe, A Critical History of Early Rome (2006), pp. 53-58 |
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Inferred from the fact that "most [Italian peoples before the Romans] were not even literate"
[1]
, although some writing has been found in association with elite graves
[2]
.
[1]: T.J. Cornell, The Beginnings of Rome (1995), p. 37 [2]: G. Forsythe, A Critical History of Early Rome (2006), pp. 53-58 |
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Art. E.g. Black-figure pottery painting.
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Art. E.g. Black-figure pottery painting.
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Cicero’s (born Arpinum, 106 BC) letters, Caesar’s speeches.
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Liber Pontificalis
[1]
Constitutum Constantini imperatoris (known as "Donation of Constantine", fictional historical document created to justify paper rule).
[2]
817 CE Ludovicianum, example of Frankish-Papal treaty which assured military protection for the Papal state. There were earlier ones.
[3]
[1]: (Partner 1972, 6) [2]: (Partner 1972, 23) [3]: (Kleinhenz 2004) |
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Written records of all kinds were employed during this period. Examples include the documents produced by the Council of Constance (1418) from early in the period, and the writings of Guicciardini and Machiavelli from the end of the period.
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Historians, notaries, and the full range of other record-keepers were active throughout the period.
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Sakha oral histories included sagas and other epic tales: ’Yakut oral histories begin well before first contact with Russians in the seventeenth century. For example, OLONKHO (epics) date at least to the tenth century, a period of interethnic mixing, tensions, and upheaval that may have been a formative period in defining Yakut tribal affiliations. Ethnographic and archaeological data suggest that the ancestors of the Yakut, identified in some theories with the Kuriakon people, lived in an area near Lake Baikal and may have been part of the Uighur state bordering China.’
[1]
’Tradition has preserved the names of some of them. They list the following as living contemporaneously with the coming of the Russians: Tygyn of the Kangalas Ulus, Chorbokha (of the clan of Chaky) of the Namsk Ulus, Bert-Khara of the Borogon Ulus, Bata batyra of the Bayagantaysk Ulus, and many others of secondary importance. The Yakut are glad to relate long sagas of their activities, of their warfare with each other, and of their resistance to the Russians. According to them all these leaders were noted for their unusual strength, cleverness, and military capacity.’
[2]
[1]: Balzer, Marjorie Mandelstam and Skoggard, Ian: eHRAF Cultural Summary for the Yakut [2]: Sieroszewski, Wacław 1993. “Yakut: An Experiment In Ethnographic Research”, 738 |
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Sakha oral histories included sagas and other epic tales: ’Yakut oral histories begin well before first contact with Russians in the seventeenth century. For example, OLONKHO (epics) date at least to the tenth century, a period of interethnic mixing, tensions, and upheaval that may have been a formative period in defining Yakut tribal affiliations. Ethnographic and archaeological data suggest that the ancestors of the Yakut, identified in some theories with the Kuriakon people, lived in an area near Lake Baikal and may have been part of the Uighur state bordering China.’
[1]
’Tradition has preserved the names of some of them. They list the following as living contemporaneously with the coming of the Russians: Tygyn of the Kangalas Ulus, Chorbokha (of the clan of Chaky) of the Namsk Ulus, Bert-Khara of the Borogon Ulus, Bata batyra of the Bayagantaysk Ulus, and many others of secondary importance. The Yakut are glad to relate long sagas of their activities, of their warfare with each other, and of their resistance to the Russians. According to them all these leaders were noted for their unusual strength, cleverness, and military capacity.’
[2]
[1]: Balzer, Marjorie Mandelstam and Skoggard, Ian: eHRAF Cultural Summary for the Yakut [2]: Sieroszewski, Wacław 1993. “Yakut: An Experiment In Ethnographic Research”, 738 |
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This variable is in need of further elaboration. Rivet describes Shuar songs, but insinuates that their content is fluid and may not be transmitted as is: ’Dancing, music and singing are high in honor. I have already said that the Jíbaros lack grace. According to the missionaries, their music and their singing would be unbearable to the ear of a White, but it is necessary to take into account the performers’ drunkenness during the course of the feasts. The proof of that is that one of my friends who lived in Gualaquiza for a long time, where he was known and loved by the savages, and who had occasion to pass an evening with one of them without drinking, gave an entirely different opinion: “In the middle of the entertainment”, he wrote me, “I asked that the two wives of Santiago (so the Indian was called) let us hear some songs. Santiago agreed and even joined his voice with theirs. I hear even now the harmony of this song; it was so gentle and so melodious that I had them repeat it two or three times. I profited by this in order to put the words in my notebook; finally, I asked the Jíbaro the meaning of what I had written, and I acquired the conviction that they sang whatever came to their minds, without any order, in other words, that they improvised words to a familiar air.”’
[1]
[1]: Rivet, Paul 1908. “Jivaro Indians: Geographic, Historical And Ethnographic Research”, 253 |
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SCCS variable 149 ’Writing and Records’ is coded as ‘1’ or ‘None’, not ‘Mnemonic devices’, or ‘Nonwritten records’, or ’True writing, no records’, or ‘True writing; records’ This code may be in need of re-evaluation. Rivet describes Shuar songs, but insinuates that their content is fluid and may not be transmitted as is: ’Dancing, music and singing are high in honor. I have already said that the Jíbaros lack grace. According to the missionaries, their music and their singing would be unbearable to the ear of a White, but it is necessary to take into account the performers’ drunkenness during the course of the feasts. The proof of that is that one of my friends who lived in Gualaquiza for a long time, where he was known and loved by the savages, and who had occasion to pass an evening with one of them without drinking, gave an entirely different opinion: “In the middle of the entertainment”, he wrote me, “I asked that the two wives of Santiago (so the Indian was called) let us hear some songs. Santiago agreed and even joined his voice with theirs. I hear even now the harmony of this song; it was so gentle and so melodious that I had them repeat it two or three times. I profited by this in order to put the words in my notebook; finally, I asked the Jíbaro the meaning of what I had written, and I acquired the conviction that they sang whatever came to their minds, without any order, in other words, that they improvised words to a familiar air.”’
[1]
[1]: Rivet, Paul 1908. “Jivaro Indians: Geographic, Historical And Ethnographic Research”, 253 |
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"standardization of all private documents pertaining to family income" implied by Heredotus’s claim that Saites (under Amasis) taxed household income and assets. At this very time demotic Egyptian replaced abnormal hieratic at Thebes.
[1]
[1]: (Agut-Labordere 2013, 1008-1009) Agut-Labordere, Damien. "The Saite Period: The Emergence of A Mediterranean Power." in Garcia, Juan Carlos Moreno ed. 2013. Ancient Egyptian Administration. BRILL. |
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oral histories, songs, poems, art?
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"The West Africans who laid the foundations of their medieval empires during the centuries before 900 C.E. did not develop a written language they could use to record historical events."
[1]
Written language was culture of an urban élite, that did not absorb surrounding cultures and languages
[2]
Oldest example of writing in West Africa c1100 CE tomb inscription at Gao.
[3]
[1]: (Conrad 2010, 13) [2]: (Cissoko 1984, 2010) [3]: (Davidson 1998, 44) Davidson, Basil. 1998. West Africa Before the Colonial Era. Routledge. London. |
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Oral histories, pictures, symbolic sculptures and monuments etc.
