A Companion to the Ancient Near East explores the history of the region from 4400 BCE to the Macedonian conquest of the Persian Empire in 330 BCE. Original and revised essays from a team of distinguished scholars from across disciplines address subjects including the politics, economics, architecture, and heritage of ancient Mesopotamia and Egypt. Part of the Blackwell Companions to the Ancient World series, this acclaimed single-volume reference combines lively writing with engaging and relatable topics to immerse readers in this fascinating period of Near East history.
The new second edition has been thoroughly revised and updated to include new developments in relevant fields, particularly archeology, and expand on themes of interest to contemporary students. Clear, accessible chapters offer fresh discussions on the history of the family and gender roles, the literature, languages, and religions of the region, pastoralism, medicine and philosophy, and borders, states, and warfare. New essays highlight recent discoveries in cuneiform texts, investigate how modern Egyptians came to understand their ancient history, and examine the place of archeology among the historical disciplines. This volume:
Provides substantial new and revised content covering topics such as social conflict, kingship, cosmology, work, trade, and law
Covers the civilizations of the Sumerians, Hittites, Babylonians, Assyrians, Egyptians, Israelites, and Persians, emphasizing social and cultural history
Examines the legacy of the Ancient Near East in the medieval and modern worlds
Offers a uniquely broad geographical, chronological, and topical range
Includes a comprehensive bibliographical guide to Ancient Near East studies as well as new and updated references and reading suggestions
Suitable for use as both a primary reference or as a supplement to a chronologically arranged textbook, A Companion to the Ancient Near East, 2 nd Edition is a valuable resource for advanced undergraduates, beginning graduate students, instructors in the field, and scholars from other disciplines.
Author(s): Daniel C. Snell
Series: Blackwell Companions to the Ancient World
Edition: 2
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Year: 2020
Language: English
Pages: xvi+510
A Companion to the Ancient Near East, 2nd Edition
Contents
Illustrations List
Notes on Contributors
Maps
Introduction
The Big Picture
The Physical World
The Social World
Thought
Culture
Inheritances
A Word of Thanks
A Note on References
PART I: The Big Picture
1 A History of the Ancient Near East
Unity and Diversity
The Urban Revolution, about 3500–2800 BCE
The Second Urbanization, about 2800–2000 BCE
The Regional System, about 2000–1200 BCE
The Early Iron Age, about 1200–750 BCE
Empires, about 750–330 BCE
FURTHER READING
REFERENCES
2 From Sedentism to States, 10 000–3000 BCE
Theory and Bias in Near Eastern Archaeology
Labeling Time and Locating Sites
Sedentism and its Effects
Foraging, Cultivation, and Domestication
Where was the Origin of Agriculture?
Agriculture and Herding: Choice or Necessity?
Sedentism and Definitions of Space
Pottery and Structural Bias
Chiefdoms?
Origins of the Mesopotamian State
Nature of the State
Art and Architecture
Writing
Production and Consumption
Trade, Interaction, and the Uruk Expansion
FURTHER READING
REFERENCES
PART II: The Physical World
3 Archaeology and the Ancient Near East: Renewing a Culture‐Historical Partnership
Archaeology’s Service to Ancient Near Eastern History
The Culture‐Historical Chronologies of the Ancient Near East
Archaeometry and Ancient Near Eastern History
Recent Archaeological Research on the Ancient Near East
Prehistory and Parahistory
A Twenty‐First Century Partnership
NOTES
FURTHER READING
REFERENCES
4 The Degradation of the Ancient Near Eastern Environment
The Physical Scene
The Climatic and Paleoclimatic Background
Deforestation and Alteration of the Vegetation Cover
The Impact of Grazing
The Human Impact on Fauna
Soil Erosion and Slope Management
Irrigation and Soil Salinization
Direct and Indirect Alteration of the Fluvial Systems
Pollution of Air, Water, and Soil
Environmental Crisis at the End of the Third Millennium BCE
Land Degradation in the Near East: Myths and Realities
NOTES
FURTHER READING
REFERENCES
PART III: The Social World
5 Gender Roles in Ancient Egypt
Gender and Cosmology
Ancient Egyptian Sexuality and Fertility
Departures from Heteronormativity
Law and Social Custom
Changes in Gender Roles over Time
Summary
FURTHER READING
REFERENCES
6 Royal Women and the Exercise of Power in the Ancient Near East
Royal Women and the Royal Household
Royal Women and State Administration
Women and Politics
Women and Religion
Concluding Remarks
FURTHER READING
REFERENCES
7 The Family in the Ancient Near East
The House
The Paternal Line
Marriage and Dowry
Children
The Extended Family
Conclusions
FURTHER READING
REFERENCES
8 Pastoralism in the Ancient Near East
The Nature of Pastoralism
The History of Mobile Pastoralism in the Ancient Near East
