Ancient Mesopotamia

by Susan Pollock

Overview

This is an in-depth treatment of the antecedents and first flourescence of early state and urban societies in lowland Mesopotamia over nearly three millennia, from approximately 5000 to 2100 BC. The approach is explicitly anthropological, drawing on contemporary theoretical perspectives to enrich our understanding of the ancient Mesopotamian past. It explores the ways people of different genders and classes contributed and responded to political, economic, and ideological changes. The interpretations are based on studies of regional settlement patterns, faunal remains, artifact distributions and activity patterning, iconography, texts and burials.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780521573344
Publisher:	Cambridge University Press
Publication date:	05/20/1999
Series:	Case Studies in Early Societies , #1
Pages:	272
Product dimensions:	5.98(w) x 9.02(h) x 0.75(d)

Table of Contents

1. Introduction; 2. Geographic setting and environment; 3. Settlement patterns; 4. Making a living: tributary economics of the fifth and fourth millennia; 5. A changing way of life: the oikos-based economy of the third millennium; 6. The growth of bureaucracy; 7. Ideology and images of power; 8. Death and the ideology of community.

Editorial Reviews

"Pollock's writing flows easily and does not obfuscate her materials." Choice

"Pollock is blessed with an enviable ability to explain these matters clearly and concisely, so her work makes a fine textbook for students as well as philologists and nonspecialists seeking an up-to-date account of early Mesopotamian history. I learned a great deal from her book and found it as excellent teaching tool as well." AJA

"...refreshing...." Religious Studies Review

From the Publisher