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Oral history, images etc.
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Presence of written records, administration etc.
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"Early in the Han and before, writing had been done on wood, bamboo and silk. Wood and bamboo were bulky and cumbersome, and silk was expensive. As papermaking technology improved, it proved to be the most economical and easiest medium on which to write."
[1]
However, older mediums, such as bamboo tablets, remained in use.
[2]
[1]: (Knechtges 2010, 117) Knechtges, David R. in Chang, Kang-i Sun. Ownen, Stephen. 2010. The Cambridge History of Chinese Literature, Volume 1. Cambridge University Press. [2]: (Knechtges 2010, 118) Knechtges, David R. in Chang, Kang-i Sun. Ownen, Stephen. 2010. The Cambridge History of Chinese Literature, Volume 1. Cambridge University Press. |
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’it was during the age of Nara that Chinese writing led to the appearance of the first real books produced in Japan, the Kojiki and Nihon Shoki chronicles of 712 and 720. These were followed shortly afterwards by the first poetry anthologies, the Kaifuso (Fond Recollections of Poetry) of 751 and the Manyo¯shu¯ (Collection of Ten Thousand Leaves) of 759. Some documents were even printed - another Chinese influence.
[1]
[1]: Henshall, Kenneth .2012. A History of Japan: From Stone Age to Superpower. Palgrave Macmillan. New York. [Third Edition].p.24-25 |
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Census in 766 CE. Written history
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This quotation refers to simple mark-making (not complex enough to qualify as nonwritten records) among the Rouran (considerably later than the Xiongnu), but uses the example to illustrate a general point: "the early steppe peoples would not have been a promising vehicle for the diffusion of complicated, textually based knowledge; according to the Northern Wei dynastic history, the Rouran were illiterates whose leaders at first kept records of their troop numbers by piling up sheep turds as counters but eventually graduated to scratching simple marks onto pieces of wood. Not surprisingly, there is no evidence of the transmission of Chinese military theories and texts to the West by way of the Avars, other steppe nomads, Silk Road caravans, or any other channel prior to the activities of the Jesuit missionaries in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries."
[1]
[1]: (Graff 2016, 146) David A Graff. 2016. The Eurasian Way of War. Military practice in seventh-century China and Byzantium. Routledge. Abingdon. |
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Oral histories likely: "the early steppe peoples would not have been a promising vehicle for the diffusion of complicated, textually based knowledge; according to the Northern Wei dynastic history, the Rouran were illiterates whose leaders at first kept records of their troop numbers by piling up sheep turds as counters but eventually graduated to scratching simple marks onto pieces of wood. Not surprisingly, there is no evidence of the transmission of Chinese military theories and texts to the West by way of the Avars, other steppe nomads, Silk Road caravans, or any other channel prior to the activities of the Jesuit missionaries in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries."
[1]
[1]: (Graff 2016, 146) David A Graff. 2016. The Eurasian Way of War. Military practice in seventh-century China and Byzantium. Routledge. Abingdon. |
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"They had no written alphabet, so that they could not keep written records, but later they learnt to make records well by making notches in wood..."
[1]
"the early steppe peoples would not have been a promising vehicle for the diffusion of complicated, textually based knowledge; according to the Northern Wei dynastic history, the Rouran were illiterates whose leaders at first kept records of their troop numbers by piling up sheep turds as counters but eventually graduated to scratching simple marks onto pieces of wood. Not surprisingly, there is no evidence of the transmission of Chinese military theories and texts to the West by way of the Avars, other steppe nomads, Silk Road caravans, or any other channel prior to the activities of the Jesuit missionaries in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries."
[2]
to place, wherever he could find water and grass"
[1]: (Kyzlasov 1996, 316) [2]: (Graff 2016, 146) David A Graff. 2016. The Eurasian Way of War. Military practice in seventh-century China and Byzantium. Routledge. Abingdon. |
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"The Bactrian script and language were used for a long time after the Kushan age but only small fragments of Bactrian literary works have been discovered so far."
[1]
[1]: (Harmatta 1994, 424) Harmatta, J. Languages and literature in the Kushan Empire. in Harmatta, Janos. Puri, B. N. Etemadi, G. F. eds. 1994. History of Civilizations of Central Asia. Volume II. The development of sedentary and nomadic civilizations 700 B.C. to A.D. 250. UNESCO Publishing. |
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"The Sogdian contributions to the Türk Empire were important. Chief among them was unquestionably writing. In fact, the Sogdian alphabet, adapted progressively to Turkic phonology, was used throughout the history of the Türk and then Uighur Empires to write Turkic texts, aside from a rather brief period of national xenophobic reaction within the elites at the beginning of the 8th century, during which the runic alphabet was used."
[1]
[1]: (De la Vaissière 2005, 202) |
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Oral histories inferred present in previous polities.
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"Abaoji had two new scripts developed to write Khitan, and the dynasty supported monastic Buddhism, artisanal and agricultural production in the steppes, and established two hundred cities or more in what is now Inner Mongolia."
[1]
"In 920 the first Khitan script (the "large script," an adaptation of the Chinese script to the very different, highly inflected Khitan language) was presented, and by the end of A-pao-chi’s reign this script was widely used. In 925, when Uighur envoys visited the court, the emperor’s younger brother Tieh-la (whom A-pao-chi recognized as the most clever member of his family) was entrusted with their reception and, after learning their script (which was alphabetic), devised a second "small script" for Khitan."
[2]
[1]: (Sneath 2007, 27) [2]: (Twitchett 1994, 67) |
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Rich literary corpus.
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Royal seals. “The sources record that Adai was executed in 1438. The same year Togoon sent gifts and horses to the emperor of Ming as an expression of his gratitude. In reply, the emperor sent him fifty rolls of silk and a letter with the following words ‘You have fulfilled the hopes of your predecessor lords, I understood your boundless loyalty when I saw your envoys and the horses that were sent as gifts. You showed that you have succeeded in taking your revenge on Alutai (Arugtai); vengeance that has been passed down from one generation to the next. I have heard that you have found the imperial seal and were going to bring it (to me). This is also a correct thought. But before this time many states existed and lasted many years not because they had seals. Therefore Prince (van), if you found that seal, keep it for yourself.’11 The royal seal was a symbol of potential Yuan revival. Perhaps the Ming emperor refused it because Togoon meant the seal of the Yuan to be used in its place of origin.”
[1]
[1]: (Jamsran 2010: 502) Jamsran, L. 2010. “The Crisis of the Forty and the Four,” in The History of Mongolia: Volume II, Yuan and Late Medieval Period, ed. David Sneath, vol. 2, 3 vols. Kent: Global Oriental. https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/D8IE2XAD |
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Official seals and stamps. “Henry VII had ensured that his signature on a document took precedence over the seals of established constitutional practice, while under Wolsey and Cromwell efficiency and speed had taken priority over the letter of the law.”
[1]
“This Cardinal [Wolsey] was not a very learned person, but he was much thought of by the King. He was of very low birth, his father being a butcher, but the King gave him the Chancellor’s seals, and all that he ordered in the kingdom was done, even the Lords obeying him.”
[2]
[1]: (Guy 1988: 314) Guy, John. 1988. Tudor England. Oxford: Oxford University Press. https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/IIFAUUNA [2]: (Stater 2002: 97-98) Stater, Victor. 2002. The Political History of Tudor and Stuart England. London; New York: Routledge, 2002. https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/WWPXBUHX |
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Not mentioned by sources
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The administration produced written documents and correspondence, in Persian.
