The present study was intended as a new approach to the study of the military equipment of the Late Assyrian period which has traditionally relied upon the pictorial representations of the palace reliefs. By examining extant artifacts from the first millennium in their own right, with the reliefs merely serving to contextualize them, a truer understanding of Assyrian arms and armour can be gathered. This is necessary because the artwork only provides us with a filtered view of the real world, the reliefs are as much works of propaganda as of history. The approach taken here is to first examine the existing weapons typologically, and then to evaluate whether such weapon types appear to be accurately represented in contemporary artwork. Textual sources are also used where they can aid in the discussion. Five categories of arms and armour were studied: swords and daggers, spearpoints, shields, armour and helmets. The quality and quantity of the items in these categories varied significantly, providing for a much better representative sample of some items than others. Further questions concerning the possible ritual, rather than military, use of some of the existing artifacts were raised. However, the main conclusions reached were that the reliefs suffer not only from a propagandistic viewpoint which sometimes obscures the reality of Assyrian warfare, but that they also suffer from artistic license and spatial restraints, the difficulties in representing three-dimensional objects in a two-dimensional manner, the possible unfamiliarity of the artists with changing military technology and methods of construction, and finally, our inability to understand artistic short-hand for what were commonplace objects to the contemporary viewer. These have led to misunderstanding both as to the dating and chronological changes in weaponry, and also to the tactics used by the Late Assyrian military. This study of the artifacts themselves reveals a more mundane, utilitarian, and conservative military force which shows both a basic homogeneousness throughout the empire, and the myriad tiny variables of an army on the move drawing weapons and troops from many regions.

Human bone is considered one of the most direct and insightful sources of information on peoples of the past. As a result, curation protocols have been developed to ensure that the integrity of human skeletal collections is maintained. Although collections are generally considered safe when these protocols are followed, the results of this investigation show that the Tell Leilan skeletal collection from Syria (circa 2900 – 1900 BCE) was contaminated by microbial growth (also known as biodeterioration) during curation. This biodeterioration was evaluated by light microscopy (LM), by the application of a histological preservation index (HPI), and by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). All samples (n=192) were found to be biodeteriorated by LM and the HPI. SEM confirmed that the Tell Leilan skeletal material had been contaminated by a complex microbial aggregate known as a biofilm. Amycolatopsis sp. and Penicillium chrysogenum, along with species of Aspergillus, Chaetomium, and Cladosporium were isolated and cultured from several contaminated bones and were identified based on morphology and DNA sequences. The results of this research suggest that we must focus on new techniques to examine bone as well as on new conservation protocols designed to limit the growth of biofilms in human skeletal collections in the future.

Thesis (M.A.)--Miami University, Dept. of History, 2004. / Title from first page of PDF document. Includes bibliographical references (p. 55-58).

Les textiles sont des biens de première nécessité et des objets de valeur en Mésopotamie, au Ier millénaire av J.-C. L'objet de cette étude est de comprendre comment les matières premières étaient produites, quelles étaient les techniques de fabrication des textiles et leurs diverses utilisations dans la société. Les matières premières étaient en partie produites sur place, et en partie importées. La laine, fibre textile principale, provenait de troupeaux appartenant en majorité aux institutions (temples et palais). Elles la redistribuaient dans toute la société par le paiement de salaires, la vente ou l'échange. Diverses personnes étaient en charge de la fabrication des textiles : artisans professionnels travaillant pour les temples ou pour une clientèle urbaine, femmes travaillant à domicile pour le profit d'une autorité supérieure ou de leur propre famille. Les nombreuses étapes de la chaîne opératoire de fabrication des textiles révèlent une spécialisation des artisans plus importante qu'aux époques précédentes. l'étude terminologique des termes akkadiens de textiles permet de mieux saisir la diversité de leurs usages. Les vêtements sont des marqueurs essentiels de l'identité. enfin, les textiles ont une valeur économique. Ils circulent dans la société, à travers des échanges sociaux et commerciaux. Leur étude révèle des traits fondamentaux de la société babylonienne au Ier millénaire av. J.-C. : l'ouverture de l'économie aux échanges extérieurs, une production artisanale plutôt décentralisée entre les mains d'acteurs individuels que totalement contrôlée par les institutions, et des conventions sociales fortes visibles à travers l'habillement. / The textiles belonged to the basic necessities and were also valuable properties in Mesopotamia, during the Ist millenium BS. The purpose of this study is to undersand how the textile fibres were produced, what were the technics of manufacturing of these objects and their various uses in the Babylonian society. The raw materials were partly produced locally and partly imported through long distance trade. The wool, the main textile raw material, came from sheep herds belonging in majority to the institutions (temples and palaces). These institutions were redistributing the wool in the society by the payment of salaries to workers, by sales or exchanges. A lot of people were involved in textile production : professional craftsmen working for the temples or for the urban customers, women working at home for the profit of an institution or for their own family. The "chaîne opératoire" of textile manufacturing was following several steps, and reveals a specialisation of the craftsmen more important than before. The study of the textile terminology in Akkadian shows the diversity of the uses of these objects in the Babylonian society. Clothes were markers of identity. Lastly, the textiles had an economic value. They circulated inside the society through social exchanges and economic transactions. The study of the textiles reveals some fundamental aspects of Babylonia's history during the Ist millenium BC, for instance the openness of its economy to external trade, a craft production decentralised into the hands of individuals and not controlled exclusively by the institutions, and strong social conventions expressed by the apparel.

