US researchers have discovered what appears to be the oldest known alphabetic writing in the world, after finding finger-length clay cylinders from a tomb in Syria with the etched details. Using carbon-14 dating techniques, the researchers at John Hopkins University determined that the cylinders were made around 2400 B.C.E., which makes them around 500 years older than any other known alphabetic scripts. Alongside the writings, the researchers discovered Early Bronze Age tombs, including a well-preserved grave with six burials inside.
The bodies were accompanied by gold and silver jewellery, cookware, a spearhead, and pottery vessels. Four “lightly baked clay cylinders” were next to the pottery and were etched with alphabetic writing. Notably, they were found in 2004 and described in an academic paper in 2021 but only gained prominence this week as one of the researchers presented the findings at the annual meeting of the American Society of Overseas Research.
“This new discovery shows that people were experimenting with new communication technologies much earlier and in a different location than we had imagined before now,” said Glenn Schwartz, a professor of archaeology at Johns Hopkins University, associated with the research.
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‘Different origin’
Long before alphabet came into existence, human civilisations used different means to communicate. While the Sumerians of Mesopotamia used cuneiforms or small images, the ancient Egyptians developed hieroglyphics, and Chinese characters built the written language piece by piece.
“Previously, scholars thought the alphabet was invented in or around Egypt sometime after 1900 BCE. Our artefacts are older and from a different area on the map, suggesting the alphabet may have an entirely different origin story than we thought,” Mr Schwartz added.
The form of writing, discovered on the clay cylinder may have revolutionised language by making it accessible to people not belonging to the royalty and social elite. However, the scientists have been unable to translate what the writing on the cylinder means.
“The cylinders were perforated, so I’m imagining a string tethering them to another object to act as a label. Maybe they detail the contents of a vessel, or maybe where the vessel came from, or who it belonged to. Without a means to translate the writing, we can only speculate.”