This article brings together evidence from both documentary texts and royal inscriptions from Susa in order to develop a chronological and historical perspective on the transitional period between the loss of control of the Ur III empire and the institutionalization of the Sukkalmaḫ regime. A study of the archaeological and archival context of the administrative texts resulted in a new chronology for the beginning of the Sukkalmaḫat, the basic argument for which is the early dating of the rule of Atta-ḫušu. Newly discovered inscriptions and new interpretations of existing inscriptions serve not only to adjust this chronology, but also to pave the way for an innovative and coherent socio-economic history of the early Sukkalmaḫat.