[1]
[1]: Daniela Meneghini ’SALJUQS v. SALJUQID LITERATURE’ http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/saljuqs-v |
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Examples in Kinds of Written Documents.
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administrative and tax documents.
[1]
[1]: (Lambton 2011) Lambton, Ann K S. 2011. CITIES iii. Administration and Social Organization. Encyclopedia Iranica. http://www.iranicaonline.org/articles/cities-iii |
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"The earliest parts of the Rig-Veda, the oldest of the Vedas, may have been composed as early as, or even earlier than, 1700 BCE, but was written down only after 500 BC. For forty generations and more it was handed down by word of mouth by bards and poets, who chanted the sacred hymn and the ritual prayers."
[1]
[1]: Avari, B. (2007) India: The Ancient Past: A history of the India sub-continent from c. 7,000 BC to AD 1200. Routledge: London and New York. p76 |
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The Arthashastra, religious writings.
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The Ajanta frescoes "covered great areas of wall and ceiling and, displaying an incredible brilliance of colour and form, preserved courtly scenes of opulence and sophistication far more convincing than anything conjectured by Sanskrit scholars or culled by archaeological research."
[1]
These frescoes lay in Vakataka territory but "Gupta society regarded painting as both a respected profession and a desirable social accomplishment", so "the art of Ajanta was not exceptional"
[1]
.
[1]: (Keay 2010, 150) Keay, John. 2010. India: A History. New Updated Edition. London: HarperPress. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/HSHAKZ3X. |
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"While there is an ongoing debate about the presence of writing in pre-Shang China, archaeological evidence indicates that simple recording systems occurred before the Longshan period, and that by the Longshan era some simple form of writing may have appeared (Dematte 1999). Particularly crucial are the discoveries of pictographic signs structurally similar to later Chinese characters in the area of the eastern coastal cultures (such as Dawenkou, Liangzhu, and Yueshi)."
[1]
[1]: (Demattè 1999, 141) |
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Though there is no evidence for a writing system at Erlitou, ’carved symbols on pottery’ have been found.
[1]
"Since no writing system has been found at Erlitou, it is unclear how the administration of this archaic state managed the flow of information and material between the core and the periphery."
[2]
[1]: (Chang, Xu, Allan and Lu, 2005, 150) Chang, Kwang-chih. Xu, Pingfang. Allan, Sarah. Lu, Liancheng. 2005. The Formation of Chinese Civilization: An Archaeological Perspective. Yale University Press. [2]: (Liu and Chen 2008, 168) |
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"The Sung was among the most document-driven of all Chinese states and compiled its own history from the plethora of bureaucratic records generated during the course of routine administration. But few of these records survive in their primary form."
[1]
E.g. Sung hui-yao chi-kao (A draft compendium of Sung documents) 19th-Century era compilation that copied from the 1408 CE (Ming dynasty) Yung-lo ta-tien (Yung-lo encyclopedia).
[1]
[1]: (Hartman 2015, 24) |
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"None of the native peoples developed a system of writing comparable to that of the Mayas, and much less would the Spaniards encounter a native empire such as that of either the Aztecs or Incas. By 1500 A.D., the most advanced of the indigenous peoples were two Chibcha groups: the Taironas and the Muiscas."
[1]
[1]: (Hudson 2010, 5) |
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Oral histories likely: "the early steppe peoples would not have been a promising vehicle for the diffusion of complicated, textually based knowledge; according to the Northern Wei dynastic history, the Rouran were illiterates whose leaders at first kept records of their troop numbers by piling up sheep turds as counters but eventually graduated to scratching simple marks onto pieces of wood. Not surprisingly, there is no evidence of the transmission of Chinese military theories and texts to the West by way of the Avars, other steppe nomads, Silk Road caravans, or any other channel prior to the activities of the Jesuit missionaries in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries."
[1]
[1]: (Graff 2016, 146) David A Graff. 2016. The Eurasian Way of War. Military practice in seventh-century China and Byzantium. Routledge. Abingdon. |
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Oral histories? "the early steppe peoples would not have been a promising vehicle for the diffusion of complicated, textually based knowledge; according to the Northern Wei dynastic history, the Rouran were illiterates whose leaders at first kept records of their troop numbers by piling up sheep turds as counters but eventually graduated to scratching simple marks onto pieces of wood. Not surprisingly, there is no evidence of the transmission of Chinese military theories and texts to the West by way of the Avars, other steppe nomads, Silk Road caravans, or any other channel prior to the activities of the Jesuit missionaries in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries."
[1]
[1]: (Graff 2016, 146) David A Graff. 2016. The Eurasian Way of War. Military practice in seventh-century China and Byzantium. Routledge. Abingdon. |
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There could be diplomatic letters perhaps with the Uyghurs. There could be individuals who knew Chinese writing.
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oral histories?
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oral tradition?
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SCCS variable 149 ’Writing and Records’ is coded as ‘1’ or ‘None’, not ‘Mnemonic devices’, or ‘Nonwritten records’, or ’True writing, no records’, or ‘True writing; records’ The Orokaiva had nonwritten mythical traditions: ’Hunting figures prominently in a widely-known Orokaivan myth concerning the origin of marriage. To become fully married the single men had to become the meat-givers to the single girls who swept, harvested and cooked for them. Brothers showed lineage solidarity and co-operation, and husbands and wives ideally established a balanced exchange of services. Themes such as these reassert themselves in the fishing and hunting activities of the Koropatans today.’
[1]
’As in many parts of Melanesia, pigs in Koropata are extremely important for feasts and in some senses they represent or sybmolize human beings. Speaking of the Orokaivan Sivepe people, Schwimmer has noted that a gift of pig meat restores relations after a quarrel, and establishes new social relations. He suggests that pig sacrifice can be seen as communion with primeval ancestral beings (Schwimmer 1973:138-9, 145, 148, 153). In Koropata too the gift of pig meat can be used to emphasize the strength and importance of a particular social relationship. The creation myth told by Koropatans is centred on Totoima, a pig-man figure with long teeth (cf. Schwimmer 1973:55). His death and subsequent division into pieces represents the origin of the different language groups around the Orokaiva area. There are examples of pig-man association in myth, ritual and exchange throughout Melanesia. Societies project humanity on to pigs in contexts as varied as myths and compensation payments (see Modjeska 1977; Meggitt 1974) and in the household situation of raising pigs.’
[2]
[1]: Newton, Janice 1985. “Orokaiva Production And Change”, 99 [2]: Newton, Janice 1985. “Orokaiva Production And Change”, 105 |
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SCCS variable 149 ’Writing and Records’ is coded as ‘1’ or ‘None’, not ‘Mnemonic devices’, or ‘Nonwritten records’, or ’True writing, no records’, or ‘True writing; records’ The Orokaive had nonwritten mythical traditions: ’Hunting figures prominently in a widely-known Orokaivan myth concerning the origin of marriage. To become fully married the single men had to become the meat-givers to the single girls who swept, harvested and cooked for them. Brothers showed lineage solidarity and co-operation, and husbands and wives ideally established a balanced exchange of services. Themes such as these reassert themselves in the fishing and hunting activities of the Koropatans today.’
