Cuneiform to left-to-right in horizontal rows (rotating all of the pictographs 90° counter-clockwise in the process) and a new wedge-tipped stylus was introduced which was pushed into the clay, producing wedge-shaped ("cuneiform") signs; these two developments made writing quicker and easier. By adjusting the relative position of the tablet to the stylus, the writer could use a single tool to make a variety of impressions. Cuneiform tablets could be fired in kilns to bake them hard, and so provide a permanent record, or they could be left moist and recycled, if permanence was not needed. Many of the clay tablets found
An (cuneiform) Babylonian history (and Sumerian): An (cuneiform) The cuneiform an sign, (or sumerogram AN), is a common, multi-use sign, a syllabic for "an", and an alphabetic sign used for "a", or "n"; it is common in both the "Epic of Gilgamesh" over hundreds of years, and the 1350 BC Amarna letters, and other cuneiform texts. It is also used for the designation of a "god", and is sometimes represented as a superscript: , or capitalized: , for "dingir", English language, "god". The example photo at right shows (2nd list), a list of 14 named gods, all with "an"; the first pair