The moon god Nanna/Sin is one of the primary deities in the Sumero-Babylonian pantheon, and, for this reason, has been of interest since the early days of Assyriological research. In addition to the ubiquitous presence of Sin in cuneiform sources, and the crescent moon in Mesopotamian art, scholarly interest in him can be attributed to his prominent role in the context of celestial divination: the lunar omens dominate the sphere of celestial divination in the 1st millennium BCE. Also, the marked interest of the Sargonid kings of Assyria in the ?arranian moon god in the 8th-7th centuries BCE and the veneration of Sin by Nabonidus in the 6th century BCE have received much attention from various scholars. The theological concepts surrounding Sin are by no means limited only to his role as the god of the moon, but he shared numerous abilities and powers with other deities of the Mesopotamian pantheon depending on the context. The sources from the Neo-Assyrian and Neo-Babylonian periods describe the moon god Sin first and foremost as the moon, a celestial luminary that embodies cosmic order and regulates time, conveys messages about the decisions he or other deities have made, brings stability to the reign of the king, allows people (and animals) to procreate, and afflicts them with epilepsy and skin diseases (but also heals them, if he wills). He is present not only in cult images in and around sanctuaries but also in the night sky, where he unceasingly makes himself manifest from day to day, month to month; the jewel of heavens, surrounded by rejoicing stars. - The present study is subdivided into two main parts: "Theologies of the Moon God in Assyria and Babylonia", characterizing himself and his family and entourage, and "The Cult of Sin in Babylonia and Assyria" on his role in the context of his places of worship and temples. These parts are supplemented by editions of selected texts and extensive indices.

This volume is an interdisciplinary investigation and contextualization of the various concepts of divine union in the private and public sphere of the Greek and Near Eastern worlds.

The ancient Mesoptamian city of Ur was a Sumerian city state which flourished as a centre of trade and civilisation between 2800–2000 BCE. However, in the recent past it suffered from the disastrous Gulf war and from neglect. It still remains a potent symbol for people of all faiths and will have an important role to play in the future. This account of Ur's past looks at both the ancient city and its evolution over centuries, and its archaeological interpretation in more recent times. From the 19th century explorers and their identification of the site of Mukayyar as the Biblical city of Ur, the study proceeds to look in detail at the archaeologist Leonard Woolley and his key discoveries during the 1920s and 30s. Using the findings as a framework and utilising the latest evidence from environmental, historical and archaeological studies, the volume explores the site's past in chronological order from the Ubaid period in the 5th millennium to the death of Alexander. It looks in detail at the architectural remains: the sacred buildings, royal graves and also the private housing which provides a unique record of life 4000 years ago. The volume also describes the part played by Ur in the Gulf war and discusses the problems raised for archaeologists in the war's aftermath.

In July, 2010, the International Association for Assyriology met in Barcelona, Spain, for 5 days to deliver and listen to papers on the theme “Time and History in the Ancient Near East.” This volume, the proceedings of the conference, contains 70 of the papers read at the 56th annual Rencontre, including the papers from several workshop sessions on “architecture and archaeology,” “early Akkadian and its Semitic context,” “ Hurrian language,” “law in the ancient Near East,” “Middle Assyrian texts and studies,” and a variety of additional papers not directly related to the conference theme. The photo on the back cover shows only a representative portion of the attendees, who were warmly hosted by faculty and students from the University of Barcelona.

This volume examines the state ideology of Assyria in the Early Neo-Assyrian period (934-745 BCE) focusing on how power relations between the Mesopotamian deities, the Assyrian king, and foreign lands are described and depicted. It undertakes a close reading of delimited royal inscriptions and iconography making use of postcolonial and gender theory, and addresses such topics as royal deification, “religious imperialism”, ethnicity and empire, and gendered imagery. The important contribution of this study lies especially in its identification of patterns of ideological continuity and variation within the reigns of individual rulers, between various localities, and between the different rulers of this period, and in its discussion of the place of Early Neo-Assyrian state ideology in the overall development of Assyrian propaganda. It includes several indexed appendices, which list all primary sources, present all divine and royal epithets, and provide all of the “royal visual representations,” and incorporates numerous illustrations, such as maps, plans, and royal iconography.

This volume deals with the myths and legends of Babylonia and Assyria, and as these reflect the civilization in which they developed, a historical narrative has been provided, beginning with the early Sumerian Age and concluding with the periods of the Persian and Grecian Empires. Over thirty centuries of human progress are thus passed under review. Keywords: myth, legend, ancient, religion, classic

Cylindrically-shaped sals first appeared int he second half of the fourth millennium B.C, gradually replacing the more traditional stamp seals. Cylinder seals are interesting not only for the past functional uses and for what they reveal about ancient Near Eastern culture and society--but the representations rendered by the seals are a worthy art form. This book discusses over 700 seals, including a large number of Syrian seals. --Publisher description.