Further contact between Sumer and Subartu was cut off sharply in the reign of
Shar-lkali-sharri (Sallaberger 2007 ), and the EJ V occupation and material culture of
Subartu describes an independent trajectory. Diplomatic marriages and exchange
between the regions, and occasional military conflicts, in Ur III period texts have left
no traces in the archaeological record.
In conclusion, the traditional reconstruction of an asymmetrical relationship
between Subartu and Sumer is an exaggeration. Borrowed Sumerian material culture
was selective and often mixed with local material and adapted to local uses. True
acculturation did not occur; Subartu did not become more like Sumer. The strong
economy bolstered political independence, probably aided by further connections to
the northern Levant and Anatolia. Even the Akkadian episode of colonisation did not
have a strong or lasting material effect.
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