Dissemination and price of cotton in Mesopotamia during the 1st millennium BCE

Abstract

The archaeological finds attest that cotton textiles appeared in Mesopotamia during the 1st millennium B.C. The first attempt to cultivate this plant, according to the available written sources, was by the Assyrian king Sennacherib, and also dates back to this period. However, the identification of the word for cotton in Akkadian is still the subject of debate. The present paper will first clear up these debates and summarize the current arguments in favour of the most probable hypothesis: the term kidinnu would refer to cotton. From this postulate, the crossing of archaeological and textual data will allow us to make an attempt at chronology of the spread of cotton in the region. Then, a study of the different uses of cotton will shed light on the social status and on the economic value of this textile fibre in Mesopotamia. Indeed, although cotton was a new product in Mesopotamia in the 1st millennium BCE, its price remained moderate and it was not a luxury product.