THE RECORD
What changed
Early Uruk tablets largely recorded goods and labour, while early Egyptian hieroglyphs appeared on labels and monuments of authority. Each system developed in its own setting.
EVIDENCE
What remains
Clay tablets bearing numerical and pictorial signs, labels from Abydos and early inscriptions document the formation of writing.
WHY IT MATTERS
Why it matters
Memory could now accumulate on material surfaces beyond minds and oral transmission, expanding administration and knowledge across generations.
OPEN QUESTION
Where interpretation begins
Transmission and independent invention must be assessed for each system, and the boundary between notation and full writing remains contested.