[1]
’As in many parts of Melanesia, pigs in Koropata are extremely important for feasts and in some senses they represent or sybmolize human beings. Speaking of the Orokaivan Sivepe people, Schwimmer has noted that a gift of pig meat restores relations after a quarrel, and establishes new social relations. He suggests that pig sacrifice can be seen as communion with primeval ancestral beings (Schwimmer 1973:138-9, 145, 148, 153). In Koropata too the gift of pig meat can be used to emphasize the strength and importance of a particular social relationship. The creation myth told by Koropatans is centred on Totoima, a pig-man figure with long teeth (cf. Schwimmer 1973:55). His death and subsequent division into pieces represents the origin of the different language groups around the Orokaiva area. There are examples of pig-man association in myth, ritual and exchange throughout Melanesia. Societies project humanity on to pigs in contexts as varied as myths and compensation payments (see Modjeska 1977; Meggitt 1974) and in the household situation of raising pigs.’
[2]
[1]: Newton, Janice 1985. “Orokaiva Production And Change”, 99 [2]: Newton, Janice 1985. “Orokaiva Production And Change”, 105 |
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No information found in sources so far.
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Not mentioned by sources for this period. Stone circle known in region close to Paris Basin dating to 475-400 BCE.
[1]
[1]: (http://www.chronocarto.ens.fr/gcserver/atlas#) |
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Not mentioned by sources for this period. Stone circle known in region close to Paris Basin dating to 475-400 BCE.
[1]
[1]: (http://www.chronocarto.ens.fr/gcserver/atlas#) |
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Not mentioned by sources.
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’It is thought that prior to entering Bactria [the Da Yuezhi] were not literate. By the time they invaded northern India in the first century CE, they had become capable administrators, traders and scholars’.
[1]
[1]: (Hill 2009, 319) John E. Hill. 2009. Through the Jade Gate to Rome: A Study of the Silk Routes during the Later Han Dynasty, 1st to 2nd Centuries CE. An Annotated Translation of the Chronicle on the ’Western Regions’ from the Hou Hanshu. Charleston, SC: BookSurge Publishing. |
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The Hmong transmitted songs, stories, and oral histories: ’The singing may be by either a man or a woman, generally of middle age or older. Nearly all the stories and myths and bits of history of the group have been made into songs and as such are handed down from generation to generation, taught by one singer to another. Some of the singers know only a few songs, but there are some who know and can sing several hundred. It should be emphasized that the Ch’uan Miao have no written language or literature.’
[1]
’The spirit most venerated by the Hung Miao today is Pai Ti T’ien Wang, who also is one of three brothers. According to the Lu-ch’i Hsien Chih /Annals of Lu-ch’i Hsien/: “The boy found in the bamboo as recorded in the story of the southwest barbarians in Hou Han Shu grew up to be the Marquis Yeh Lang and was killed by Emperor Wu of the Han dynasty. His three sons were all respected by the southern barbarians, and among them the third was the bravest. Posterity regarded the Bamboo King, since he was not born of flesh and blood, as a spirit and built a temple in his honor. Today, the idol, San Lang, worshiped in the temples, has the fiercest appearance and is held most in awe by the Miao. It must be the spirit of the third son. The Yung-sui T’ing Chih also says: “Large T’ien Wang /heavenly king/ temples are found in all localities, of which the one at Ch’ao-shui-ch’i is the oldest. This is the Ch’ao-shui-c’hi of Wei-ch’eng. The present-day Ch’ao-shui-ch’i has no temple at all. But the one most honored by the people is in Ch’u-shan-yu.” T’ien Wang was one of three brothers; the Bamboo King had three sons; the Bamboo King Temple is in Ch’u Lin /Bamboo Grove/; and the most respected T’ien Wang temple is also in Ch’u-shan-ao /Bamboo Hill Cave/. Since there are these several similar points recorded, then the deductions reached in the Lu-ch’i Hsien Chih are not without basis.’
[2]
[1]: Graham, David Crockett 1954. “Songs And Stories Of The Ch’Uan Miao”, 4 [2]: Ling, Shun-sheng, Yifu Ruey, and Lien-en Tsao 1947. “Report On An Investigation Of The Miao Of Western Hunan”, 25 |
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Nonwritten records are seen here as a some kind of symbolic language which is also expressed by depictions on stamp seals, decoration pottery etc. Some researchers made an attempt to interpret some particular symbols and suggest the meaning of some motifs or decorative elements, but their conceptions are highly subjective. For example Morgan and Pottier has tried to associate some particular symbols which appear on ceramic vessels with Mesopotamian mythology or cuneiform signs.
[1]
[1]: Hole 1983, 319 |
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|
e. g. glyptic
[1]
"From about 8000 BC, a system of recording involving small clay tokens was prevalent in the Near and Middle East. Tokens were small geometric objects, usually in the shape of cylinders, cones, and spheres."
[2]
"From about 3000 BC, among the Sumerians, tokens for different goods began appearing as impressions on clay tablets, represented by different symbols and multiple quantities represented by repetition. Thus three units of grain were denoted by three "grain marks," five jars of oil by five "oil marks," and so on."
[3]
[1]: Crawford 2004, 203 [2]: (Joseph 2011, 134) Joseph, George Gheverghese. The Crest of the Peacock: Non-European Roots of Mathematics (Third Edition). Princeton University Press. [3]: (Joseph 2011, 135) Joseph, George Gheverghese. The Crest of the Peacock: Non-European Roots of Mathematics (Third Edition). Princeton University Press. |
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The Parthians had administrative documents.
[1]
The ’various and heterogeneous’ writing in Parthian times consisted mainly of epigraphic material, including over 2,000 documents written on pot sherds at Nisā.
[2]
The Chinese Shiji notes "To make records they cut leather and write horizontally."
[3]
Pahlavi parchment from Avroman in Kurdistan.
[4]
[1]: (Raschke 1976, 825) Raschke, Manfred G. in Haase, Wolfgang ed. 1976. Politische Geschichte (Provinzen und Randvölker: Mesopotamien, Armenien, Iran, Südarabien, Rom und der Ferne Osten). Walter de Gruyter. [2]: Lukonin, V.G., ‘Political, Social and Administrative Institutions: Taxes and Trade’, in The Cambridge history of Iran: the Seleucid, Parthian and Sasanian periods. Part 2, ed. by Ehsan Yar-Shater (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1983), vol. III, p.681. [3]: (Tao 2007) Tao, Wang in Josef in Curtis, Vesta Sarkhosh and Stewart, Sarah eds. 2007. The Age of the Parthians. I.B.Tauris & Co Ltd. London. [4]: (Debevoise 1938, xxxv) Debevoise, Neilson C. 1938. A Political History of Parthia. University of Chicago Press Chicago. https://oi.uchicago.edu/sites/oi.uchicago.edu/files/uploads/shared/docs/political_history_parthia.pdf |
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"The great organisations of the first phase of urbanisation rose to prominence without writing. The latter developed relatively quickly as a response to these institutions’ needs."
[1]
Liverani says the so-called "urban revolution" of the Uruk phase occurred 3800-3000 BCE.
