Table of Contents

List of Figures viii


List of Maps ix


Notes on Contributors x


Acknowledgments xv


Introduction xviii


Part I The Shape of the Ancient Near East 1


1 Historical Overview 3
Mario Liverani


2 From Sedentism to States, 10, 000–3000 BCE 20
Augusta McMahon


3 The Age of Empires, 3100–900 BCE 34
Mark Chavalas


4 World Hegemony, 900–300 BCE 48
Paul-Alain Beaulieu


Part II Discourses on Methods 63


5 Archaeology and the Ancient Near East: Methods and Limits 65
Marie-Henriette Gates


6 The Languages of the Ancient Near East 79
Gonzalo Rubio


7 The Historian’s Task 95
Daniel C. Snell


Part III Economy and Society 107


8 The Degradation of the Ancient Near Eastern Environment 109
Carlos E. Cordova


9 Nomadism Through the Ages 126
Jorge Silva Castillo


10 Mesopotamian Cities and Countryside 141
Elizabeth C. Stone


11 Money and Trade 155
Christopher M. Monroe


12 Working 169
David A. Warburton


13 Law and Practice 183
Bruce Wells


14 Social Tensions in the Ancient Near East 196
John F. Robertson


15 Gender Roles in Ancient Egypt 211
Ann Macy Roth


16 Royal Women and the Exercise of Power in the Ancient Near East 219
Sarah C. Melville


17 Warfare in Ancient Egypt 229
Anthony J. Spalinger


Part IV Culture 243


18 Transmission of Knowledge 245
Benjamin R. Foster


19 Literature 253
Tawny L. Holm


20 Ancient Near Eastern Architecture 266
Sally Dunham


21 Mesopotamian Art 281
Marian H. Feldman


22 Ancient Mesopotamian Medicine 302
JoAnn Scurlock


23 Mesopotamian Cosmology 316
Francesca Rochberg


24 Divine and Non-Divine Kingship 330
Philip Jones


25 How Religion Was Done 343
Gary Beckman


Part V Heritage of the Ancient Near East 355


26 The Invention of the Individual 357
Daniel C. Snell


27 Ethnicity 370
Henri Limet


28 Public versus Private in the Ancient Near East 384
Steven J. Garfinkle


29 Democracy and Freedom 397
Matthew Martin III and Daniel C. Snell


30 Monotheism and Ancient Israelite Religion 408
S. David Sperling


31 The Decipherment of the Ancient Near East 421
Peter T. Daniels


32 Legacies of the Ancient Near East 430
Daniel C. Snell


References 434


Index 493

About the Author

Daniel C. Snell is L. J. Semrod Presidential Professor of History at the University of Oklahoma. His books include Life in the Ancient Near East (1997), A Workbook of Cuneiform Signs (1979), The E.A. Hoffman Collection and Other American Collections (1979), Ledgers and Prices (1982), Twice Told Proverbs (1993) and Flight and Freedom in the Ancient Near East (2001).

Reviews

"This is a most useful collection of introductory essays. They
crisply and lucidly convey the diversity and complexity of the
ancient Near East, which make this an engaging book for the novice
students and general reader." (Ancient East and West, 2008)
"Many will find specific chapters of interest, both for insights
into their own specialities and for challenging overviews of
related fields. Students will find stimulating introductions to a
wide range of subjects, not treated in encyclopaedias or dryer
standard works ... on which to hone their own critical faculties."
(Bryn Mawr Classical Review)


"The chapters are written by some of the world's leading
scholars, like the veterans Liverani and Limet ... Some of the
articles are highly relevant, even dealing with contemporary issues
such as the individual, ethnicity ... democracy, and freedom."
(Scholia)


"As is usual for the Blackwell Companions the essays making up
this volume have all been written by leading experts and as such
the coverage is inclusive... The introduction, written by the
editor, is excellent and clearly explains what the book is setting
out to achieve, aims which are met. A Companion to the Ancient
Near East is an excellent book and is one that should, without
doubt, be read by those with a keen interest in this historical
period." (Reference Reviews)


A Choice Outstanding Academic Title of the Year