Art, Akkadian
Art, Ancient Middle East
Art, Assyro-Babylonian
Art, Iranian—History
Art, Sumerian
Iran—Civilization--To 640
Iran—History--To 640
Iraq—Civilization--To 634
Iraq—History--To 634
Ancient near Eastern Art in Context by
Through published works and in the classroom, Irene Winter served as a mentor for the latest generation of scholars of Mesopotamian visual culture. The contributions to this volume in her honor represent a cross section of the state of scholarship today.
The Art and Architecture of the Ancient Orient by
Traces the development of Mesopotamian art from Sumerian times to the late Assyrian and Neo-Babylonian periods. This text also covers the art and architecture of Asia Minor and the Hittites, of the Levant in the second millennium BC, of the Aramaeans and Phoenicians in Syria, and of Ancient Persia.
Assyrian Reliefs and Ivories in the Metropolitan Museum of Art by 
Beyond Babylon: Art, Trade, and Diplomacy in the Second Millennium B.C. by
This important volume describes the extraordinary art created in the second millennium B.C. for royal palaces, temples, and tombs from Mesopotamia, Syria, and Anatolia to Cyprus, Egypt, and the Aegean. Objects of the highest artistry reflect the development of a sophisticated trade network throughout the eastern Mediterranean region and the resulting fusion of Near Eastern, Aegean, and Egyptian cultural styles. The impact of these far-flung connections is documented in the precious materials sent to royal and temple treasuries and, most dramatically, in objects discovered on merchant shipwrecks off the shores of southern Anatolia. The history of the period and the artistic creativity fostered by interaction among the powers of the ancient Near East, both great and small, are discussed by an international group of scholars in essays and entries on the more than 350 objects included in the exhibition, continuing the fascinating story begun in the landmark catalogue Art of the First Cities (2003).
Critical Approaches to Ancient near Eastern Art by
This volume assembles more than 30 articles focusing on the visual, material, and environmental arts of the Ancient Near East. Specific case studies range temporally from the fourth millennium up to the Hellenistic period and geographically from Iran to the eastern Mediterranean. Contributions apply innovative theoretical and methodological approaches to archaeological evidence and critically examine the historiography of the discipline itself. Not intended to be comprehensive, the volume instead captures a cross-section of the field of Ancient Near Eastern art history as its stands in the second decade of the twenty-first century. The volume will be of value to scholars working in the Ancient Near East as well as others interested in newer art historical and anthropological approaches to visual culture.
From Cyrus to Alexander: A History of the Persian Empire by
Around 550 B.C.E. the Persian people-who were previously practically unknown in the annals of history-emerged from their base in southern Iran (Fars) and engaged in a monumental adventure that, under the leadership of Cyrus the Great and his successors, culminated in the creation of an immense Empire that stretched from central Asia to Upper Egypt, from the Indus to the Danube. The Persian (or Achaemenid, named for its reigning dynasty) Empire assimilated an astonishing diversity of lands, peoples, languages, and cultures. This conquest of Near Eastern lands completely altered the history of the world: for the first time, a monolithic State as vast as the future Roman Empire arose, expanded, and matured in the course of more than two centuries (530-330) and endured until the death of Alexander the Great (323), who from a geopolitical perspective was "the last of the Achaemenids." Even today, the remains of the Empire-the terraces, palaces, reliefs, paintings, and enameled bricks of Pasargadae, Persepolis, and Susa; the impressive royal tombs of Naqsh-i Rustam; the monumental statue of Darius the Great-serve to remind visitors of the power and unprecedented luxury of the Great Kings and their loyal courtiers (the "Faithful Ones"). Though long eclipsed and overshadowed by the towering prestige of the "ancient Orient" and "eternal Greece," Achaemenid history has emerged into fresh light during the last two decades. Freed from the tattered rags of "Oriental decadence" and "Asiatic stagnation," research has also benefited from a continually growing number of discoveries that have provided important new evidence-including texts, as well as archaeological, numismatic, and iconographic artifacts. The evidence that this book assembles is voluminous and diverse: the citations of ancient documents and of the archaeological evidence permit the reader to follow the author in his role as a historian who, across space and time, attempts to understand how such an Empire emerged, developed, and faded. Though firmly grounded in the evidence, the author's discussions do not avoid persistent questions and regularly engages divergent interpretations and alternative hypotheses. This book is without precedent or equivalent, and also offers an exhaustive bibliography and thorough indexes. The French publication of this magisterial work in 1996 was acclaimed in newspapers and literary journals. Now Histoire de l'Empire Perse: De Cyrus a Alexandre is translated in its entirety in a revised edition, with the author himself reviewing the translation, correcting the original edition, and adding new documentation. Pierre Briant, Chaire Histoire et civilisation du monde achémenide et de l'empire d'Alexandre, Collège de France, is a specialist in the history of the Near East during the era of the Persian Empire and the conquests of Alexander. He is the author of numerous books. Peter T. Daniels, the translator, is an independent scholar, editor, and translator who studied at Cornell University and the University of Chicago. He lives and works in New York City.