[2]
[1]: (Leverani 2014, 73) Liverani, Mario. Tabatabai, Soraia trans. 2014. The Ancient Near East. History, society and economy. Routledge. London. [2]: (Leverani 2014, 69-70) Liverani, Mario. Tabatabai, Soraia trans. 2014. The Ancient Near East. History, society and economy. Routledge. London. |
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Sealings and other objects ’which appear to have functioned as tokens’ have been recovered surrounding a Middle Susiana-period structure at the site of Chogha Mish.
[1]
’The evidence of prehistoric administrative technology at Chogha Mish consists primarily of clay and stone tokens, as well as a few stamp seals and seal impressions. Small baked and unbaked clay tokens occur in all prehistoric Susiana levels’, while seals and sealing first appear in this period, the late Middle Susiana.
[2]
[1]: (Peasnall 2002, 181) Peasnall, Brian L. 2002. “Iranian Chalcolithic.” In Encyclopedia of Prehistory, Vol. 8: South and Southwest Asia, edited by Peter N. Peregrine and Melvin M. Ember, 160-95. New York: Kluwer Academic / Plenum Publishers. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/32Z6KKJA. [2]: (Alizadeh 2008, 77-78) Alizadeh, Abbas. 2008. Chogha Mish II: The Development of a Prehistoric Regional Center in Lowland Susiana, Southwestern Iran. Final Report on the Last Six Seasons of Excavations, 1972-1978. Chicago: The Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/D9Z3T2K7. |
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Excavations at Susa have discovered many stamp seals and sealings dating from the Susa I period.
[1]
[1]: (Potts 2004, 50) Potts, D. T. 2004. The Archaeology of Elam: Formation and Transformation of an Ancient Iranian State. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Seshat URL: https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/itemKey/WDUEEBGQ. |
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"From about 8000 BC, a system of recording involving small clay tokens was prevalent in the Near and Middle East. Tokens were small geometric objects, usually in the shape of cylinders, cones, and spheres."
[1]
"From about 3000 BC, among the Sumerians, tokens for different goods began appearing as impressions on clay tablets, represented by different symbols and multiple quantities represented by repetition. Thus three units of grain were denoted by three "grain marks," five jars of oil by five "oil marks," and so on."
[2]
[1]: (Joseph 2011, 134) Joseph, George Gheverghese. The Crest of the Peacock: Non-European Roots of Mathematics (Third Edition). Princeton University Press. [2]: (Joseph 2011, 135) Joseph, George Gheverghese. The Crest of the Peacock: Non-European Roots of Mathematics (Third Edition). Princeton University Press. |
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"From about 8000 BC, a system of recording involving small clay tokens was prevalent in the Near and Middle East. Tokens were small geometric objects, usually in the shape of cylinders, cones, and spheres."
[1]
"From about 3000 BC, among the Sumerians, tokens for different goods began appearing as impressions on clay tablets, represented by different symbols and multiple quantities represented by repetition. Thus three units of grain were denoted by three "grain marks," five jars of oil by five "oil marks," and so on."
[2]
[1]: (Joseph 2011, 134) Joseph, George Gheverghese. The Crest of the Peacock: Non-European Roots of Mathematics (Third Edition). Princeton University Press. [2]: (Joseph 2011, 135) Joseph, George Gheverghese. The Crest of the Peacock: Non-European Roots of Mathematics (Third Edition). Princeton University Press. |
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"From about 8000 BC, a system of recording involving small clay tokens was prevalent in the Near and Middle East. Tokens were small geometric objects, usually in the shape of cylinders, cones, and spheres."
[1]
"From about 3000 BC, among the Sumerians, tokens for different goods began appearing as impressions on clay tablets, represented by different symbols and multiple quantities represented by repetition. Thus three units of grain were denoted by three "grain marks," five jars of oil by five "oil marks," and so on."
[2]
[1]: (Joseph 2011, 134) Joseph, George Gheverghese. The Crest of the Peacock: Non-European Roots of Mathematics (Third Edition). Princeton University Press. [2]: (Joseph 2011, 135) Joseph, George Gheverghese. The Crest of the Peacock: Non-European Roots of Mathematics (Third Edition). Princeton University Press. |
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e. g. glyptic
[1]
"From about 8000 BC, a system of recording involving small clay tokens was prevalent in the Near and Middle East. Tokens were small geometric objects, usually in the shape of cylinders, cones, and spheres."
[2]
"From about 3000 BC, among the Sumerians, tokens for different goods began appearing as impressions on clay tablets, represented by different symbols and multiple quantities represented by repetition. Thus three units of grain were denoted by three "grain marks," five jars of oil by five "oil marks," and so on."
[3]
[1]: Potts 1999, 146 [2]: (Joseph 2011, 134) Joseph, George Gheverghese. The Crest of the Peacock: Non-European Roots of Mathematics (Third Edition). Princeton University Press. [3]: (Joseph 2011, 135) Joseph, George Gheverghese. The Crest of the Peacock: Non-European Roots of Mathematics (Third Edition). Princeton University Press. |
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glyptic
[1]
"From about 8000 BC, a system of recording involving small clay tokens was prevalent in the Near and Middle East. Tokens were small geometric objects, usually in the shape of cylinders, cones, and spheres."
[2]
"From about 3000 BC, among the Sumerians, tokens for different goods began appearing as impressions on clay tablets, represented by different symbols and multiple quantities represented by repetition. Thus three units of grain were denoted by three "grain marks," five jars of oil by five "oil marks," and so on."
[3]
[1]: Hinz 1971, 261 [2]: (Joseph 2011, 134) Joseph, George Gheverghese. The Crest of the Peacock: Non-European Roots of Mathematics (Third Edition). Princeton University Press. [3]: (Joseph 2011, 135) Joseph, George Gheverghese. The Crest of the Peacock: Non-European Roots of Mathematics (Third Edition). Princeton University Press. |
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"From about 3000 BC, among the Sumerians, tokens for different goods began appearing as impressions on clay tablets, represented by different symbols and multiple quantities represented by repetition. Thus three units of grain were denoted by three "grain marks," five jars of oil by five "oil marks," and so on."
[1]
[1]: (Joseph 2011, 135) Joseph, George Gheverghese. The Crest of the Peacock: Non-European Roots of Mathematics (Third Edition). Princeton University Press. |
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"Middle Elamite phase seals and sealings from Susa show banquets, hunting scenes, mythical beasts, and geometric patterns. Similar examples have been found at Chogha Zanbil, but none has been published from Haft Tepe. These seals were commonly made of faience or glazed frit, and the major scene was often framed by a ladderlike band at either end of the cylinder."
[1]
[1]: (Carter and Stolper 1984, 165-166) |
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"Middle Elamite phase seals and sealings from Susa show banquets, hunting scenes, mythical beasts, and geometric patterns. Similar examples have been found at Chogha Zanbil, but none has been published from Haft Tepe. These seals were commonly made of faience or glazed frit, and the major scene was often framed by a ladderlike band at either end of the cylinder."
[1]
[1]: (Carter and Stolper 1984, 165-166) |
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"Middle Elamite phase seals and sealings from Susa show banquets, hunting scenes, mythical beasts, and geometric patterns. Similar examples have been found at Chogha Zanbil, but none has been published from Haft Tepe. These seals were commonly made of faience or glazed frit, and the major scene was often framed by a ladderlike band at either end of the cylinder."
