These days, most people do a lot of their shopping byclicking a few buttons. That might be convenient, but it can make it difficultto keep track of when your new armoire or bookshelf will actually show up. Inancient Turkey, somebody kept such details written down on a palm-sized pieceof clay.

The Accana Mound is the site of the ancient Anatolian cityof Alalah, which served as the capital of the Mukis Kingdom. The ruins foundthere date as far back as 4,000 years ago. At an excavation at the AccanaMound, researchers recently unearthed a small clay tablet inscribed withcuneiform writing. A study of the tablet has narrowed its origin to some timein the 15th century BC, during the Late Bronze Age.

Initial readings of the tablet’s Akkadian cuneiformrevealed details of a major furniture purchase, including an ample number ofwooden tables, chairs, and stools. The experts are still working through the writingand are slowly gathering information about the buyers and sellers involved.Therefore, this small tablet offers a window into the city’s economicprocesses. Alalah was located along a trade route at the time, so it would havebeen a center of commerce in addition to being a capital.

The small piece of clay measures only 4.2 centimeters by3.5 centimeters and is just 1.6 centimeters thick. It weighs 28 grams. Butdespite its small size, the tablet will help paint a much larger picture ofBronze Age Turkey.

There have been other similar discoveries in the region,including in 2023 when another cuneiform tablet was discovered that details thepurchase of an entire city and, one presumes, the furniture in it.

The area was first excavated in the late 1930s. But, afterfinding this clay list of furniture, it seems there’s still plenty of things todiscover.

And who knows? Perhaps the tablet’s details will providesome home-décor inspiration.

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