ABSTRACT
In the Late Uruk phase, the Lower Mesopotamian cities achieved considerable advancements both in terms of social organisation and resources. This allowed them to engage in a type of long-distance trade that was significantly innovative compared to the one attested in the previous Neolithic and Chalcolithic periods. The first factor causing this change was the increased need for raw materials, essential for the new technological and organisational developments taking place at the time: from metals (mainly copper) for tools and weapons, to timber for temples and semiprecious stones. The latter in particular were used for seals and ornaments, which were essential for the specialisation of socio-economic roles, the desire to display wealth ostentatiously and for cultic furnishings.