The Ancient Mesopotamian society is often pictured as the cradle of society. It is surroundedby the rivers Euphrates and Tigris and has given life to an agricultural civilization that hasproduced the oldest preserved literary writing of our time, the Epic of Gilgamesh. In thisqualitative research paper, I intend to explore similar stories to expand the understanding ofthe Mesopotamian religion and its deities.Metaphorical literature, as with the Epic of Gilgamesh, represent society’s understanding ofits surroundings and thus portrays deities as reflections of its values and cognitive thinking.As an example, kingships of Mesopotamia were depicted as gods, and gods as kings, duringthe third millennia B.C. The prevailing political setting of monarchs demanded protection ofits citizens against outside threats. Wars were common during this era and thus walls werebuilt around the cities. The deities acted as protectors of the citizens as well as the kings. So,the metaphorical literature created during this time reflected upon this societal system.The analysis of the paper does not only intend to investigate the understanding of deities inrelation to the physical world, but also intends to elaborate the current understanding of thosedeities. Previous research has tried to explain and understand the Mesopotamianpandemonium in its completion despite the religion having produced nothing that can beexplained in a systematic structure. Instead, I argue, that the anthropomorphic Mesopotamiangod system needs to be further analyzed in relation to the society itself. Many metaphoricstories do not separate mankind to gods, and so this paper’s purpose is to further specify thecurrent Mesopotamian definition according to such keystones.

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Agatha Christie set a number of her popular novels in British colonies in the Middle East, Africa and the Caribbean. While there is a lot of research about the portrayal of the colonised in the Middle East, there is only little to be found on those of Africa and the Caribbean. Therefore, this thesis aims to compare the portrayals of the Middle Eastern, African and Caribbean colonised by analysing Christie's The Man in the Brown Suit, Murder in Mesopotamia, Appointment with Deah, and A Caribbean Mystery.

The thesis investigates the causes and nature of return in the context of the Iraqis displaced to Syria and Jordan after the 2003 US-led war in Iraq. It combines critical International Relations theories with transnational approaches in Migration Studies to investigate: (1) how regional and international geopolitics have shaped asylum and migration regimes in the Middle East; (2) how Iraqi forced migrants have interacted with such regimes in order to reach safety, sustainable livelihoods and personal development opportunities and; (3) the decision-making processes and transnational migration practices of Iraqi individuals and families. It finds that Iraqis' returns result from the uneasy interaction between international and national asylum and migration regimes and the lack of agreement on a common legal framework for durable solutions to the Iraqi displacement. The presence and mobility of the Iraqis in Syria and Jordan are regulated within national immigration systems. The immigration and residency policies of the home and host governments confirm the historical importance of voluntary and involuntary population movements as a nation-building and governance tool in the Middle East. Regional governments and international agencies manage the Iraqi displaced and steer their return through the provision, or the lack thereof, of assistance and information. The Iraqis respond to the limited institutional assistance and information by developing independent coping strategies and informal information and communication systems based on the use of information and communication technologies and on their transnational mobility and social networks. Transnational mobility and livelihoods therefore constitute a precondition for Iraqis' sustainable return and reintegration in home societies undergoing political and socio-economic transition. In this context, return is a complex process that takes time and entails various degrees and modalities of transnational mobility, social networks and livelihoods connecting host and home societies.

