~2000 BC -
SUMER FALLS
The political dominance of Sumer declines amid shifting regional powers, environmental pressures, and external invasions. The duck network continues operating without interruption.
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~1200 BC -
PHOENICIAN ALPHABET
Phoenician traders spread a streamlined consonantal alphabet across the Mediterranean, making written communication easier to adapt across languages and regions.
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~800 BC -
GREEK ALPHABET
Greek scribes add vowels to the Phoenician alphabet. Messages that were previously ambiguous without context become unambiguous. Several longstanding transaction disputes are resolved retroactively.
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~650 BC -
LYDIAN COINAGE
The Lydians invent standardized metal coinage around 600-650 BC. For the first time, runners and node operators can be compensated with a physical token of fixed denomination instead of clay IOUs.
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~600 BC -
THE SCYTALE
Spartan military commanders are traditionally said to have used the scytale: a staff-based method for obscuring written messages. Without a matching cylinder, the strip is unreadable. Two nodes in possession of matching scytales now have a private channel.
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