Example of a kudurru

The Akkadian term kudurru is formed by the root KDR which means "to designate a boundary, to draw a frontier". It records the sale and acquisition of land. More than 160 kudurrus, whole and fragmentary, dating from 1450 to 620 BCE, have so far been identified.

naru stelae, which refers to the stone, which became the preferred medium of writing. It continued to be called a kudurru in reference to the ancient standards for recording land transactions. These records were initially used by kings to exercise their power and provide information on how their major estates should be managed. The practice subsequently spread to large families connected to the royal dynasty. Kudurrus contain a copy of a contract previously written on a clay tablet. The stone retranscription does not cover all the property transactions. It confers greater legitimacy on the act and places it under the protection of the gods. The kudurrus were then likely deposited in a temple, and probably more rarely placed in the field that was the subject of the deed, as the Caillou Michaux seems to have been.