[1]
[1]: (Carter and Stolper 1984, 165-166) |
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"Thus, these seals, once thought to show strong continuity with earlier traditions, have been redated to the Middle Elamite phase. The final date of c.1000 BC for AIX is far from certain and it is possible that the frit seals of this style continued in use through the Neo-Elamite I period (c. 1000-725/700 BC).
[1]
[1]: (Carter and Stopler 1985, 166) |
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"Thus, these seals, once thought to show strong continuity with earlier traditions, have been redated to the Middle Elamite phase. The final date of c.1000 BC for AIX is far from certain and it is possible that the frit seals of this style continued in use through the Neo-Elamite I period (c. 1000-725/700 BC).
[1]
[1]: (Carter and Stopler 1985, 166) |
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: Shutruk-Nahhunte (699-693 BCE) "royal inscriptions reappeared in Susa and in the monumental complex of Malamir, a mountain pass midway between Susa and Esfahan."
[1]
[1]: (Leverani 2014, 528) Liverani, Mario. Tabatabai, Soraia trans. 2014. The Ancient Near East. History, society and economy. Routledge. London. |
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"All the more curious is the fact that the Elamite cuneiform script seems to have had no influence at all on the so-called ’Old Persian’ cuneiform writing."
[1]
"In the late seventh century B.C., when Susa once again became an administrative headquarters, an unidentified prince governed a population consisting of not only Elamites but also Persians, who were new Indo-European immigrants. The individual character of this mixed, literate society was expressed in a new and original art that combined Bablyonian and Assyrian elements with indigenous traditions."
[2]
[1]: Diakonoff 1985, 24) [2]: (Amiet, Chevalier and Carter 1992, 13) Amiet, Pierre. Chevalier, Nicole. Carter, Elizabeth. in Harper, Prudence O. Aruz, Joan. Tallon, Francoise. eds.1992. The Royal City of Susa: Ancient Near Eastern Treasures in the Louvre. Metropolitan Museum of Art. |
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inferred continuity with earlier periods
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The earliest art productions are rock-drawings executed on the cliffs bordering the Nile in Upper Egypt. The oldest consist principally of geometric designs such as concentric circles, half-circles, and net-patterns, or abstract figures
[1]
.
[1]: Stevenson Smith, W. 1981. The Art and Architecture of Ancient Egypt. New Haeven and London: Yale University Press. Pg. 25-26. |
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examples: rock-art, pottery paintings, pot-marks, iconography on the palettes and maceheads.
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examples: rock-art, pottery paintings, pot-marks, iconography on the palettes and maceheads.
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examples: rock-art, pottery paintings, pot-marks, iconography on palettes and maceheads. The most widespread and the most abundant source of the depictions is the Decorated Ware class of pottery. Other kind of depictions (still very rare), which are more connected with relief representation on small objects (e.g. as palettes or handles of the knife) and with rock-arts, are the battle and victorious representations - with depictions of the captives, capturing prisoners, water battles, killing with the macehead (of course other kind of decorations also appeared, for example animals, including unrealistic ones).
[1]
[1]: Ciałowicz, K. M. 1999. Początki cywilizacji egipskiej. Warszawa-Kraków: Wydawnictwo Naukowe PWN. pg: 295-336. |
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"early writing preserves specialized information that is of a very cursory nature at this point in cultural development."
[1]
"by Dynasty 0, writing was used by scribes and artisans of the Egyptian state."
[2]
The earliest phonetic hieroglyphic writing was found in the tomb J at the Abytos Cemetary U - on the pottery vessels and small bone/ivory labels
[3]
They are dated to Naqada IIIA. But it should be noticed that already in Naqada I, signs similar to hieroglyphs have been found, especially on the pottery vessels (pot marks).
[4]
[1]: (Bard 2000, 64) [2]: (Bard 2000, 74) [3]: Köhler, E. C. "Theories of State Formation". [in:] Wendrich, W. [ed.]. Egyptian Archaeology. Chichester: Blackwell Publishing. pg: 41. [4]: Kahl, J. "Hieroglyphic Writing During the Fourth Millennium BC: an Analysis of Systems". Archeo-NiI 11 (2001); 122, 124. |
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The first written records in the Valley of Oaxaca are from the Rosario phase (700-500 BCE).
[1]
[2]
Written records are therefore coded as absent for this period.
[1]: Flannery, K. V. and J. Marcus (1983). "The Cloud People." New York. [2]: Marcus, J. and K. V. Flannery (1996). Zapotec civilization: How urban society evolved in Mexico’s Oaxaca Valley, Thames and Hudson London. |
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Glyphs on a stone slab (Monument 3) may refer to the name of the captive depicted there and calendric dates.
[1]
[2]
Mesoamerican civilizations, including the Maya, Aztec, Mixtec and Zapotec all possessed "a true form of writing: a series of hieroglyphs arranged in vertical columns and in many instances combined with numerals. The glyphs were at least indirectly related to a spoken language." Zapotec and Mixtec belong to the Otomanguean language family while the Aztec and and Maya belong to the Utoaztecan and Macro-Mayan, respectively. Zapotec writing system is considered the oldest (from c600 BCE). Zapotec inscriptions are considered true writing, since the inscriptions had verbs.
[3]
[1]: Spencer, C. S. and E. M. Redmond (2004). "Primary state formation in Mesoamerica." Annual Review of Anthropology: 173-199, p179 [2]: Marcus, J. and K. V. Flannery (1996). Zapotec civilization: How urban society evolved in Mexico’s Oaxaca Valley, Thames and Hudson London, p130 [3]: Joyce Marcus. February 1980. Zapotec Writing. Scientific American. Vol 242. No 2. Scientific American, Nature America, Inc. pp.50-67. URL: http://www.jstor.rg/stable/24966257 |
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Roughly 350 inscribed stones have been found at Monte Albán (including 310 danzantes) assigned to MA I and II.
[1]
Mesoamerican civilizations, including the Maya, Aztec, Mixtec and Zapotec all possessed "a true form of writing: a series of hieroglyphs arranged in vertical columns and in many instances combined with numerals. The glyphs were at least indirectly related to a spoken language." Zapotec inscriptions are considered true writing, since the inscriptions had verbs.
[2]
[1]: Spencer, C. S. and E. M. Redmond (2003). "Militarism, resistance, and early state development in Oaxaca, Mexico." Social Evolution & History 2: 25-70, p27 [2]: Joyce Marcus. February 1980. Zapotec Writing. Scientific American. Vol 242. No 2. Scientific American, Nature America, Inc. pp.50-67. URL: http://www.jstor.rg/stable/24966257 |
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Roughly 350 inscribed stones have been found at Monte Albán (including 310 danzantes) assigned to MA I and II.
[1]
Mesoamerican civilizations, including the Maya, Aztec, Mixtec and Zapotec all possessed "a true form of writing: a series of hieroglyphs arranged in vertical columns and in many instances combined with numerals. The glyphs were at least indirectly related to a spoken language." Zapotec inscriptions are considered true writing, since the inscriptions had verbs.
[2]
[1]: Spencer, C. S. and E. M. Redmond (2003). "Militarism, resistance, and early state development in Oaxaca, Mexico." Social Evolution & History 2: 25-70, p27 [2]: Joyce Marcus. February 1980. Zapotec Writing. Scientific American. Vol 242. No 2. Scientific American, Nature America, Inc. pp.50-67. URL: http://www.jstor.rg/stable/24966257 |
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Roughly 350 inscribed stones have been found at Monte Albán (including 310 danzantes) assigned to MA I and II.
