A Companion to the Ancient Near East

Copyright © 2005 by Blackwell Publishing Ltd

A Companion to the Ancient Near East

Editor(s): Daniel C. Snell

Published Online: 30 NOV 2007

Print ISBN: 9780631232933

Online ISBN: 9780470997086

DOI: 10.1002/9780470997086

About this Book

Product Information

About The Product

A Companion to the Ancient Near East offers students and general readers a comprehensive overview of Near Eastern civilization from the Bronze Age to the conquests of Alexander the Great.


  • Covers the civilizations of the Sumerians, Hittites, Babylonians, Assyrians, Israelites and Persians
  • Places particular emphasis on social and cultural history
  • Covers the legacy of the Ancient Near East in the medieval and modern worlds
  • Provides a useful bibliographical guide to this field of study

Table of contents

    1. You have free access to this content
      Frontmatter (pages i–xix)

  2. Part I: The Shape of the Ancient Near East

    1. Chapter 1

      Historical Overview (pages 1–19)

      Mario Liverani

    2. Chapter 2

      From Sedentism to States, 10,000-3000 BCE (pages 20–33)

      Augusta Mcmahon

    3. Chapter 3

      The Age of Empires, 3100-900 BCE (pages 34–47)

      Mark Chavalas

    4. Chapter 4

      World Hegemony, 900-300 BCE (pages 48–61)

      Paul-Alain Beaulieu

  3. Part II: Discourses on Methods

    1. Chapter 5

      Archaeology and the Ancient Near East: Methods and Limits (pages 63–78)

      Marie-Henriette Gates

    2. Chapter 6

      The Languages of the Ancient Near East (pages 79–94)

      Gonzalo Rubio

    3. Chapter 7

      The Historian's Task (pages 95–106)

      Daniel C. Snell

  4. Part III: Economy and Society

    1. Chapter 8

      The Degradation of the Ancient Near Eastern Environment (pages 107–125)

      Carlos E. Cordova

    2. Chapter 9

      Nomadism Through the Ages (pages 126–140)

      Jorge Silva Castillo

    3. Chapter 10

      Mesopotamian Cities and Countryside (pages 141–154)

      Elizabeth C. Stone

    4. Chapter 11

      Money and Trade (pages 155–168)

      Christopher M. Monroe

    5. Chapter 12

      Working (pages 169–182)

      David A. Warburton

    6. Chapter 13

      Law and Practice (pages 183–195)

      Bruce Wells

    7. Chapter 14

      Social Tensions in the Ancient Near East (pages 196–210)

      John F. Robertson

    8. Chapter 15

      Gender Roles in Ancient Egypt (pages 211–218)

      Ann Macy Roth

    9. Chapter 16

      Royal Women and the Exercise of Power in the Ancient Near East (pages 219–228)

      Sarah C. Melville

    10. Chapter 17

      Warfare in Ancient Egypt (pages 229–241)

      Anthony J. Spalinger

  5. Part IV: Culture

    1. Chapter 18

      Transmission of Knowledge (pages 243–252)

      Benjamin R. Foster

    2. Chapter 19

      Literature (pages 253–265)

      Tawny L. Holm

    3. Chapter 20

      Ancient Near Eastern Architecture (pages 266–280)

      Sally Dunham

    4. Chapter 21

      Mesopotamian Art (pages 281–301)

      Marian H. Feldman

    5. Chapter 22

      Ancient Mesopotamian Medicine (pages 302–315)

      JoAnn Scurlock

    6. Chapter 23

      Mesopotamian Cosmology (pages 316–329)

      Francesca Rochberg

    7. Chapter 24

      Divine and Non-Divine Kingship (pages 330–342)

      Philip Jones

    8. Chapter 25

      How Religion was Done (pages 343–353)

      Gary Beckman

  6. Part V: Heritage of the Ancient Near East

    1. Chapter 26

      The Invention of the Individual (pages 355–369)

      Daniel C. Snell

    2. Chapter 27

      Ethnicity (pages 370–383)

      Henri Limet

    3. Chapter 28

      Public Versus Private in the Ancient Near East (pages 384–396)

      Steven J. Garfinkle

    4. Chapter 29

      Democracy and Freedom (pages 397–407)

      Matthew Martin and Daniel C. Snell

    5. Chapter 30

      Monotheism and Ancient Israelite Religion (pages 408–420)

      S. David Sperling

    6. Chapter 31

      The Decipherment of the Ancient Near East (pages 421–429)

      Peter T. Daniels

    7. Chapter 32

      Legacies of the Ancient Near East (pages 430–433)

      Daniel C. Snell

    1. You have free access to this content
      References (pages 434–492)

    1. You have free access to this content
      Index (pages 493–504)

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