Ea-nāṣir
Mesopotamian copper merchant of the Bronze Age
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Ea-nāṣir (Old Babylonian Akkadian: 𒂍𒀀𒈾𒍢𒅕, lit. 'Ea is (his) warden') was a Mesopotamian copper merchant from Ur during the Bronze Age.[2] He was a member of a guild of traders based in Dilmun and was active during the 11th and 19th regnal years of Rim-Sîn I, who ruled Larsa in Sumer.[2][1] As a vendor of copper ingots originating in Magan,[3] Ea-nāṣir is most recognized for being the addressee of the oldest known written complaint, which was authored around 1750 BC by a customer named Nanni, who expresses dissatisfaction with the quality of the ingots and takes offense at how his servant was treated by Ea-nāṣir during the transaction.[2][4]
Ea-nāṣir | |
|---|---|
𒂍𒀀𒈾𒍢𒅕 (Akkadian) | |
| Born | Mesopotamia (now Iraq) |
| Occupation | Copper merchant in Ur |
| Era | Bronze Age |
| Organization(s) | Alik Tilmun, or "Traders of Dilmun" (guild)[1] |
| Known for | Being the addressee of the oldest known written complaint, dated c. 1750 BC |
Life and business activity
1: Entrances 2: Main courtyard 3: Stairwell 4: Toilet 5: Reception or living room 6: Chapel or living room
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Wilhelmus F. Leemans describes Ea-nāṣir in his 1960 publication, based on the clay tablets found in Ea-nāṣir's probable residence in Ur, as a prominent wholesale merchant who purchased copper in Dilmun and shipped it by waterway to Ur for resale to various traders.[5] Ea-nāṣir is believed to have spent extended periods in Dilmun, where he received orders and complaints from Ur, which he brought back with him upon his return.[5] According to Leemans, Ea-nāṣir's main business was likely the direct import of copper for the palace of Ur.[6] His greater interest in this palace-related activity is seen as a possible reason why he paid less attention to his private business relationships.[6] Among Ea-nāṣir's clients was the copper trader Nanni.[7] In addition to copper ingots, Ea-nāṣir also traded in copper products and occasionally in textiles and foodstuffs[8] or, according to Michael Rice, "anything in which he could see an opportunity for profit."[9]
What is thought to have been Ea-nāṣir's house was given the address of number 1 Old Street by the excavation team.[10] Like the other houses in the area, it was built from mud brick.[10] It included its own chapel.[10]
Ea-nāṣir's creditworthiness appears to have declined over time.[9] In addition to the increasing number of "reminder letters" addressed to Ea-nāṣir during his career, other findings from the excavations by Leonard Woolley suggest that Ea-nāṣir was ultimately forced to live in more modest circumstances. Part of his house in Ur was apparently separated and merged with a neighbor's house during Ea-nāṣir's lifetime.[11] It is however possible that instead this was a division that took place after Ea-nāṣir's death.[10]
In The Archaeology of the Arabian Gulf, Michael Rice writes that the letters to Ea-nāṣir "gleam mischievously" amidst a mass of tedious but historically significant clay tablets of business correspondence, and that the tone of injured surprise and reproach found in many of them would be familiar to some modern debtors as well.[9] The preserved Akkadian clay tablets include, among other things, complaints that a middleman had not received copper that had already been paid for. People named Arbituram, Appa, Ilsu-ellatsu, and Ili-idinnam lodged complaints with Ea-nāṣir by name.[8] However, the most famous is the angry letter from Nanni, dated around 1750 BC, in which he complains that Ea-nāṣir offered substandard copper ingots to his messenger. Nanni's messengers had already returned empty-handed several times through hostile territory. Nanni writes, among other things:
Who do you think you are, treating someone like me with such contempt? […] Is there anyone else among the traders who deal with Dilmun who has treated me this way? Only you treat my messenger with contempt! […] Be advised that I will no longer accept any copper from you that is not of good quality. From now on, I will personally select the ingots in my own yard, and I will exercise my right of refusal against you, since you have treated me with contempt.
— According to the English translation by Adolf Leo Oppenheim[12]
The clay tablet with Nanni's complaint was found by Leonard Woolley in Ur and acquired by the British Museum in 1953.[13]
Nanni's complaint tablet
According to Nanni's complaint tablet, Ea-nāṣir had agreed to sell some copper ingots to Nanni, but presented Nanni's servant with poor-quality ingots while mistreating and undermining him, and stated the equivalent of "take it or leave it" in a dismissive manner. Enraged, Nanni wrote:[14]
"Who am I that you are treating in this manner and offend me;[a] (that this could happen between) gentlemen as we (both) are!"[b]
"Who is there amongst the Telmun traders who has (ever) acted against me in this way?"[c]
— Translation by A. L. Oppenheim, The Seafaring Merchants of Ur (1954)
In response to Nanni, Ea-nāṣir wrote:[14]
"I myself gave on account of you 19 talents of copper to the palace and Sumi-abum gave (likewise) 18 talents of copper, apart from the sealed document which we both handed over to the temple of Shamash."
— Translation by A. L. Oppenheim, The Seafaring Merchants of Ur (1954)
Other complaint tablets
Other complaint tablets have been found in the ruins that are believed to have been Ea-nāṣir's house. These include one from a man named Arbituram, who complained that he had not received his copper yet, while another tablet's author complained that he was tired of repeatedly receiving low-grade copper.[2][15]
In popular culture
Around 2015, the customer–merchant exchange preserved by the tablet and Ea-nāṣir's rhetoric rose to prominence as the subject of several internet memes on Reddit, Tumblr, and other online platforms.[10] His collection of customer complaints has led to him being portrayed as a trickster character.[10]
Since Ea-nāṣir's emergence in popular culture, a statue of an unknown Mesopotamian worshipper from the Tell Asmar Hoard has routinely been used to depict Ea-nāṣir.[10] However, the statue is older than Ea-nāṣir by approximately a thousand years.