Mesopotamia : the invention of the city / Gwendolyn Leick.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Leick, Gwendolyn, 1951-2022.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Cities and towns, Ancient--Mesopotamia.

Cities and towns, Ancient.

Cities and towns, Ancient--Iraq.

Iraq--Civilization--To 634.

Iraq.

Civilization.

Iraq--History--To 634.

History.

Physical Description:

xxii, 359 pages, 16 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations, map ; 25 cm

Place of Publication:

London : Penguin Books, 2001.

Summary:

Mesopotamia, situated roughly where Iraq is today, was one of the greatest ancient civilizations. It was here that the very first cities were created, and where the familiar sights of modern urban life -- public buildings and gardens, places of worship, even streets and pavements -- were originally invented. This remarkable book is the first to reveal everyday life as it was in ten long-lost Mesopotamian cities, beginning with Eridu, the Mesopotamian Eden, and ending with Babylon, the first true metropolis: cosmopolitan, decadent, multicultural and the last centre of a dying civilization. Using archaeological fragments of jewellery, textiles and writings, Gwendolyn Leick paints a colourful picture of the lives of Mesopotamians -- from poets and priests to business-women and divorcees -- and the incredible achievements of their advanced and imaginative society.

Contents:

1 Eridu 1

2 Uruk 30

3 Shuruppak 61

4 Akkad 85

5 Ur 109

6 Nippur 141

7 Sippar 167

8 Ashur 194

9 Nineveh 218

10 Babylon 245.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 309-[330]) and index.

ISBN:

0140265740

OCLC:

249333976