the Ur III kings, and Shulgi in particular, established a large cadre of bureaucrats
trained in a common system of values. We see an imperial calendar created, although
it is not universally enforced even in the capital, Ur. We also see a centralized admini-
strative center at Drehem charged with accounting for the transfer of commodities
between the provinces. The site has never been excavated scientifically, but recent
research suggests that much of the activity was federated to outlying centers; Drehem
itself was more of an administrative headquarters.
The case of Shulgi sheds interesting light on the politics of identity. Scribes had long
been used to celebrate rulers – from votive dedications through to display inscriptions.
Now their role included a more overt propagandizing. Shulgi was keen to establish a
tradition of royal praise for himself in the temples, and many hymns were composed
in his honor. The king asserted his wide-ranging prowess, and boasted superlative feats
of performance. Meanwhile other texts – and the reputation of the rulers celebrated
in them – were suppressed. Scribes were an instrument for controlling the image of the
ruler, and shaping historical memory.
The education of scribes during this period seems to be more or less a continuation
of earlier third millennium practices. The traditional texts were still copied. And
elementary education is based on practical exercises and ad hoc lists. This is very similar
to the situation that existed as far back as the archaic Uruk period. An interesting
phenomenon is visible in cylinder seals of this period. It seems that the practical
training of scribes lasted several years before a literate official could actually claim the
title “scribe.” In his early years, he would seal documents using a seal that bore his name
but no title, later commissioning a new seal, or re-cutting his old one, to include the
scribal title (Waetzoldt 2009 : 255 ).
The range of literary texts in written form expanded. In addition to the Temple
Hymns, known from Early Dynastic copies, we see other texts known from Old
Babylonian copies, of which some differ only in orthography (such as the Curse of
Agade) while others differ more substantially (such as Lugalbanda). There is also a new
text about Gilgamesh, whom Shulgi claimed as his brother. Perhaps more central to the
enculturation of scribal minds was the Sumerian Kinglist. This celebrated the fiction
that the land had always been ruled by one person. It thus legitimized the rule of all
Sumer by one man in the then present, but also cultivated a sense of a long-standing
common Sumerian identity. The absence of Lagash’s rulers from the list is conspicuous.
Perhaps the most remarkable sign of how far the scribal art reached is the fact that
King Shulgi, ruler of the Ur III empire, had himself been trained as a scribe. He boasted
at length about his training from boyhood, and the range and depth of his talents. We
can only speculate as to why he had been put through this training, apparently an
extremely unusual state of affairs for one destined to rule. We do know that Shulgi was
not alone among powerful men who had received an education. Waetzoldt ( 2009 : 255 )
has gathered evidence of the sons of rulers who boasted scribal qualifications. At the
other end of the spectrum, there seem to be many individuals with low levels of scribal
ability, producing texts that are poorly written and harder to read. Some scribes appear
to have been taught the trade by their father – which may be assumed to have been a
common practice from earliest times – although others seem to have come from other
areas, such as the son of an oil presser. Some scribes occupied high-ranking positions,
while others seem to have been slaves. A scribal education could set a man on a positive
career path, but while it seems to have been a relatively open option, one wonders
–– The first scribes ––