The Condition of Cuneiform Texts "Clay tablets in Ebla's archives lie where they fell when their shelving collapsed in a fire some 40 centuries ago. An archaeological treasure trove, the tablets found at Ebla number more than four times all others unearthed from this period" (TIME).

Despite the relatively good condition of these cuneiform tablets, note that very few, if any at all, have remained intact. Virtually all of them are broken in pieces. Those that do survive unbroken, however, are not necessarily much better off. For the clay tablets were not fired, only allowed to bake in the sun for a while before being put into storage. Thus, they are less resistant to erosion, and it is extremely rare that even an unbroken clay tablet is completely readable. Often times, parts of the cuneiform inscriptions have been worn off. The tablet on the left tells the story of how Mer-kar, ancestor of Gilgamesh and ruler of Uruk, defeated Sukesh-danna, ruler of Aratta (a city-state far north). Sukesh-danna demanded that the primary temple of Inanna be moved from Uruk to Aratta, its rightful home. Through a series of magical contests, Mer-kar's sorceror outwits Sukesh-danna and, as a result of the quarrel, Uruk not only maintained its temple to Inanna and the status as her sole home on earth, but Uruk asserted economic control over Aratta and imported its precious resources such as metals, wood, and lapis lazuli (Foster 22). Even though this tablet is exceptionally well-preserved, notice where some of the inscription has been eroded away on the left side and at the top where pieces of the tablet have chipped away, making translation and interpretation of the cunieform inscription that much more difficult.