A Companion to the Ancient Near East

This is a welcome companion volume intended to be used with an introductory text to the history of the ancient Near East. There are unexpected topics and insightful inclusions .In addition to serving successfully as a companion for teaching, this volume also serves as a useful short reference because of the sixty-eight page bibliography. (Religious Studies Review, September 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

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).

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, 10,0003000 BCE 20 Augusta McMahon 3 The Age of Empires, 3100900 BCE 34 Mark Chavalas 4 World Hegemony, 900300 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 Historians Task 110 Daniel C. Snell Part III Economy and Society 123 8 The Degradation of the Ancient Near Eastern Environment 125 Carlos E. Cordova 9 Nomadism Through the Ages 142 Jorge Silva Castillo 10 Mesopotamian Cities and Countryside 157 Elizabeth C. Stone 11 Money and Trade 171 Christopher M. Monroe 12 Working 185 David A. Warburton 13 Law and Practice 199 Bruce Wells 14 Social Tensions in the Ancient Near East 212 John F. Robertson 15 Gender Roles in Ancient Egypt 227 Ann Macy Roth 16 Royal Women and the Exercise of Power in the Ancient Near East 235 Sarah C. Melville 17 Warfare in Ancient Egypt 245 Anthony J. Spalinger Part IV Culture 259 18 Transmission of Knowledge 261 Benjamin R. Foster 19 Ancient Near Eastern Literature: Genres and Forms 269 Tawny L. Holm 20 Ancient Near Eastern Architecture 289 Sally Dunham 21 Mesopotamian Art 304 Marian H. Feldman 22 Ancient Mesopotamian Medicine 325 JoAnn Scurlock 23 Mesopotamian Cosmology 339 Francesca Rochberg 24 Divine and Non-Divine Kingship 353 Philip Jones 25 How Religion Was Done 366 Gary Beckman Part V Heritage of the Ancient Near East 377 26 The Invention of the Individual 379 Daniel C. Snell 27 Ethnicity 392 Henri Limet 28 Public versus Private in the Ancient Near East 406 Steven J. Garfinkle 29 Democracy and Freedom 419 Matthew Martin III and Daniel C. Snell 30 Monotheism and Ancient Israelite Religion 430 S. David Sperling 31 The Decipherment of the Ancient Near East 443 Peter T. Daniels 32 Legacies of the Ancient Near East 454 Daniel C. Snell References 458 Index 527