Šep-Sin

Šep-Sin is found in a group of over twenty contracts of loan dated in the last decades of reign of Rim-Sin. In most of the documents credits were taken for partnership and the sums were sometimes quite remarkable, amounting to eight minas (one mina of silver was approximately 0.5 kilograms).

Šep-Sin the private businessman was often confused with another Šep-Sin the “wakil tamkari”, a government official. There are two texts where these two men are mentioned together, in one of the documents Šep-Sin, the “wakil tamkari” is a witness to Šep-Sin the businessman as he granted loan to another person. Other document shows Šep-Sin the businessman buying land next to the land of Šep-Sin the “wakil tamkari.”

In documents describing Šep-Sin’s business transactions he is often accompanied with same persons, his business partners, and some of them were his relatives with whom he ran a kind of banking trading business.

From the available documents Šep-Sin appears to have had ran his business for twenty five years, during which time he credited thirty loans, most of which were devoted to trading ventures. He was especially concerned about trade with Elam. He credited his partners who went to Susa, Elam’s capital, to buy precious materials which were to be sold in Babylonia. In one document Šep-Sin orders his partners to wait the whole season in Susa, before their return trip, because of some difficulties on the road. He also tells them a location where they will meet, and mentions that there are royal soldier, probably to point out the place is safe. He also tells them to join one bigger caravan, and that they mention his name what indicates that he was a well-known and influential businessman.