Iri-sagrig: Lost Mesopotamian city known via looted cuneiform tablets. Iri-sagrig was a major provincial capital and transportation hub during the Ur 3 Empire around 4,000 years ago Approximately 3,500 cuneiform tablets from Iri-sagrig have been illegally dug up and sold on antiquities market Peak looting occurred during the 2003 Iraq War
Iri-sagrig was a major provincial capital and transportation hub during the Ur III Empire around 4,000 years ago. Thousands of cuneiform tablets were looted and sold, with significant looting occurring during and after the 2003 Iraq War. The tablets reveal daily life details—high-status women received substantial clothing provisions annually! 📜
Key facts claimed:
- Iri-sagrig was a major provincial capital and transportation hub during the Ur 3 Empire around 4,000 years ago
- Approximately 1,400 cuneiform tablets from Iri-sagrig have been illegally dug up and sold on antiquities market (not 3,500 as originally stated)
- Peak looting occurred during the 2003 Iraq War
- Tablets provide detailed records of daily life including food allocations for palace officials and workers
- Records show high-status women received specific clothing provisions annually
Key Facts
- Iri-sagrig was a major provincial capital and transportation hub during the Ur 3 Empire around 4,000 years ago
- Approximately 3,500 cuneiform tablets from Iri-sagrig have been illegally dug up and sold on antiquities market
- Peak looting occurred during the 2003 Iraq War
- Tablets provide detailed records of daily life including food allocations for palace officials and workers
- Records show high-status women received specific boot provisions: 36 pairs annually for governor's wife
- Located on or near the Tigris River, near ancient city of Kesh, on the Tabim Mama Canal
- Several candidate sites exist but none definitively identified
Related site: Iri-sagrig — view location, images, and history on the Ancient Nerds map.
Source: 5 Ancient Lost Cities Archaeologists Are Looking For by Inside Archaeology