The Socio‐Political Organization of Pastoralists
FURTHER READING
REFERENCES
9 Money and Traders
Attractions of Early Economy
The Politics of Ancient Economics
Mesopotamian Monies and Weights
Buying and Selling in Mesopotamia
Money and Trade in Egypt
Routes and Metals
Prospects for Study
FURTHER READING
REFERENCES
10 Law and Practice
Looking for Law in the Ancient Near East
Law Codes
Documents of Practice
Royal Edicts
Gaps in the Law
Tradition and Custom
Describing the Law of the Ancient Near East
Status and Slavery
Gender and Inheritance
Civil and Criminal Law
Connections with Later Legal Systems
NOTES
FURTHER READING
REFERENCES
11 Working
Introduction
The Setting
Institutions, Economies, Societies, and Employment
Illustrating Institutional Control of Labor and Labor Value
Rural Life
Other Rural Pursuits
Crafts
Deir el‐Medina
Employment
Textiles: the Real Industry of Antiquity
Movement of Goods and People
Land, Labor, Technology, Administration, and Markets
Value and Remuneration of Labor
FURTHER READING AND CAVEATS
REFERENCES
12 Social Tensions in the Ancient Near East
Survival and Identity
Survival, Environmental Instability, Societal Tension, and Change
Tensions among Farming Villagers, Pastoral Nomads, and City Dwellers
Village Peasant Farmers
Pastoral Nomads
City Dwellers
Tensions between Ruler and Ruled
Societal Tensions Produced by Ethnic Differences or Alienness
Tensions Produced by Religious Differences
Divisions and Tensions within Judaism and Christianity
Discrimination and Persecution: Pagans, Christians, Jews, and Zoroastrians
FURTHER READING
REFERENCES
13 Borders and States
State and Society
Frontiers and Borders
Conclusion
FURTHER READING
REFERENCES
14 Divine and Non‐Divine Kingship
Introduction
The Intellectual Experiences of Power
Divine Kingship in the Old Babylonian Period
Kingship in First Millennium Babylonia
Middle and Neo‐Assyrian Kingship
The Social Experience of Power
Royal Intervention in Civic Life
Social Evolution
Conclusion
FURTHER READING
REFERENCES
PART IV: Thought
15 Transmission of Knowledge
FURTHER READING
REFERENCES
16 Literature of Ancient Egypt and the Ancient Near East
FURTHER READING
REFERENCES
17 Ancient Near Eastern Philosophy
Physics
Logic
Ethics
Conclusions
FURTHER READING
REFERENCES
18 Mesopotamian Cosmology
What is “the World”?
How did the World Originate?
What is the Relation between the Gods and the Phenomenal World?
Is there Order and Justice in the Universe?
By Means of What Force or Agency Do Things Occur in the World?
What is the Place of Humankind in Relation to the Whole?
What is the Relation of Earth to Heaven?
What is the Structure of the Heavenly Regions?
What are the Cosmic Waters?
What is the Realm of the Dead?
Does the World have a Center?
What is the Nature of the Planetary Bodies?
Is there a Cosmological Significance to the Order of the Planets?
Was there a Conception of Circles or Spheres? And Did the Celestial Bodies Move in Them?
FURTHER READING
REFERENCES
19 Ancient Mesopotamian Religion
The Sources
The Pantheon
Mythology
Rituals
Outlook
FURTHER READING
REFERENCES
PART V: Culture
20 The Languages of the Ancient Near East
Introduction: Languages, Language Families, and Scripts
Sumerian
Egyptian
Semitic Languages
Indo‐European Languages
Hurrian and Urartian
Other Languages
Undeciphered Languages and Scripts
FURTHER READING
REFERENCES
21 Mesopotamian Art
The Warka Vase
Cylinder Seals
Statues
The Stele of Naram‐Sin
The Stele of Hammurabi
Neo‐Assyrian Reliefs
Conclusion
NOTE
FURTHER READING
REFERENCES
22 Egyptian Medicine
Sources and Research
The Ancient Egyptian Conception of Illness
Bodily Functions and Direct and Indirect Causes of Disease
Diagnostics
Treatments and Prevention
Healing Personnel and the Interaction with the Sick
NOTE
FURTHER READING
REFERENCES
23 Warfare in Mesopotamia
Kings, Gods, and Warfare
Warfare in the Third Millennium
Early Dynastic Mesopotamia (c. 2900–2350 BCE)
The Sargonic Period (2334–2113 BCE)
The Third Dynasty of Ur (2120–2004 BCE)
The Second Millennium
The Middle Bronze Age (c. 2100–1550 BCE)
Late Bronze Age (c. 1550–1150 BCE)
The First Millennium
Conclusion
FURTHER READING
REFERENCES
PART VI: Inheritances
24 The Decipherment of the Ancient Near East
FURTHER READING
NOTES
REFERENCES
25 Monotheism and Ancient Israelite Religion
NOTES
FURTHER READING
REFERENCES
26 The Ancient Near East and Biblical Scholarship: Recently Uncovered Archives from the Cuneiform World
Iran
Israel and Lebanon
Jordan
Anatolia, Turkey
Syria
Iraq
Prospect
REFERENCES
27 Pharaonic Heritage in Modern Egypt
The Khedivial Age, 1805–1882
The Colonial Era, 1882–1922
The Semi‐colonial Era, 1922–1952
The Postcolonial Era: Nasser and After
FURTHER READING
REFERENCES
28 Conclusions
Health and Death
Water
Bureaucracy
War
Transport
Royal Power
Freedom
The State
Sex Workers
Money
Religion
Monotheism
Nationalism
Scribal Culture
Literature and Poetry
Scholarly Texts
Dictionaries
The Person
Music
Astronomy
Mathematics, Chemistry
Other Legacies
What Scholars Do
Index
