Weavers, Scribes, and Kings A New History of the Ancient Near East

A unique history of the ancient Near East that compellingly presents the life stories of kings, priestesses, merchants, bricklayers, and others

In this sweeping history of the ancient Near East, Amanda Podany takes readers on a gripping journey from the creation of the world's first cities to the conquest of Alexander the Great. The book is built around the life stories of many ancient men and women, from kings, priestesses, and merchants
to bricklayers, musicians, and weavers. Their habits of daily life, beliefs, triumphs, and crises, and the changes that they faced over time are explored through their own written words and the buildings, cities, and empires in which they lived.

Rather than chronicling three thousand years of kings and kingdoms, The Fertile Crescent instead creates a tapestry of life stories through which readers will come to know specific individuals from many walks of life, and to understand their places within the broad history of events and institutions
in the ancient Near East. These life stories are preserved on ancient tablets, which allow us to trace, for example, the career of a weaver as she advanced to became a supervisor of a workshop, listen to a king trying to persuade his generals to prepare for a siege, and feel the pain of a starving
young couple who were driven to sell all four of their young children into slavery during a famine. What might seem at first glance to be a remote and inaccessible ancient culture proves to be a comprehensible world, one that bequeathed to us many of our institutions and beliefs, a truly fascinating
place to visit.

Amanda H. Podany is Professor of History at California State Polytechnic University at Pomona and the author of Brotherhood of Kings: How International Relations Shaped the Ancient Near East and The Ancient Near East: A Very Short Introduction. She is also the author and instructor of an audio and
video lecture series for The Great Courses called Ancient Mesopotamia: Life in the Cradle of Civilization.

Introduction

1. Uruk, the First City: Builders and Organizers, 3500-3300 BCE
2. The Uruk Period: Colonizers, Scribes, and the Gods, 3300-3000 BCE
3. The Early Dynastic Period: Kings and Subjects, 2900-2400 BCE
4. The Early Dynastic Period: Queens, Diplomats, and Weavers, 2400-2300 BCE
5. The Early Dynastic Period: Royal Couples, Divine Couples, and Envoys, 2400-2300 BCE
6. The Akkadian Period: A Conqueror and a Priestess, 2300-2200 BCE
7. The Ur III Period: Brickmakers, Litigants, and Slaves, 2200-2000 BCE
8. The Isin-Larsa Period: Kings and Military Commanders 2000-1800 BCE
9. The Old Assyrian Period: Merchants, 2000-1800 BCE
10. The Old Babylonian Period: Foreign Princesses and Musicians, 1800-1762 BCE
11. The Old Babylonian Period: A Lawgiver, Land Overseers, and Soldiers, 1792-1750 BCE
12. The Old Babylonian Period: Naditums and Scribal Students, 1792-1712 BCE
13. The Late Old Babylonian Period: Barbers, Mercenaries, and Exiles, 1742-1550 BCE
14. The Late Bronze Age: Businessmen, Charioteers, and Translators, 1550-1350 BCE
15. The Late Bronze Age: Gift Recipients and Royal In-Laws, 1450-1333 BCE
16. The Late Bronze Age: Negotiators, Sea Traders, and Famine Sufferers, 1333-1000 BCE
17. The Neo-Assyrian Period: Sculptors, City Defenders, and Deportees, 1000-681 BCE
18. The Neo-Assyrian Period: Conspirators, Diviners, and Officials, 681-648 BCE
19. The Neo-Assyrian and Neo-Babylonian Periods: Gardeners, Artisans, and a Centenarian Priestess, 648-544 BCE
20. The Neo-Babylonian and Achaemenid Periods: Brewers, Rebels, and Exorcists 544-323 BCE

Cast of Characters
Acknowledgements
Abbreviations
Bibliography