RESUME FRANCAIS La société en Mésopotamie du Sud, à lépoque de la Dynastie de Larsa, est fondée sur une économie qui possède des caractéristiques particulières et uniques. Cette économie « sui generis », parce que adaptée à une situation donnée, présente lefficacité nécessaire au maintien et au développement dune civilisation remarquable. La période de la Dynastie de Larsa est une période charnière entre la fin de lépoque dUr III et la domination babylonienne sous le règne de Hammurabi, car on peut percevoir que la société a alors subi une véritable évolution. Les centres administratifs, qui, à lépoque dUr III, contrôlaient léconomie, ont progressivement tendance à faire intervenir dans leur gestion des personnes indépendantes, mais il existe une différence bien nette entre la situation à Larsa et celle à Ur : - A Larsa, la gestion des centres administratifs passe par des personnes dont on ignore souvent la fonction, mais la nouveauté est bien évidemment lindépendance dans la gestion des ressources agricoles que vont acquérir de grandes familles comme celle de Balmunamhe. - A Ur, le complexe religieux de Nanna et de Ningal tient dans léconomie une place aussi considérable quà lépoque dUr III. Un bon nombre de personnes, qui nont pas la qualité de membre à part entière du complexe, va cependant soccuper de diverses choses, telles que le bétail et la pêche. On ignore toutefois la marge dindépendance que ces personnes ont par rapport au complexe. La politique tient par ailleurs un rôle primordial dans léconomie. Les misharû sont des actes politiques forts qui vont contribuer à lajustement des prix et des salaires. Les bouleversements politiques vont singulièrement modifier les comportements économiques, le bouleversement politique le plus fort étant sans doute la prise du pouvoir à Larsa par Nûr-Adad, les prix ayant chuté à ce moment précis. La prise du pouvoir à Larsa par les descendants de Kudur-mabuk na pas eu un impact aussi considérable. *********************** ENGLISH SUMMARY The society in southern Mesopotamia at the time of the Dynasty of Larsa, is based on an economy that has particular characteristics and unique. The economy "sui generis" because adapted to a given situation, present this efficiency for the maintenance and development of a remarkable civilization. The period of the Dynasty of Larsa is a pivotal period between the end of the period of Ur III and Babylonian domination under the reign of Hammurabi : we can perceive that the society then suffered a real evolution. The administrative centers, which at the time of Ur III, controlled the economy, gradually tend to intervene in their management of independent persons, but there is a clear difference between the situation in Larsa and Ur: - At Larsa, the management of administrative centers through which people often ignore the function, but the novelty is obviously independence in the management of agricultural resources that will acquire large families like Balmunamhe. - A Ur, the complex religious of Nanna and Ningal takes a considerable at the time of Ur III in the economy. A great number of people who do not qualify as a full member of the complex will deal with various things, such as livestock and fisheries. It is unclear, however, the margin of independence that these people have over the complex. The policy also holds a key role in the economy. The misharû are strong political act that will contribute to the adjustment of prices and wages. The political changes will significantly alter economic behavior, the political upheaval is the strongest probably took power in Larsa by Nur-Adad, prices fell at that time. The seizure of power in Larsa by the descendants of Kudur-Mabuk has not had a considerable impact.

The present study is an interpretation of the two myths copied in the Old Babylonian period in which the Sumerian mother goddess is one of the main actors. The first myth is commonly called “Enki and Ninḫursaĝa”, and the second “Enki and Ninmaḫ”. The theoretical point of departure is that myths have society as their referents, i.e. they are “talking about” society, and that this is done in an ideological way. This study aims at investigating on the one hand which contexts in the Mesopotamian society each section of the myths refers to, and on the other hand which ideological aspects that the myths express in terms of power relations. The myths are contextualized in relation to their historical and social setting. If the myth for example deals with working men, male work in the area during the relevant period is discussed. The same method of contextualization is used regarding marriage, geographical points of reference and so on. Also constellations of mythical ideas are contextualized, through comparison with similar constellations in other Mesopotamian myths. Besides the method of contextualization, the power relations in the myths are investigated. According to this latter method, the categories at issue, their ranking, as well as their changed ranking, are noted. The topics of the myths are issues important for the kingship and the country, such as irrigation, trade, health and healing, birth, collective work, artisanry and rivalry. All these aspects are used in order to express what the power relations between the goddess Ninḫursaĝa/Ninmaḫ and the god Enki look like. The relations are negotiated and recalibrated, which leads to the goddess getting a lowered status. Part of the negotiations and recalibrations is gender behavior, which is related to historical developments in society. The present work points to the function of these myths as tools of recalibrating not only deities, but also men and women in society.