The Exceptional Career of a Mesopotamian Ruler without a Crown: Kudur-Mabuk and the Kingship of Larsa
January 2022 | Vol. 10.1 By Baptiste Fiette Where did Mesopotamian kings come from? In the second third of the 19th century BCE, the kingdom of Larsa in southern Mesopotamia went t
The Art of Conservative Rebellion: A Short Introduction to the First Sealand Dynasty
Until recently, almost nothing was known of the “kings of Urukug” – better known as the Sealand. New tablets and excavations are now revealing this small southern Babylonian
Mesopotamian Sculpture in Color
Like other ancient sculpture, Mesopotamian statues were painted. Small traces can now be analyzed with scientific techniques and help explain Mesopotamian concepts such as “posit
Glass: Lapis Lazuli from the Kiln
Like other ancient sculpture, Mesopotamian statues were painted. Small traces can now be analyzed with scientific techniques and help explain Mesopotamian concepts such as “posit
Photographing Iraq
Mesopotamia is a difficult place to make a mark. But for one Iraqi neurologist, a passion for archaeological photography has opened Mesopotamia to the world.
Nebuchadnezzar Explained: Warrior King, Rebuilder of Cities, and Musical Muse
Neo-Babylonian kings are unusual sources of musical inspiration, but Nebuchadnezzar is an exception. What have composers from Verdi to Kanye seen in him?
#MeToo-potamia (or systemic gender inequality in Mesopotamia)
The contributions of Mesopotamian women must be pieced together from texts. The evidence indicates more than two thousand years of increasing marginalization.
Epidemics in Mesopotamia
Epidemics have been with us since long before the dawn of history. Three collections of documents record some of the ways ancient Near Eastern societies suffered and coped.
Women in Early Mesopotamian Royal Inscriptions
There are few references to women in early Mesopotamian inscriptions. But those that are preserved show that women – especially high status ones – had important social roles.
Beneath the Euphrates Sediments: Magnetic Traces of the Mesopotamian Megacity Uruk-Warka
The southern Mesopotamian city of Uruk is approximately five kilometers in diameter. Even after a century of work, excavations have barely scratched the surface. But new techniques