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Third Dynasty of Ur (Ur III)

A brief Sumerian renaissance that reunified Mesopotamia under tight bureaucratic control, producing the earliest known legal code (the Code of Ur-Nammu) before collapsing under Amorite and Elamite pressure.

Conquered and destroyed c. 2004 BCE when an Elamite army under Kindattu of Shimashki sacked Ur, captured and deported king Ibbi-Sin to Elam, where he died in captivity.

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Further reading

• The Sumerians: Their History, Culture, and Character Samuel Noah Kramer · 1963

  Detailed coverage of the Ur III literary and administrative tradition.

• A History of the Ancient Near East, ca. 3000-323 BC Marc Van De Mieroop · 2004

  Gives a clear account of the bureaucratic Ur III state and its Sumerian renaissance within the broader sweep of early Mesopotamian empires.

Sources

• Wikipedia, 'Third Dynasty of Ur' (Q723587)