[1]
Mesoamerican civilizations, including the Maya, Aztec, Mixtec and Zapotec all possessed "a true form of writing: a series of hieroglyphs arranged in vertical columns and in many instances combined with numerals. The glyphs were at least indirectly related to a spoken language." Zapotec inscriptions are considered true writing, since the inscriptions had verbs.
[2]
[1]: Spencer, C. S. and E. M. Redmond (2003). "Militarism, resistance, and early state development in Oaxaca, Mexico." Social Evolution & History 2: 25-70, p27 [2]: Joyce Marcus. February 1980. Zapotec Writing. Scientific American. Vol 242. No 2. Scientific American, Nature America, Inc. pp.50-67. URL: http://www.jstor.rg/stable/24966257 |
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Roughly 350 inscribed stones have been found at Monte Albán (including 310 danzantes) assigned to MA I and II.
[1]
Mesoamerican civilizations, including the Maya, Aztec, Mixtec and Zapotec all possessed "a true form of writing: a series of hieroglyphs arranged in vertical columns and in many instances combined with numerals. The glyphs were at least indirectly related to a spoken language." Zapotec inscriptions are considered true writing, since the inscriptions had verbs.
[2]
[1]: Spencer, C. S. and E. M. Redmond (2003). "Militarism, resistance, and early state development in Oaxaca, Mexico." Social Evolution & History 2: 25-70, p27 [2]: Joyce Marcus. February 1980. Zapotec Writing. Scientific American. Vol 242. No 2. Scientific American, Nature America, Inc. pp.50-67. URL: http://www.jstor.rg/stable/24966257 |
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Genealogical registers of noble ancestry (including important marriages, and sometimes important life events of individuals) were recorded in stone during this period. Some examples have been found in tombs.
[1]
Mesoamerican civilizations, including the Maya, Aztec, Mixtec and Zapotec all possessed "a true form of writing: a series of hieroglyphs arranged in vertical columns and in many instances combined with numerals. The glyphs were at least indirectly related to a spoken language." Zapotec inscriptions are considered true writing, since the inscriptions had verbs.
[2]
[1]: Flannery and Marcus (1983) The Cloud People: divergent evolution of the Zapotec and Mixtec civilizations. Museum of Anthropology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. Academic Press, New York. p184 [2]: Joyce Marcus. February 1980. Zapotec Writing. Scientific American. Vol 242. No 2. Scientific American, Nature America, Inc. pp.50-67. URL: http://www.jstor.rg/stable/24966257 |
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Stamps, seals etc.
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Stamps and seals. “Seals became important when in the course of the 13th century transactions that would otherwise take place as an oral agreement had to be put in writing and thus became legal evidence. The seal confirmed that what was written in the document corresponded to reality. The seal guaranteed the legal transaction described in writing, but at the same time made the ruler and his will (and therefore also the will of God) present symbolically whenever such as transaction took place. The ruler depicted on the seal — whether enthroned or on horseback — became a substitute image of the ruler’s person. Gradually, that image was replaced by the ruler’s coat of arms.”
[1]
[1]: (Antonín 2017: 63-64) Antonín, Robert. 2017. The Ideal Ruler in Medieval Bohemia, trans. Sean Mark Miller, East Central and Eastern Europe in the Middle Ages, 450-1450. Leiden; Boston: Brill. https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/G2S9M8F6 |
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Iconography and Symbolism: Religious and cultural icons, paintings, and symbols often conveyed stories, teachings, and historical events. Churches and religious buildings, for example, were adorned with iconography that told stories from religious texts.
[1]
[1]: Dara Vandor, “A Brief History of Russian Icons,” Waddingtons.Ca, last modified February 12, 2021, accessed January 13, 2024, https://www.waddingtons.ca/a-brief-history-of-russian-icons/. Zotero link: A9KGIB4S |
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Seals, stamps etc.
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Germanic runes were used by the Anglo-Saxon settlers. Letters based on Germanic runes were then incorporated into the Latin alphabet.
[1]
[1]: (Early Medieval: Networks’) ‘Early Medieval: Networks’, English Heritage. https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/learn/story-of-england/early-medieval/networks/. https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/IGSR3527 |
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Petroglyphs; pictographs. “Although the ancient people of the Southwest didn’t have a written language, they had effective ways to communicate. Cultures worldwide have used rock art to transmit ideas and beliefs. There are two types of rock art, petroglyphs and pictographs. Petroglyphs are images carved or pecked into a rock surface. In Chaco Canyon, petroglyphs are carved into the sandstone cliffs that form the canyon walls. Many are located on boulders. Pictographs, images painted on a rock surface, are less common in Chaco Canyon because the paint erodes over time. At Chaco, and throughout the American Southwest, rock images were probably an important form of visual communication. Some are images of clan symbols; others are records of important events during migrations. Still others are memory aids for recalling stories, songs, and ceremonies.”
[1]
[1]: (“Chaco Culture - Communication”) “Chaco Culture” NPS Museum Collections, accessed May 8, 2023, https://www.nps.gov/museum/exhibits/chcu/index6.html. https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/NMRVDA5I |
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Royal and privy seals. A secret seal also came into use during the reign of Edward III, by which he would use his signet ring for private communications. In 1335 the Griffin Seal also came into use, for land and revenue business.
[1]
[1]: Prestwich 2005: 58) Prestwich, Michael. 2005. Plantagenet England 1225-1360. Oxford: Oxford University Press. https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/XTBKFDCI |
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“The most interesting find was a collection of 37 bone objects engraved with minute glyphs and pictorial scenes, highlighted in red cinnabar. Subjects range from the historical to the mythological, the latter involving lively renderings of rain gods fishing and the voyage, and then sinking, of a canoe carrying the dying maze God and an array of anthropomorphic creatures. One bears a long list of death-dates for foreign nobility, while others supply intriguing but still largely opaque references to the kingdoms of Copan and Palenque. The last clearly historical date on a bone is from 727, though another might provide one in 733, suggesting that the king’s death and burial can be placed shortly before the inauguration of his son the following year.”)
[1]
“The ceramic cups the cacao was served in were just as impressive. They were decorated with beautifully painted pictures and glyphs that proclaimed the glory of Tikal and its powerful ahau. Hasaw presented the cups to his guests as gifts. When they left, they took home with them a vivid reminder of all that was wonderful, and fearful, about Tikal and its great king.”
[2]
[1]: (Martin and Grube 2000: 47) Martin, Simon and Grube, Nikolai. 2000. Chronicle of the Maya Kings and Queens: Deciphering the Dynasties of the Ancient Maya. London; New York: Thames & Hudson. https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/5WIIDVRJ [2]: (Mann 2002: 25) Mann, Elizabeth. 2002. Tikal: The Centre of the Mayan World. New York: Mikaya Press. https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/items/VM7Q67Q8 |
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Iconography and Symbolism: Religious and cultural icons, paintings, and symbols often conveyed stories, teachings, and historical events. Churches and religious buildings, for example, were adorned with iconography that told stories from religious texts.
