The Fall of the Bronze Age and the Destruction that Wasn’t
December 2022 | Vol. 10.12 By Jesse Millek In any telling of the end of the Late Bronze Age (LBA) in the Eastern Mediterranean, there is one key theme that emerges as an integral c
The History of Isaiah and the Age of Empires
October 2022 | Vol. 10.8 By Jacob Stromberg The prophet Isaiah stood at the beginning of an age of empires in the ancient Near East. In order, the age saw the rise of the neo-Assyr
The Neo-Assyrian Empire and Egypt
August 2022 | Vol. 10.8 By Mattias Karlsson The Neo-Assyrian empire, with its center along the river Tigris in northern Mesopotamia, controlled large parts of the ancient Near East
Decision Making and Leadership in Egyptian Warfare
july 2022 | Vol. 10.7 By Anthony Spalinger Anyone studying foreign relations faces clear-cut obstacles, the sharpest being the antithesis between routine conduct and extraordinary
Rapid Change of Climate Did Not Cause the Fall of the Akkadian Empire
june 2022 | Vol. 10.6 By Arkadiusz Sołtysiak A recent issue of Antiquity published a paper presenting results of biochemical analyses of human bones from a few sites situated in
Everyday Life in Exile: Judean Deportees in Babylonian Texts
June 2022 | Vol. 10.6 By Tero Alstola When King Nebuchadnezzar II of Babylon conquered the kingdom of Judah in the early sixth century BCE, part of Judean population was deported t
What’s in a Name? Warriors and Warrior Burials in the Near East
Middle Bronze Age “warrior burials” are found in many parts of the Near East and Egypt. But a new study at Sidon shows that no one buried with weapons was actually a “warrior
Cultural Heritage and Human Rights in Ukraine
March 2022 | Vol. 10.3 By Andrew Overman The Russian invasion of Ukraine is a tragedy of unspeakable proportions. The human toll and the cruel inhumanity displayed before the eyes
Did Kings Meet Each Other Face-to-Face During the Late Bronze Age?
march 2022 | Vol. 10.3 By Mohy-Eldin E. Abo-Eleaz During the Late Bronze Age (ca. 1550–1200 BCE) five great powers – Egypt, Mitanni, Babylon, Ḫatti, and Assyria – arose and
Divine Channels: Rediscovering the Canal Networks of the Assyrian Empire
Today northern Iraq is a land of rolling plains and a few rivers. But Assyrian kings cut immense canals into the landscape for irrigation and transportation.