Archaeologists working to restore damage wrought by the massive earthquakes that struck southern Turkey earlier this year have unearthed a 3,800-year-old cuneiform clay tablet at the Bronze Age site of Tell Atchana. The inscription is in Akkadian and is a contract for the acquisition of another city by the king of the ancient city of Alalakh.

Archaeology professor Murat Akar said the tablet is not damaged and the finding was “so exciting.”

“It proves us that those kings had the economic power and potential to buy another city in those times."

“There is also the name of the important people of the city who witnessed this sale on the tablet, most likely,” he added.

“The work came out as an extremely unique example, especially to decipher the economic structure of that period, the relationship between cities, the economic and political model,” Akar said.

The first examination of the tablet in Akkadian language revealed information containing an agreement made by Yarim-Lim, the first known king of Alalakh, to purchase another city.

The tablet will be transferred to a museum after the examinations, said the restoration team head.