In The Archaeology of Lydia: From Gyges to Alexander, Christopher Roosevelt provides the first overview of the regional archaeology of Lydia in western Turkey, including much previously unpublished evidence as well as a fresh synthesis of the archaeology of Sardis, the ancient capital of the region. Combining data from regional surveys, stylistic analyses of artifacts in local museums, ancient texts, and environmental studies, he presents a new perspective on the archaeology of this area. To assess the importance of Lydian landscapes under Lydian and Achaemenid rule, roughly between the seventh and fourth centuries BCE, Roosevelt situates the archaeological evidence within frameworks established by evidence for ancient geography, environmental conditions, and resource availability and exploitation. Drawing on detailed and copiously illustrated evidence presented in a regionally organized catalogue, the book considers the significance of evidence of settlement and burial at Sardis and beyond for understanding Lydian society as a whole and the continuity of cultural traditions across the transition from Lydian to Achaemenid hegemony.

A COMPANION TO THE ARCHAEOLOGY OF THE ANCIENT NEAR EAST A Companion to the Archaeology of the Ancient Near East is a comprehensive and authoritative overview of ancient material culture from the late Pleistocene to Late Antiquity. This expansive two-volume work includes 58 new essays from an international community of ancient Near East scholars. With coverage extending from Asia Minor, the eastern Mediterranean, and Egypt to the Caucasus, Central Asia, and the Indo-Iranian borderlands, the book highlights the enormous variation in cultural developments across roughly 11,000 years of human endeavor. In addition to chapters devoted to specific regions and particular periods, many contributors concentrate on individual industries and major themes in ancient Near Eastern archaeology, ranging from metallurgy and agriculture to irrigation and fishing. Controversial issues, including the nature and significance of the antiquities market, ethical considerations in archaeological praxis, the history of the foundation of departments of antiquities, and ancient attitudes towards the past, make this a unique collection of studies that will be of interest to scholars, students, and interested readers alike.

Known as "the Pearl of the Mediterranean," Izmir invokes a city and countryside blessed with good fortune; it is known to many as the homeland of Ephesus, Bergama, and Sardis. Yet, Turkey's third largest city has an especially vexed past. The Greek pursuit of the Megali Idea leveraged Classical history for 19th century political gains, and in so doing also foreshadowed the "Asia Minor Catastrophe." Princeton University's work at Sardis played into the duplicitous agendas of western archaeologists, learned societies, and diplomats seeking to structure heritage policy and international regulations in their favor, from the 1919 Paris Peace Conference to the League of Nations. A Pearl in Peril reveals the voices of those on the ground. It also explores how Howard Crosby Butler, William Hepburn Buckler, and William Berry penetrated the inner circle of world leaders, including Woodrow Wilson, Lloyd George, and Eleftherios Venizelos. On the smoldering ashes of Anatolia's scorched earth, foreign intervention continued apace with plans for large-scale development. A Pearl in Peril tackles the untold story of Julian Huxley's admiration of the US Tennessee Valley Authority's "principals of persuasion" in the context of the industrial landscapes and pursuit of modernity in the Aegean. The promise of UNESCO, too, brought diplomacy dollars deployed to foster "mutual understanding" through preservation programs at Sardis. Yet, from this same pot of money came support for "open intelligence" at the international fairs held in Izmir's Kültürpark, a turnkey battleground of the Cold War. Ironically, it was UNESCO's colossal Abu Simbel project in Egypt that led the US to abandon their preservation initiatives in Turkey. Five decades on, groves of organic olives, marble quarries and gold mines not only threaten the erasure of sacred landscapes, but also ensure the livelihood of local communities. Ultimately, A Pearl in Peril offers a bold assessment of diplomatic practice, perspectives of contemporary heritage, and the challenges of unprecedented expansion of city and countryside.

A COMPANION TO THE ACHAEMENID PERSIAN EMPIRE A comprehensive review of the political, cultural, social, economic and religious history of the Achaemenid Empirem Often called the first world empire, the Achaemenid Empire is rooted in older Near Eastern traditions. A Companion to the Achaemenid Persian Empire offers a perspective in which the history of the empire is embedded in the preceding and subsequent epochs. In this way, the traditions that shaped the Achaemenid Empire become as visible as the powerful impact it had on further historical development. But the work does not only break new ground in this respect, but also in the fact that, in addition to written testimonies of all kinds, it also considers material tradition as an equal factor in historical reconstruction. This comprehensive two-volume set features contributions by internationally-recognized experts that offer balanced coverage of the whole of the empire from Anatolia and Egypt across western Asia to northern India and Central Asia. Comprehensive in scope, the Companion provides readers with a panoramic view of the diversity, richness, and complexity of the Achaemenid Empire, dealing with all the many aspects of history, event history, administration, economy, society, communication, art, science and religion, illustrating the multifaceted nature of the first true empire. A unique historical account presented in its multiregional dimensions, this important resource deals with many aspects of history, administration, economy, society, communication, art, science and religion it deals with topics that have only recently attracted interest such as court life, leisure activities, gender roles, and more examines a variety of available sources to consider those predecessors who influenced Achaemenid structure, ideology, and self-expression contains the study of Nachleben and the history of perception up to the present day offers a spectrum of opinions in disputed fields of research, such as the interpretation of the imagery of Achaemenid art, or questions of religion includes extensive bibliographies in each chapter for use as starting points for further research devotes special interest to the east of the empire, which is often neglected in comparison to the western territories Part of the acclaimed Blackwell Companions to the Ancient World series, A Companion to the Achaemenid Persian Empire is an indispensable work for students, instructors, and scholars of Persian and ancient world history, particularly the First Persian Empire.

Examines how people in the Roman past thought about even earlier ruins and material remains-it examines incidents that could be described as 'archaeology in antiquity'.

The Mediterranean's Iron Age period was one of its most dynamic eras. Stimulated by the movement of individuals and groups on an unprecedented scale, the first half of the first millennium BCE witnesses the development of Mediterranean-wide practices, including related writing systems, common features of urbanism, and shared artistic styles and techniques, alongside the evolution of wide-scale trade. Together, these created an engaged, interlinked and interactive Mediterranean. We can recognise this as the Mediterranean's first truly globalising era. This volume introduces students and scholars to contemporary evidence and theories surrounding the Mediterranean from the eleventh century until the end of the seventh century BCE to enable an integrated understanding of the multicultural and socially complex nature of this incredibly vibrant period.

An overview of all excavations that have been conducted at Troy, from the nineteenth century through the latest discoveries between 1988 and the present.