Gonzalo Rubio - Böcker

This volume is dedicated to Miguel Civil in celebration of his 90th birthday. Civil has been one of the most influential scholars in the field of Sumerian studies over the course of his long career. This anniversary presents a welcome occasion to reflect on some aspects of the field in which he has been such a driving force.

The study of the ancient economy is receiving renewed scholarly interest, but the rich documentation from ancient Mesopotamia is often absent from these discussions. In this volume, six scholars survey the evidence across three millennia of cuneiform archives to present a detailed picture of the economy and society of ancient Mesopotamian communities, from the city-states of the early Third Millennium to the empires of the First Millennium. These archives provide some of the earliest detailed information in the historical record on the origins of trade and commerce, the political economy, and the growth of complex agrarian societies. The authors place these developments in historical context and connect them to broader scholarly discussions of economic history. The study includes examinations of the earliest literate communities in ancient Sumer, the growth of powerful kingdoms in the region, and finally the mighty empires of the Babylonians and Assyrians. The authors assess the roles and economic agency of both the state and the individual to present a comprehensive view of these societies at the dawn of written history. This volume will be a necessary resource for scholars and students of the ancient world and economic history.

This book provides an overview of social life in ancient Mesopotamia, bringing together leading experts to survey key social domains of daily life as well as major non-dominant social groups. It serves as a point of entry to the current research in this field.