Quite rightly, Mesopotamia has been called the
"cradle of civilization.
" Lying between the rivers
Tigris and Euphrates (Mesopotamia means
"between the rivers" and occupying parts of what are today Iraq and Syria, this ancient region of the world laid the foundation for social development and human progress. The transitions from hunter-gatherer to farmer, and from village to urban life, first occurred in or around Mesopotamia. It was also there, and in the neighboring Near East, that the first empires grew up during the Bronze Age and the first written language was developed
Beginning with a description of the physical changes that occurred in the region following the last Ice Age, and their influence on patterns of settlement, the atlas tells the story of the cultural, technological, political and economic achievements of the different peoples, races and tribes who occupied the area in the course of nearly 12,000 years. From the early nomads, it charts the growth of the warring city states, through the rise of Babylon and Assyria, and culminating in the mighty Persian empire of Darius and its destruction by Alexander the Great in 330вс.
As most of what is known about the period is based on archeological finds these are covered in some detail. Among the many uncovered artifacts that have proved of great interest are beveled-rim bowls from the Mediterranean to the Iranian plateau (evidence of the remarkable spread of the Late Uruk culture in the 4th millennium BC), the stone reliefs on the Assyrian palaces (testifying to the power of Assyrian rule and customs of the time) and the semiprecious stones carnelian and lapis lazuli used as decoration throughout the region (showing trading links that stretched to Afghanistan and the Indus Valley even as early as
A lucid text, aimed at the nonspecialist, is accompanied by copious explanatory maps and illustrations in full color. All the major sites that form part of the story are featured, with site plans, drawings and photographs to guide the reader. A wide variety of important topics, including the Royal Cemetery at Ur (discovered by Sir Leonard Woolley), ziggurats (the famous Mesopotamian temple towers) and the Babylonians' contributions to science and mathematics, are presented as special features.
The book includes a Glossary of technical and other terms and contains valuable reference aids in the form of a Chronological Table, Bibliography and Gazetteer as well as an Index.