List of Sumerian Earthenware

[ummia-inim-gina]

- DUG (dug "vessel"), preceeding terms of earthenware

pot
BAHAR [POT] wr. BAHAR2 "a pot"
abni [CRUCIBLE] wr. abni2 "a melting pot, crucible" Akk. maşādu
adagur [POT] wr. a-da-gur4; a-da-gur5; a-da-kur "a libation pot" Akk. adagurru
amamdadu [POT] wr. am-am-da-du3 "a pot"
barsud [POT] wr. dugbar-sud "a pot"
dabiltum [POT] wr. dugda-bil2-tum "a pot" Akk. tabiltu
dug [POT] wr. dug; dugx(BI) "(clay) pot; a unit of liquid capacity" Akk. karpatu
hab [POT] wr. hab "a pot"
hal [POT] wr. dughal "a pot" Akk. hallu
hurum [~POT] wr. hu-ru-um "a designation of a pot"
lahhušu [BASE] wr. lahhušu; lahhušux(|SIG4.SIG4.ŠU2|) "base of a pot" Akk. šupat karpati
maruLUM [POT?] wr. dugma2-ru-LUM "a pot?" Akk. ?
muš [POT] wr. dugmuš "a pot" Akk. karpat şerri
niĝdaĝal [POT] wr. dugniĝ2-daĝal "a pot" Akk. rību
saĝšu [TURBAN] wr. tug2saĝšu "turban; cover of a pot" Akk. kubšu
šika [SHERD] wr. šika "(pot)sherd" Akk. išhilşu
tigul [POT] wr. dugti-gul "a pot" Akk. karpatu
tišub [POT] wr. dugti-šub "a pot" Akk. karpatu
ugur [POT] wr. ugur2 "a pot"
zallilda [POT] wr. dugzal-lil2-da "type of pot"
ŠID [POT] wr. ŠID; dugŠID "a pot"

[ummia-inim-gina]

Notes on Ceramics from: Daniel T. Potts "Mesopotamian Civilization: The Material Foundation" Cornell Universoty Press, 1997

Pottery "dug"

Clay "im" was used to make ceramic pottery vessels including: basins, beakers, bottles, bowls, churns, cups, jars, pipes, vat, vessels. These were made by a potter "bahar" and fired at a kiln "udun". Two Ur III texts (MW 124 & 125) show they worked in teams of two to end and were attached to breweries "e-bappir", state kitchens "e-muhaldim" and mills (e-HAR.-HAR.). Potter's rations were similar to other craftsmen of the period. Thirty to Sixty sila of barely a month and three to four minas of wool per year.

MW 124: 2,000 ceramic vessels, 12 clay objects. 3,604 work-days. 60 talents (1,800 kg)reed spent.

MW 125: 66,711 ceramic vessels. 7206 work-days. (60,000 were 1 sila vessels)


The Lexical Sources
The series ur5-ra=hubullu is a set of some twenty-four bilingual Sumerian/Akkadian tablets. With over 9700 entries it has been described as a Mesopotamian "inventory of material culture" (M. Civil "Lexicography" AS 20 1975:125) Tablet X of the series (B. Landsberger "The Series HAR-ra=hubullu, Tablets VIII-XII Materialien zum sumerischen Lexikon" VI, 1959) is a list of over 350 names for ceramic vessels such as: "storage jar" (Hh X:11), "libation vessel" (14-16) "suspension vessel" (39), "small", "perforated", "new', "old", "damaged" and "large" (41-59) "cracked" (100), "painted" (105), "biund with rope" (106) "ostrich-egg shaped" (110), "sprinkling" (173) and "drinking" vessels (176). There is a recurrent constellation of ten vessel designations which re-appears five times in variant forms and run as follows:

water "a"

beer "Kaš"
vat (6-8, 12-13), jug (9-10), vessel for beer mash (73, 211-213), mug (76-78, 85-86) and large (83-84b) and small brewing vessels (214). Vessels for finished beer "dug util" and for storing beer "dug lahtan" (ranging from 10 to 60 sila)

milk "ga"
"namasu" a churn, "sakirru" a churn, "karpatu" a pot for milk, "hallu" a ceramic container for milk, "lahannu" a milk bottle.

oil "i"
"dug šagan" denoted a pointed vessel for holding oil.
sesame oil "i-giš"

ghee "i-nun-na"

lard "i-sah"

fine (sesame) oil "i-dug-ga"

wine "geštin"
Tablet X of ur5-ra=hubullu contains a wide variety of terms for wine vessels. Generally "dug geštin" but others occur (120, 139, 161, 190, 234, 325-326) Drinking tube "gi-nig-kaš-šur-ra"

honey "lal"
Hh X: 121, 140, 235

[ummia-inim-gina]

Clay

clay pot "dug"
2 sila, 1/15 days

small cup "^dugtur"
.25 sila, 1/120 days

small bowl "^dugma-al-tum-tur"
.5 sila, 1/60 days
meduim bowl "^dugma-al-tum-muru"
1 sila, 1/30 days
large bowl "^dugma-al-tum-gal"
10 sila, 1/3 day

medium basins "^dugutul-muru"
30 sila, 1 day
large basins "^dugutul-gal"
60 sila, 2 days

beer mug "^dugpihu"
1 sila, 1/30 days

beer jug "^dugKaš"
5 sila, 1/6 days

vat for storing beer/dough "^duglahtan"
300 sila, 10 labor days

wine beaker "^duggeštin"
.25 sila, 1/120 days

honey jar "^duglal"
.1 sila, 1/300 days

milk bottle "lahannu"
.5 sila, 1/60 days

pot for milk "karpatu"
10 sila, 1/3 day

oil jar "^dugsab"
.1 sila, 1/300 days

vessel for holding oil "^dugšagan"
.5 sila, 1/60 days

others
sling shot "imdug" 1/600 days
mudbricks "šeg" 1/100 days
clay tablet "dub" 1/60 days
Drinking tube "gi-nig-kaš-šur-ra" 1/30 days
clay figurines "?" 1 day
clay pipes "^dugarutum" 1 day
butter churns "^dugsakirru" 2 days