# The Kish tablet (MSVO 4, 74)

> A polished limestone tablet, 61 by 56 by 29 mm, found in 1926 in the upper stratum of the palace at Kish and often called the oldest written document.…

Source: https://mysteriesdept.com/mysteries/proto-cuneiform/artifacts/ART0DEDRGBK9XPY/the-kish-tablet-msvo-4-74  
Publisher: Mysteries Department  
Licence: CC BY 4.0 (credit Mysteries Department and link the page)  

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[Mysteries](https://mysteriesdept.com/mysteries)[Proto-cuneiform: the archaic texts of Uruk](https://mysteriesdept.com/mysteries/proto-cuneiform)[Artifacts](https://mysteriesdept.com/mysteries/proto-cuneiform#artifacts)The Kish tablet (MSVO 4, 74)

**ART** 0DEDRGBK9XPY·Artifact · object

# The Kish tablet (MSVO 4, 74)

ObjectCDLI terms: transliteration reusable with attribution; photograph copyright National Museum of IraqUruk III, c. 3200-3000 BC

[Cite]

**Not kept here.** This copy isn't ours to show. [See it where it's published](https://cdli.earth/P005476).

A polished limestone tablet, 61 by 56 by 29 mm, found in 1926 in the upper stratum of the palace at Kish and often called the oldest written document. CDLI classes it as an Uruk III administrative text with signs for heads, workers, copper and a festival; it is one of five proto-cuneiform texts from Kish. Not to be confused with the later Kish tablet of the Sumerian King List.

Iraq Museum, Baghdad (plaster cast in the Ashmolean Museum). CDLI terms: transliteration reusable with attribution; photograph copyright National Museum of Iraq

## Copies 1

**Cdli transliteration, photograph and line art (p005476)** cdli.earth · CDLI terms: transliteration reusable with attribution; photograph copyright National Museum of IraqPrimary source: [MSVO 4, 74 (P005476): the Kish tablet, CDLI artifact record](https://mysteriesdept.com/sources/SRC0DEDKGT39GKZ/msvo-4-74-p005476-the-kish-tablet-cdli-artifact-record)1 step from the original

[Where it's published](https://cdli.earth/P005476)

## Where it is kept

[Iraq Museum, Baghdad](https://mysteriesdept.com/mysteries/proto-cuneiform/places/PLC0DEDNXDE1HXD/iraq-museum-baghdad) · Museum

## Sources 2

- [MSVO 4, 74 (P005476): the Kish tablet, CDLI artifact record](https://mysteriesdept.com/sources/SRC0DEDKGT39GKZ/msvo-4-74-p005476-the-kish-tablet-cdli-artifact-record)_SRC_
- [Proto-Cuneiform Texts from Diverse Collections (MSVO 4)](https://mysteriesdept.com/sources/SRC0DEDHRYD6HCN/proto-cuneiform-texts-from-diverse-collections-msvo-4)_SRC_

## Cite it

```
Mysteries Department. (2026). The Kish tablet (MSVO 4, 74) [Artifact ART0DEDRGBK9XPY]. https://mysteriesdept.com/r/ART0DEDRGBK9XPY
```

Key

**ART** 0DEDRGBK9XPY

Kind

Object

Held by

Iraq Museum, Baghdad (plaster cast in the Ashmolean Museum)

Dated

Uruk III, c. 3200-3000 BC

Licence

CDLI terms: transliteration reusable with attribution; photograph copyright National Museum of Iraq

Place

[Iraq Museum, Baghdad](https://mysteriesdept.com/mysteries/proto-cuneiform/places/PLC0DEDNXDE1HXD/iraq-museum-baghdad)

Part of

[Proto-cuneiform: the archaic texts of Uruk](https://mysteriesdept.com/mysteries/proto-cuneiform)

The record

Every record is open data. Take this one as JSON, with its links and its history.

[JSON](https://mysteriesdept.com/api/v1/records/ART0DEDRGBK9XPY)