The earliest evidence of an institution acting as a bank is found in the temple records of Mesopotamia, the land between the Euphrates and Tigris rivers. The temple administration held bullion and other goods and lent them out to individuals. The credits had to be returned with a payment of interest within an agreed period. To keep record, clay tablets such as this one were used. This tablet dates from the time between 2350 and 2150 BC and displays a list of different goods: jars of fine oil are mentioned, loaves and certain amounts of flour. The register is in cuneiform writing, a script invented in Mesopotamia around 3000 BC.