The Sumerian World (Routledge Worlds)

of use to a wide range of readers interested in ancient Mesopotamia and will also
provide comparative data to experts in other cognate fields.

PART I

This book is divided into six sections each linked by a common theme the first of
which is the physical, linguistic and historical background against which Sumerian
culture emerged. In spite of the difficulty of working in Iraq over the last twenty years
or so, much new work has been done, especially on landscape archaeology using
modern remote sensing techniques. This work has made us rethink many of our
assumptions on fundamental issues such as the locations of the first major settlements
and the movements of the Euphrates and Tigris (see esp. Pournelle, Stone and
Wilkinson this volume). Widell looks at the agriculture which was the backbone of the
economy, while a chapter by Cunningham discusses the Sumerian language and one
by Brisch gives an overview of the history.

PART II

This section looks at the material remains of Sumerian towns and cities in the landscape
(Ur), at their internal organisation (Stone), and at some of their important institutions
(Suter, McCaffrey and Westenholz). The analysis of the use of space, both at settlement
scale and at the level of individual buildings, is also offering new insights (Heinz).

PART III

In this section the focus is narrowed to look at the governance of the cities and at the
development of sophisticated legal and administrative systems within them. The
scribes who developed these systems formed what was effectively a highly trained civil
service (Van De Mieroop, Taylor). The tools of the administrators’ trade are discussed
by Sharlach, who looks at calendars and methods of counting, and by Pittman, who
presents the evidence for the many usages of cylinder seals.

PART IV

Here the focus changes to look at everyday life through the evidence of housing
(Collins), and at the role of women in the third millennium when they played an
important role in public life, at odds with their position in later periods (Asher-Greve).
This is followed by a chapter by al Gailani on a topic which is often overlooked,
fashion. To illustrate some of the complexities the evidence for one of the region’s most
important industries, weaving, is presented by Wright. The end of life and the rituals
associated with it are presented by Vogel and, finally, some of the myths which the
people used in their attempts to make sense of their condition are presented by Foster.

PART V

Contacts between Sumer and its neighbours were of many kinds, and these are
explored by Crawford. The virtual cessation of work in Iraq after 1990 has led to work

–– Introduction ––