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Fashion & Dress in Ancient Mesopotamia
Article by Joshua J. Mark

Fashion & Dress in Ancient Mesopotamia

Fashion and dress in Mesopotamia – clothing, footwear, and accessories – was not only functional but defined one's social status and developed from a simple loincloth in the Ubaid Period (c. 5000-4100 BCE) to brightly colored robes and dresses...
Early Dynastic Period (Mesopotamia)
Definition by Joshua J. Mark

Early Dynastic Period (Mesopotamia)

The Early Dynastic Period of Mesopotamia is the modern-day archaeological term for the era in Mesopotamian history – 2900-2334 BCE – during which some of the most significant cultural advances were made including the rise of the cities, the...
The Family in Ancient Mesopotamia
Article by Joshua J. Mark

The Family in Ancient Mesopotamia

Family in ancient Mesopotamia was considered the essential unit that provided social stability in the present, maintained traditions of the past, and ensured the continuance of those traditions, customs, and stability for the future. The...
Festivals in Ancient Mesopotamia
Article by Joshua J. Mark

Festivals in Ancient Mesopotamia

Festivals in ancient Mesopotamia honored the patron deity of a city-state or the primary god of the city that controlled a region or empire. The earliest, the Akitu festival, was first observed in Sumer in the Early Dynastic Period (2900-2334...
Ghosts in Ancient Mesopotamia
Article by Joshua J. Mark

Ghosts in Ancient Mesopotamia

Ghosts in ancient Mesopotamia were understood as a reality of life just as they were in other civilizations of antiquity. Although the cultures of the various Mesopotamian civilizations differed between c. 5000 BCE-651 CE, the belief in ghosts...
Scribes in Ancient Mesopotamia
Article by Joshua J. Mark

Scribes in Ancient Mesopotamia

Scribes in ancient Mesopotamia were highly educated individuals trained in writing and reading on diverse subjects. Initially, their purpose was in recording financial transactions through trade, but in time, they were integral to every aspect...
Women in Ancient Mesopotamia
Article by Joshua J. Mark

Women in Ancient Mesopotamia

The lives of women in ancient Mesopotamia cannot be characterized as easily as with other civilizations owing to the different cultures over time. Generally speaking, though, Mesopotamian women had significant rights, could own businesses...
Legions of Mesopotamia, Cappadocia, & Arabia
Article by Donald L. Wasson

Legions of Mesopotamia, Cappadocia, & Arabia

As the Roman Empire expanded further eastward, annexing territories that were once the domain of the Parthians, the legions of Mesopotamia, Cappadocia, and Arabia were called upon to safeguard these newly acquired territories. Mesopotamia...
Mesopotamia: The Rise of the Cities
Article by Joshua J. Mark

Mesopotamia: The Rise of the Cities

Once upon a time, in the land known as Sumer, the people built a temple to their god who had conquered the forces of chaos and brought order to the world. They built this temple at a place called Eridu, which was “one of the most southerly...
Geme-Suen v Ur-Lugal's Wife - A Court Case in Ancient Mesopotamia
Article by Oxford University Press

Geme-Suen v Ur-Lugal's Wife - A Court Case in Ancient Mesopotamia

During the 21st century BCE, an era known as the Ur III period in Mesopotamia, many records of court hearings were drawn up in Umma, a city in what is now southern Iraq. One court record relates a dispute between two women. The name of one...
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