The Graven Image by
Mesopotamia, the world's earliest literate culture, developed a rich philosophical conception of representation in which the world was saturated with signs. Instead of imitating the natural world, representation--both in writing and in visual images--was thought to participate in the world and to have an effect upon it in natural, magical, and supernatural ways. The Graven Image is the first book to explore this tradition, which developed prior to, and apart from, the Greek understanding of representation. The classical Greek system, based on the notion of mimesis, or copy, is the one with which we are most familiar today. The Assyro-Babylonian ontology presented here by Zainab Bahrani opens up fresh avenues for thinking about the concept of representation in general, and her reading of the ancient Mesopotamian textual and visual record in its own ontological context develops an entirely new approach to understanding Babylonian and Assyrian arts in particular. The Graven Image describes, for the first time, rituals and wars involving images; the relationship of divination, the organic body, and representation; and the use of images as a substitute for the human form, integrating this ancient material into contemporary debates in critical theory. Bahrani challenges current methodologies in the study of Near Eastern archaeology and art history, introducing a new way to appreciate the unique contributions of Assyrian and Babylonian culture and their complex relationships to the past and present.
Gudea's Temple Building by
Gudea of Lagash, who ruled at the end of the third millennium B.C., wanted to be remembered as a temple builder. An extensive narrative inscribed on two huge clay cylinders, one of the longest and best preserved Sumerian texts, recounts his construction of the temple of Ningirsu, Lagashs patron deity. More than sixty sculpted limestone fragments belong to several stelae erected in the temples Gudea built and depict their construction. A large number of inscribed and often sculpted, artifacts provide additional information on Gudeas activities. This study treats this visual and textual material as a coherent corpus for the first time. It analyses contents, narrative structure, composition and message. Text and image are compared to elucidate the characteristics of each medium and to arrive at a comprehensive picture of the royal rhetoric of the time. The book includes a catalogue of all artifacts, and a translation of selected text passages.
History, Texts and Art in Early Babylonia by
These essays represent a summation of Piotr Steinkeller's decades-long thinking and writing about the history of third millennium BCE Babylonia and the ways in which it is reflected in ancient historical and literary sources and art, as well as of how these written and visual materials may be used by the modern historian to attain, if not a reliable record of histoire événementielle, a comprehensive picture of how the ancients understood their history. The book focuses on the history of early Babylonian kingship, as it evolved over a period from Late Uruk down to Old Babylonian times, and the impact of the concepts of kingship on contemporaneous history writing and visual art. Here comparisons are drawn between Babylonia and similar developments in ancient Egypt, China and Mesoamerica. Other issues treated is the intersection between history writing and the scholarly, lexical, and literary traditions in early Babylonia; and the question of how the modern historian should approach the study of ancient sources of "historical" nature. Such a broad and comprehensive overview is novel in Mesopotamian studies to date. As such, it should contribute to an improved and more nuanced understanding of early Babylonian history.
