Revised thesis (doctoral) - University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, 2004.

Revised thesis (doctoral) - University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, 2004.

Revised thesis (doctoral) - University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, 2004.

An insider's look at the iconography and history of Assyrian reliefs and the West's fascination with these ancient monuments

Far from being a Judeo-Christian invention, apocalyptic thought had its roots in the ancient Near East and was expressed in its art.

This is the first complete book about the Babylonian Kabbalah, which many people are talking about on the Internet. Assyria in Northern Iraq is the home of Palace Art from the Courts of the Assyrian Empire, where the Tree of Life was routinely shown on walls, tended by winged genies. It represented the King and the Land. It is also arguably a spiritual map and the basis of the Jewish Kabbalah, which was developed later. Many authors have asserted that the Kabbalah came from Egypt but this book shows that its early roots lie in Assyrian Court Art. There are also fascinating parallels to Asiatic Shamanism. All points to Asia, not Africa, as the home of the archetypal Sacred Tree image. ,

In this book, Mehmet-Ali Ataç argues that the palace reliefs of the Neo-Assyrian Empire hold a meaning deeper than simple imperial propaganda.