[1]
[1]: Dara Vandor, “A Brief History of Russian Icons,” Waddingtons.Ca, last modified February 12, 2021, accessed January 13, 2024, https://www.waddingtons.ca/a-brief-history-of-russian-icons/. Zotero link: A9KGIB4S |
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Propaganda poster were designed to convey messages about the Communist Party’s goals, achievements, and directives. They often featured symbolic imagery, bold colors, and motivational slogans. The imagery in these posters was carefully crafted to inspire, educate, or mobilize the population around various themes such as industrial productivity, collective farming, political loyalty, and military strength.
[1]
The Soviet Union also made extensive use of symbols and emblems to convey its ideals and values. The hammer and sickle, the red star, and the State Emblem of the Soviet Union are examples of such symbols. [2] [1]: “Views and Re-Views: Soviet Political Posters and Cartoons | Medium: Posters,” accessed November 24, 2023, https://library.brown.edu/cds/Views_and_Reviews/medium_lists/posters.html. Zotero link: TDRA24PX [2]: Harald Wydra, “The Power of Symbols—Communism and Beyond,” International Journal of Politics, Culture, and Society 25, no. 1/3 (2012): 49–69, accessed November 24, 2023, https://www.jstor.org/stable/23279944. Zotero link: XI4RSUHR |
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“Another question arising from the incidence of credit in both the local economy and the overseas trade is the nature of the indigenous system of recordkeeping. In Allada the local people, it was noted in 1670, in the absence of writing used knotted strings to keep records of various matters, including commercial transactions (“the price of goods”). Several later accounts allude to other mechanical devices for keeping financial (and fiscal) records in Dahomey. After the conquest of Allada in 1724, the King’s officers counted the captives taken (over 8,000) by “giving a booge [cowrie] to every one.” An English trader visiting the Dahomean court in 1772 recorded that the royal gunner showed him a calabash containing fifteen pebbles to indicate the number of cannon fired in a salute in his honour.”
[1]
[1]: Austin, Gareth, et al. “Credit, Currencies, and Culture: African Financial Institutions in Historical Perspective.” The International Journal of African Historical Studies, vol. 34, no. 1, 2001, p. 144: 33. https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/collections/GWWIKDDM/items/SPXH2IUW/collection |
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Present in Allada and Dahomey, so very likely also in Whydah: “Another question arising from the incidence of credit in both the local economy and the overseas trade is the nature of the indigenous system of recordkeeping. In Allada the local people, it was noted in 1670, in the absence of writing used knotted strings to keep records of various matters, including commercial transactions (“the price of goods”). Several later accounts allude to other mechanical devices for keeping financial (and fiscal) records in Dahomey. After the conquest of Allada in 1724, the King’s officers counted the captives taken (over 8,000) by “giving a booge [cowrie] to every one.” An English trader visiting the Dahomean court in 1772 recorded that the royal gunner showed him a calabash containing fifteen pebbles to indicate the number of cannon fired in a salute in his honour.”
[1]
[1]: Austin, Gareth, et al. “Credit, Currencies, and Culture: African Financial Institutions in Historical Perspective.” The International Journal of African Historical Studies, vol. 34, no. 1, 2001, p. 144: 33. https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/collections/GWWIKDDM/items/SPXH2IUW/collection |
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“The prime minister and chief executioner of the king, the Mingan, had command over the village-chiefs of the region of Abomey. Shortly before operations of a new campaign were to start, every head of a "collectivity," e.g., a group of compounds inhabited by those families related in the male line, brought an account of the number of his men to the head of the village, who placed a number of pebbles corresponding to the total in a small sack. In this count were included all males over the age of thirteen, because above this age, all were considered men. // “About ten or twelve days before mobilisation was to commence, the village-chiefs, with their sacks of small stones, came before the Mingan. On each sack was sewn a symbol which indicated from which village it had come,4 so that there would be no difficulty in identifying it. In the South, the villages about Whydah reported to the Yovogan, who there represented the king. In Aliada there were five sub-chiefs to whom the chiefs of villages brought their sacks; in the north, two; to the east, two; and to the west, two. All the sacks sent to these district chiefs were also brought to the palace at Abomey, and any chief who disclosed the number of pebbles he brought to the palace did so at the peril of his life, for were this disclosure to be discovered he would lose his head. The essence of this system, as a matter of fact, was its secrecy. The power of Dahomey lay in the number of its inhabitants, and this constituted a secret which the king alone might know. // “The sacks, then, were brought before the Mingan. But while it was his duty to receive their bearers, it was not his right to count their con- tents. This was done by an official called the Koto, who took the sacks, still in the possession of the village-heads of the district of Abomey, to the king himself. The chiefs were conducted by one of the king’s wives to whom this service was specially delegated, and who, with the Koto, had already counted the pebbles and knew how many men were to be found in each village. The king, as each chief prostrated himself to show respect for the monarch, would indicate to which army corps the men from his village were to be assigned. Nothing was said as to the number of men who were to go. After the campaign, however, the commander of each corps would be asked how many men he had received from each village, and if the answer was not a number equal to one-half of the counters in that year’s sack for that village, its chief was strangled. // “What of the enumeration of the women? After the troops had been mobilised, there was a period before the army set out for the battle, during which organisation was perfected. When the men had been assembled for six days, every commander asked each of his soldiers how many wives he had, whether his mother was alive or dead, how many unmarried daughters over thirteen there were in his family. In accordance with the principle of indirection I have already enunciated, the real purpose for which this information was desired was not indicated, for the soldiers were told that the king wanted to know those who had been left at home, so that if a man were killed on a battle field, his dependents could be recompensed for their loss. // “The army chief, using pebbles to indicate the number of women dependent on his soldiers, village by village, reported the number to the palace, where the sacks were put in charge of a woman who kept check on the affairs of the army. When this count was finished, the army began its campaign. On its completion, each commander was asked how many men he had received from each village, being con- fronted with the village-chiefs, each of whom, as a control, was asked also to tell the number of men who left for war from his village and the number who returned. At the same time, before a commission pre- sided over by one of the war-chiefs, the heads of the army-corps con- firmed the numbers of women and girls over thirteen reported by the men from each village. Thereupon, each village-chief was told to indicate the day on which he would again appear before this court with the heads of those collectivities from which men did not go to war.”
[1]
“Another question arising from the incidence of credit in both the local economy and the overseas trade is the nature of the indigenous system of recordkeeping. In Allada the local people, it was noted in 1670, in the absence of writing used knotted strings to keep records of various matters, including commercial transactions (“the price of goods”). Several later accounts allude to other mechanical devices for keeping financial (and fiscal) records in Dahomey. After the conquest of Allada in 1724, the King’s officers counted the captives taken (over 8,000) by “giving a booge [cowrie] to every one.” An English trader visiting the Dahomean court in 1772 recorded that the royal gunner showed him a calabash containing fifteen pebbles to indicate the number of cannon fired in a salute in his honour.”
[2]
[1]: HERSKOVITS, M. J. (1932). POPULATION STATISTICS IN THE KINGDOM OF DAHOMEY. Human Biology, 4(2), 252–261; 255-257 https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/collections/GWWIKDDM/items/8T74FM7D/collection [2]: Austin, Gareth, et al. “Credit, Currencies, and Culture: African Financial Institutions in Historical Perspective.” The International Journal of African Historical Studies, vol. 34, no. 1, 2001, p. 144: 33. https://www.zotero.org/groups/1051264/seshat_databank/collections/GWWIKDDM/items/SPXH2IUW/collection |
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