This dossier gathers the available data on the planting of sesame in the province of Ĝirsuhttps://www.i3-mesop-oil.gwi.uni-muenchen.de/archive/ur-iii-girsu/, documenting the use of 300 to 1,800 litres of sesame seeds for seeding per field. One source registers a seeding rate of ca. 10 kg/ha, very similar to traditionally farmed sesame in modern Turkey (see commentary to CTPSM 1 112).
The documents from Ĝirsu concerning „sesame seeds“ (še-ĝeš-i3[glossary=še-ĝeš-i3-k]) „for sowing“ (nuĝun-še3[glossary=nuĝun-še3]) are concentrated in months II/May and III/June (see table below). The texts MVN 11 L ([…].02.20), MVN 12 015 (Šu.46.02.00) and MVN 09 072 ([…].02.00) do not specify that the registered sesame seeds were used for sowing, but they are all dated to month II/May and therefore probably relate to the sowing process as well.
The quantity of seed documented is 300 to 1,800 litres per field; three different field names are attested (see table below). CTPSM 1 112 (Šu.36.00.00) is a key source for quantifying the seeding rate: Fields of 271.71 ha in the Susa branch (see Dossier A.1.1.06) were sown with 15.43 litres of sesame seeds per 1 hectar (i.e. ca. 10 kg/ha or ca. 5.5 sila/iku).
Sesame cultivation in Ĝirsu is documented in the northern part of the Guedina [geogr=Guedina]region west of the Tigris1(e. g. in the Kušukuniĝdu field: HLC 3 373 (pl. 141), Pettinato 1967b: 44-45; sesame seeds for sowing in Guedina: PPAC 5 1132; MVN 06 280 o. i 9-ii 1; barley from a storehouse in Guedina for workforce on a sesame plot: MVN 12 015). According to a survey of the extent of arable land in Ĝirsu, 5-6 % of the cultivated domain land, i.e. ca. 960 ha, was planted with sesame (HLC 3 373 (pl. 141) and Dossier A.1.1.3 § 1). If we assume a seeding rate of 15.43 litres/ha (see above), ca. 14,813 litres of sesame seeds were needed for sowing in the province of Ĝirsu alone every season. This amount corresponds to ca. 2 % of the estimated annual production of sesame in Ĝirsu (Dossier A.1.1.3 § 2 and CTPSM 1 112).
Sesame seeds for sowing were delivered by various individuals, but mainly by the scribe Urabba [individual=Urabba]2Lambert 1960; Lambert/Figulla 1964; see also HSS 04 003 and the „captain“ (nu-banda3) Lu-Ninĝirsu[individual=Lu-Ninĝirsu] (PPAC 4 108+109), both sons of Bazi; otherwise they came „from the Kiĝgura house“ (e2 kiĝ2-gur-ra-ta) (ASJ 02 28 82).
| Text | Date | Quantity in litres | Type | Purpose | Field | From PN | To PN |
| CTPSM 1 112 | Šu.36.00.00 | 4,192 5/6 | sesame | for sowing | Lu-Ĝešbare, Šabi | ||
| CDLI P234852 | Šu.39.00.00 | 100 | sesame | for sowing | Lumelim | Enim-Inana, land recorder | |
| ASJ 02 28 82 | Šu.39.03.00 | 150 | sesame | for sowing | from the Kiĝgurra house | Lu-Inana, son of Urdun, inspector of plough oxen in the house of Namḫani | |
| SAT 1 329 | Šu.48.02.00 | 600 | sesame | for sowing | Ḫeĝal field | Lu-Ninĝirsu, son of Bazi | Utumu |
| PPAC 4 108+109 | AS.04.00.00 | 600 | sesame | for sowing | Lu-Ninĝirsu, captain, son of Bazi | Šangu | |
| MVN 12 400 | AS.04.02.00 | 600 | sesame | for sowing | Lu-Ninĝirsu | Lu-Ĝešbare, son of Urraan | |
| OTR 102 | AS.05.02.00 | 240 | sesame | for sowing | Ḫeĝal field | Urabba | Lu-diĝira |
| PPAC 5 1132 | Šu.42./AS.06.03.00 | 300 | sesame | for sowing | Guedina[geogr=Guedina] | Urabba | Lubalasaga, scribe, son of Ur-Ninbara |
| PPAC 5 0874 | AS.08.03.00 | […] | sesame | for sowing | Impae field | Ursaga | Lugalenimgena |
| MVN 03 305 | IS.01.01?.00 | 3,000 | sesame | for sowing | Guzana | Ludiĝira (scribe), son of Lu-Utu | |
| ASJ 02 10 21 | 0000.00.00 | 1,801 1/3 | sesame | for sowing | Ur-Našše, son of Ur-Eana; Ur-Eninnu; Lugal-Inana | ||
| CTPSM 1 165 | 0000.02.00 | 61 | sesame | for sowing | Lu-Utu | Lu-Ninĝirsu, son of Ka | |
| MVN 06 280 o. i 9-ii 1 | 0000.00.00 | 1,800 | sesame | for sowing | Guedina | Urabba, son of Bazi | Nammaḫ, son of Urgigir |
Commentary on ASJ 02 28 82:
o. 4 Instead of Lu-Nanna son of Urlu.
Commentary on PPAC 5 1132:
This text is published only in transliteration and neither a cuneiform copy nor photos are available.
o. 2 The Impae field very likely also occurs in the text TCTI 2 04085 from Ĝirsu, despite the different transliteration (o. 5 a-ša3 ne-pa-e3). Unfortunately, this last text is likewise published only in transliteration and cannot be collated.
r. 4 The year name of this text can refer to both the year Šulgi 42 and Amar-Suena 06. Indeed, Urabba [individual=Urabba] managed sesame oil (i3-ĝeš[glossary=i3-ĝeš]), sesame seeds and various other goods, among them fats and fruits, from at least the year Šulgi 37 (e.g. RA 58 104 83) to the first years of Ibbi-Suen’s reign (e.g. PPAC 5 0872). Therefore, the precise date of this text cannot be established beyond any doubt according to the data analyzed thus far in this research frame.