Thin End of the Wedge

Gioele talks about the PlANET Project (Plants in the Ancient Near East Texts). How do texts and archaeobotanical evidence combine to explain the economic and functional roles of plants? And what symbolic values did they have? To what extent did they play active roles? 3:27  the PlANET project 5:23  what do we know about plants? 7:57  combining sources 11:13  project goals 13:35  attitudes to envir...

David Kertai explains all about Neo-Assyrian palaces. What, and who, would we find there? How did they function? What do their design and decoration tell us about how they were used? How visible was the king?  David's museum page Music by Ruba Hillawi Website: http://wedgepod.org YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCSM7ZlAAgOXv4fbTDRyrWgw Email: wedgepod@gmail.com Patreon: http://Patreo...

International Association for Assyriology awards prizes to early career scholars annually. The for 2025 awards went to:  Best PhD dissertation in the field of Assyriology and Mesopotamian Archaeology : Adeline Reynaud, for “Les diagrammes mathématiques paléo-babyloniens : catalogue, propriétés matérielles, rôles dans les raisonnements” Best article in Assyriology and Mesopotamian Archaeology :  La...

Lisa Wilhelmi discusses the international system in the ancient Middlle East. The 14th century BC tablets from Amarna in Egypt, and tablets from the royal archives in Hattusa (Türkiye), reveal diplomatic exchanges between the great powers that ruled the region. What did they want from each other? Who and what moved around, and why? 2:00 what does "international" mean? 3:09 what sources o...

Gina Konstantopoulos, Andrew Deloucas, Gabriel Moshenska, and Steven Garfinkle discuss internet favourite, Ea-nasir. What do we know about the Dilmun traders and their role in the supply of copper to the kingdoms of Babylonia? Who were his customers and what did they want his copper for? How did he become famous in the 21st century, and what jokes do people make about him? What possibilities does...

Rocío and Nathan take us to Babylon in the Late Babylonian period for a remarkable public ritual. The divine love lyrics are one of the most surprising literary survivals from antiquity. Sarpanitu discovers that Marduk has been sleeping with Ishtar. The two goddesses become embroiled in a very public shouting match, throwing insults at each other. What was this ritual and what did it mean?  3:56 ...

Mustafa discusses his project to document the condition of the gates of Nineveh, and to plan the sustainable conservation and management. What do the gates mean to Mosulis? What reconstruction work has taken place, what condition are the gates in now, and what might they look like in the future?  2:39  the Gates of Nineveh project 4:46  historic reconstructions 5:40  significance 7:19  current con...

Augusta talks about the new excavations at Nippur. What are the goals of the new work, and how does she manage the long history of excavations at the site? What are the long term plans for the site? She reveals the first results, including news about the city walls, a huge Neo-Babylonian villa, and a Parthian cemetery. She reflects on how the archaeological situation has changed since she was a st...

Tina explains what animal teeth and bones can tell us about life in ancient Iraq. What did people eat? And what did those animals eat? How were flocks and herds managed? What does this tell us about status and economy? We learn what new strands of evidence are provided by scientific analyses.  3:12 about zooarchaeology 4:17 state of play 7:33 cow teeth and society 10:35 why the difference between...

Moudhy talks about the different kinds of outreach work she has done. How does she excite interest in material that is very unfamiliar for most people? What works well? She discusses the different audiences and formats, the various approaches and possibilities.  2:18  why Mesopotamia? 4:45  attracting interest 8:11  overcoming the unfamiliar 11:19  reliable history versus pseudo-history 13:10  rad...

The Mosul region is the focus of renewed activity by local and foreign teams. Archaeology there inevitably works differently now. Michael and John talk about the Iraq Heritage Stabilization Program, including conservation and reconstruction work, excavation, and capacity building.  2:34Iraq Heritage Stabilization Program 3:39 Nimrud and Nineveh 8:29why those sites? Who sets the goals? 12:56exhibit...

Zoltán and Erika introduce us to their exhibition about gods and demons. This exhibition, and the extensive catalogue that accompanies it, are major landmarks in Hungarian assyriology. What is it about, how did it become a reality, and what impact will it have? 2:40 the exhibition 8:11 key objects 10:47 why this topic, and why now? 12:56 reaction 15:15 preparing an exhibition 21:19 about the displ...

