Uruk : the first city / Mario Liverani ; edited and translated by Zainab Bahrani and Marc Van De Mieroop.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Liverani, Mario.

Contributor:

Bahrani, Zainab, 1962-

Van de Mieroop, Marc.

Series:

BibleWorld

Standardized Title:

Uruk. English

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Erech (Extinct city).

Physical Description:

1 online resource (96 p.)

Place of Publication:

London ; Oakville : Equinox, 2006.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

Uruk: the First City is the first fully historical analysis of the origins of the city and of the state in southern Mesopotamia,the region providing the earliest evidence in world history related to these seminal developments. Contrasting his approach -- which has been influenced by V. Gordan Childe and by Marxist theory-with the neo-evolutionist ideas of (especially) American anthropological theory, the author argues that the innovations that took place during the 'Uruk' period (most of the fourth millennium B.C.) were a 'true' revolution that fundamentally changed all aspects of society and culture. This book is unique in its historical approach and its combination of archaeological and textual sources. It develops an argument that weaves together a vast amount of information and places it within a context of contemporary scholarly debates on such questions as the ancient economy and world systems.It explains the roots of these debates briefly without talking down to the reader. The book is accessible to a wider audience, while it also provides a cogent argument about the processes involved to the specialist in the field.

Contents:

History of the question

Social transformation of the territory

The administration of a complex economy

Politics and culture of the early state

Center and periphery.

Notes:

Translation originally published as: Uruk : la prima città. Roma, Laterza, 1998.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

1-84553-487-5

1-281-74507-3

9786611745073