Abstract
The fragmentary nature of cuneiform documentation provides a generous canvas for historical speculation; indeed, without such speculation our reconstruction of the ancient past would be dry, disjointed, and chaotically discontinuous. But speculation carries risks, and new information more often than not wreaks havoc on even the most carefully woven historical narratives. In a recent paper I suggested that the royal houses of Mari and Ur were strongly linked during the last century of the third millennium BC, during the time we call the Ur III period; similar views were independently expressed by Tonia Sharlach. Some time after the article had been given at a conference, thoroughly revised, read by a number of colleagues, submitted for publication, and promptly forgotten, new evidence came to light that may effect parts of the narrative. But, as is often the case, the new information is also fragmentary: it casts doubt on some of my assertions, but it also fails to provide any definitive answers.
© Walter de Gruyter