Christopher discusses new ideas around the murder of King Sennacherib. Who really killed him and why? Was it a coup? Where was Esarhaddon and why wasn't he in Nineveh? [Much of this first section of the episode was published as part of Episode 71.  8:03-10:30 is not found there. And everything from 25:19 is also new] Next he addresses the question of how the kings of this dynasty ran their em...

 This is a special episode presenting the prize-winning research of three early career scholars: William McGrath, Alessia Pilloni, and Christopher Jones. What prizes did they win, and what was their research about? We hear about the latest news from Isin II period history, astrology in the Late Babylonian period, and a military coup in the Neo-Assyrian period.  1:24 William McGrath 2:10 dissertati...

This episode was recorded live at the Rencontre Assyriologique Internationale conference held in Helsinki in July 2024.  Simo Parpola reflects on his long and momentous career. He explains how he became an assyriologist, and how he came to focus on the Assyrians. A key collaboration led to one of the most significant projects in assyriological history. What was it like to study large groups of tab...

Carolyne introduces us to the study of ancient plant remains, especially carpology--the study of seeds, fruits, and flowers. In her case study she takes us to the site of Logardan in the Kurdish region, and explains what she could learn from the remains found in kilns. We discuss the role and uses of dung. 2:02 archaeobotany 4:08 how to train 5:09 site of Logardan 6:37 role of archaeobotany 9:47 c...

Witold discusses the labour market under Hammurabi of Babylon. What kind of work could you get, and what would you be paid in exchange? Who would be looking for employment, who would take them on, and who held the balance of power? 1:45 how we know about getting a job 2:54 who are the job seekers? 3:48 how common was it? 4:58 what jobs are there beyond harvest time? 6:17 what kind of people are wo...

Amy discusses the multi-sensory presence of the queens of Assyria. What was queenly dress and what meaning did each part of it convey? How does the evidence from art compare to what we learn from archaeology? Can we identify personal choice? She also talks about what it's like to wear queenly clothes, and what experimental archaeology can tell us.   2:45 sources for textiles 5:13 experimental...

Rune, Seraina, and Gustav discuss their recently completed project on geomapping cuneiform. Where were inscriptions found and where are they now? How many tablets are there? What counts as a tablet anyway? They reveal the challenges of integrating datasets, and explore the potential opened up by knowing where inscriptions really come from. 4:18 GLoW project 7:44 data collection 10:51 how many tabl...

Omar discusses the importance of studying gender as part of assyriology. What are the big themes now, and how did we get here? He focuses on two areas of special interest: masculinity, and eunuchism. What can we expect from the conference on gender  studies (GeMANE) hosted in Malta this April? And what is the context of assyriology in Malta? 0:37 Introducing Ellie 2:56 the importance of studying g...

The site of Ur is easily one of the most important in Iraq. In this interview, originally recorded in late 2021, we hear from the person responsible for managing that site. Ali talks about Ur's significance, and its role in local life. What are the plans for the development of this key site? 4:18 introducing Lina 7:02 importance of Ur 7:34 what tourists can see 8:39 information for visitors 9...

Enrique introduces us to a major new resource in digital assyriology: The electronic Babylonian Library. What does it offer and what are its aims? He discusses the issues facing the field and the potential of digital tools, including AI, to help solve them. To what extent can Babylonian literature be reconstructed now, and what we can do with it? 2:08 what is the eBL? 4:59 how much Babylonian lite...

At the Rencontre in Leiden this summer, the IAA awarded its annual prizes celebrating the excellence of early career scholars. There were prizes for the best dissertation, best first article, and a research subsidy. I tracked down the prize winners to ask them about their work.  2:17 Clélia Paladre 2:57 thesis on Iranian glyptic 4:38 the Proto-Elamite phenomenon 6:14 working at the Louvre 7:31 Tom...

Shigeo shares the results of fieldwork at a site that was once a key city on the edges of the Assyrian empire. How do we know which city it was? He describes the key finds, and interprets their significance. What can we learn from a necklet? 2:22 Yasin Tepe 4:54 goals 6:38 identification as Dur-Ashur 9:12 results 12:44 who lived there? 13:44 inscribed necklet of a slave 18:49 future work 23:20 Tsu...

Susanne pulls back the curtain on how exhibitions are made. She explains how the topic was chosen, and how that vision is translated into reality. How long does it take, how many people are involved, and just what needs to be done? 2:17  about Back to School 3:27  goals 5:37  what's on show? 7:16  star pieces 10:10  recreating an ancient school 11:05  how to display tablets 17:06  why school...