Urban centers have inner and outer landscapes whose physical remains can be read as the
materialization of social, political, economic, and ritual interactions. Inner landscapes are …

This paper employs data from selected sample survey areas in the northern Fertile Crescent
to demonstrate how initial urbanization developed along several pathways. The first, during …

Cities generate challenges as well as confer advantages on their inhabitants. Recent
excavations and surveys in northern Mesopotamia have revealed extensive settlements with …

The remains of past people are a testament to their lived experiences and of the
environment in which they lived. Synthesising the latest research, this book critically …

This second of two companion chapters intends to demonstrate that prehistoric war was not
ubiquitous, that it is in fact rare in very early archaeological records, and becomes common …

In the 5th and 4th millennia BC, complex societies developed in Eastern Anatolia, Northern
(Upper) Mesopotamia, and Southern (Lower) Mesopotamia. This paper examines the …

The Assyrian Empire was the first state to achieve durable domination of the Ancient Near
East, enduring some seven centuries and, eventually, controlling most of the region. Yet, we …

New fieldwork at Ur has begun to investigate urban scale, city organization, and the
environment of the city's hinterland. Analysis of new sources of declassified aerial and …

Pigs are among the most peculiar animals domesticated in the Ancient Near East. Their
story, from domestication to taboo, has fascinated historians, archaeologists, and religious …

This book brings together experts from around the world to explore how sanitation affected
our ancestors. By its end, readers will realise that toilets were in use in ancient Mesopotamia …