Savitaulu

Savitaulu refers to a type of writing medium made from clay, commonly used in ancient Mesopotamia. These tablets were prepared by taking wet clay and shaping it into a flat, rectangular surface. A stylus, often made from a reed, was then used to impress wedge-shaped marks into the soft clay. This distinctive script is known as cuneiform.

The use of savitaulu for record-keeping and communication dates back to the 4th millennium BCE. They were employed for a wide range of purposes, including administrative records, legal documents, literary works, religious texts, and personal letters. The durability of baked clay allowed for the preservation of vast amounts of information, providing invaluable insights into ancient Mesopotamian societies.

Once inscribed, the savitaulu could be left to dry in the sun or, for greater permanence, baked in a kiln. This baking process hardened the clay, making the tablets resistant to decay and damage. Thousands of these artifacts have been unearthed by archaeologists, forming a significant portion of our knowledge about early civilizations in the Fertile Crescent. The decipherment of cuneiform on these savitaulu has unlocked a rich history of Sumerian, Akkadian, Babylonian, and Assyrian cultures.