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📜 — Was cuneiform knew in Europe during early Bronze age ? 

A possible answer

From Early 2024

➠ Abstract

We postulate that the visible correlation between the engraved character at the bottom right of the « Stèle du Rocher des Doms » (on the picture) and early vertical cuneiform character for "star or deity" might be linked to the displacement of — or part of — the cuneiform language to early Europe.  This needs more investigation as this postulate is coherent with the time frame in play (Copper and Early Bronze Age).

➠ About the stele

The « Stèle du Rocher des Doms » is a Solar representation on an anthropomorphic stele dated from the end of the Neolithic (6 000 BC to 2 200 BC [1]). Or, between the end of the Copper Age (with oldest from high temperature smelting evidence dating from 5 000 BC [2]) from and the Early Bronze Age (beginning around ~3200 BC [3]). Meaning approximately between 3 000 BC and 2 800 BC [4]. See the time frame below.

This stele has been found on a small massif of Cretaceous limestone, on the left side of the Rhone, on the northern edge of Avignon [5]. Sylvain Gagnière's research in 1960 and 1961 exposed that  the remains date from a continuous occupation during the end of the Neolithic and during the Middle Ages.

➠ Early cuneiform

Cuneiform is a writing system that was used to write several languages in the Ancient Near East [6], in Mesopotamia, ancient Egypt, ancient Persia, Anatolia and the Armenian highlands, the Levant and the Arabian Peninsula. It is described as intensively used [7] during the early Bronze Age (beginning around ~3200 BC [3]).

For the matter of our development we will focus on one special character of early vertical cuneiform. The character for "star".

➠ Conclusion

With these developments, we could postulate that the « Stèle du Rocher des Doms » may be a representation of a deity or a past personage (like a king). Which is also coherent with previous archaeological development, stating that the stele is a Solar representation [4]. 

However, we also express that the engraved character at the bottom right of the « Stèle du Rocher des Doms » (the little star on the picture) might be linked to a early knowledge of early vertical cuneiform characters — here, for "star or deity" (see pictures above) — in Europe. This pushes us to believe that writing discovery spreads up wildly like a blast such as a cultural revolution (see the spread of ideas during the Age of Enlightenment [9]).  For it may be disruptive with what was previously thought of writing in early Europe, we would like to call for more investigations.

#Key:Discovery