Sumerian Addenda · Signs
barley
| Name | ŠE |
|---|---|
| Reads | [še] |
| Means | barley; grain |
| Taught in | 02 · From tokens to signs |
Where it comes from
An ear of barley on its stalk — a classic picture, and in the late form you can still see it: a central stem with grain-wedges hanging off in rows. Barley was Mesopotamia’s staple, wage, and currency, which is why this sign fills more account lines than almost any other.
How to remember it
Barley hangs heavy: a stalk with kernels stacked up both sides, drawn the way a farmer would draw it. Wherever wealth is being counted, look for the little ear of grain.
In the wild
urn:nabu:etcsl:2.1.7:1158 ·
license: ETCSL · non-commercial.
Piece by piece:
- a gal-gal-e — the great waters, doubled big, -e marking the doer
- še — with barley
- si-si-a-da — fill and fill, wrapped into a purpose: “so that they might”
The flood as a blessing: high water means full granaries. The line is unpacked in 102’s chapter 14.