I hate to use the old cliche, but absence of evidence isn't evidence of absence. There are much older neolithic sites, organized settlements, and evidence of cu

I hate to use the old cliche, but absence of evidence isn't evidence of absence. There are much older neolithic sites, organized settlements, and evidence of cultural networks that predate Sumerian writing (by a lot). Tally sticks as primitive ledgers predate writing by at least 15,000 years. A lot occurred between this time and the first evidence of writing. We'd know a lot more if wood and bone held up as well as clay and stone. Either way, the sparseness of the archaeological record should humble us into not making any sweeping claims.