Middle Register
The middle register shows more discernable images of the bounty. The scene clearly shows the attendants bringing produce, fish and livestock for the banquet scene in the topmost register. These images can either be interpreted again as “spoils of war” or form of taxation collected by the state. [1] Though historians will probably never know the exact intention of these images, the notion that these offerings represent a sort of taxation may be more consistent with the level of sophistication evidenced by the extended trade networks. This interpretation presents a more fascinating insight into the labor economy’s role in this society’s organization. Though the middle register depicts a more dignified scene of relatively skilled labor, the lower two registers do both lend credence to the idea that some members of the society are working to produce the surplus while others are pursuing endeavors to presumably advance the society in other ways. A class stratification between rich and poor cannot exist when everyone is doing the same job or producing the same good. Early Dynastic Sumer would seem to be a society that places greater emphasis on rank and social hierarchy than had been done in the past, particularly in agrarian societies.