The Lives of Sumerian Sculpture by
This book examines the sculptures created during the Early Dynastic period (2900-2350 BC) of Sumer, a region corresponding to present-day southern Iraq. Featured almost exclusively in temple complexes, some 550 Early Dynastic stone statues of human figures carved in an abstract style have survived. Chronicling the intellectual history of ancient Near Eastern art history and archaeology at the intersection of sculpture and aesthetics, this book argues that the early modern reception of Sumer still influences ideas about these sculptures. Engaging also with the archaeology of the Early Dynastic temple, the book ultimately considers what a stone statue of a human figure has signified, both in modern times and in antiquity.
On Art in the Ancient Near East - V. 1 by
This volume of collected essays brings together for the first time the range of Winter's pioneering studies related to Neo-Assyrian relief sculpture and seals, Phoenician and Syrian ivory and bronze production, and inter-polity connections across the various cultures of first millennium B.C.E. from the Aegean to Iran.
On Art in the Ancient Near East - V. 2 by
This second volume of collected essays, complement to volume one, focuses upon the art and culture of the third millennium B.C.E. in ancient Mesopotamia.
Ornamental Wall Painting in the Art of the Assyrian Empire by
This study brings together the archaeological record and the pictorial documentation of ornamental wall painting produced in Assyria, from the thirteenth to the seventh centuries B.C. Nimrud, Khorsabad, Til Barsip, and Tell Sheikh Hamad, are among the ancient sites where impressive wall paintings were discovered; unfortunately most of these discoveries now exist in drawings and photographs only.Ornamental wall painting created a colorful and meaningful visual impact to the rooms of residences belonging to the Assyrian kings. The assembled material demonstrates that the polychrome and black-and-white decorated bands of geometric, floral, figural, and animal motifs were arranged into a variety of formulaic designs. Particular attention is given to the changing trends in the selection and combination of motifs, some of which had symbolic meaning. The chronology of the wall paintings at Til Barsip and the accompanying discussion of textile patterns are of special interest to the art historian. This book illustrates the ornamental wall paintings as recorded in the excavation reports.
Xerxes by
Xerxes, Great King of the Persian Empire from 486-465 B.C., has gone down in history as an angry tyrant full of insane ambition. The stand of Leonidas and the 300 against his army at Thermopylae is a byword for courage, while the failure of Xerxes' expedition has overshadowed all the other achievements of his twenty-two-year reign. In this lively and comprehensive new biography, Richard Stoneman shows how Xerxes, despite sympathetic treatment by the contemporary Greek writers Aeschylus and Herodotus, had his reputation destroyed by later Greek writers and by the propaganda of Alexander the Great. Stoneman draws on the latest research in Achaemenid studies and archaeology to present the ruler from the Persian perspective. This illuminating volume does not whitewash Xerxes' failings but sets against them such triumphs as the architectural splendor of Persepolis and a consideration of Xerxes' religious commitments. What emerges is a nuanced portrait of a man who ruled a vast and multicultural empire which the Greek communities of the West saw as the antithesis of their own values."
Persepolis by
Persepolis: Discovery and Afterlife of a World Wonder presents the first full study of the history of archaeological exploration at Persepolis after its destruction in 330 BC. Based in part on archival evidence, anecdotal information, and unpublished documents, this book describes in detail the history of archaeological exploration, visual documentation, and excavations at one of the most celebrated sites of the ancient world. The book addresses a broad audience of readers ranging from students of the archaeology, history, and art history of ancient, medieval, and modern Iran to scholars in Classical Studies and Ancient Near Eastern Studies.
Personal Styles in Early Cycladic Sculpture by
Pat Getz-Gentle provides a clear and detailed survey of the Cycladic period, an early Bronze Age culture that thrived at the heart of the Aegean. In particular, she emphasizes the steps leading to the iconic, reclining folded-arm figure that uniquely defines the Cycladic era. Getz-Gentle also focuses on the personal aesthetics of fifteen carvers, several of whom are identified and discussed in this volume. New to this paperback edition is an expanded bibliography as well an addendum that contains additional works Getz-Gentle has attributed to some of the fifteen Cycladic sculptors she discusses in her book.
