historia

RADNER, K. ; ROBSON, E. (eds.) The Oxford Handbook of Cuneiform Culture. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2011, 805 p. – ISBN 9780199557301.

The cuneiform script, the writing system of ancient Mesopotamia, was witness to one of the world’s oldest literate cultures. For over three millennia, it was the vehicle of communication from (at its greatest extent) Iran to the Mediterranean, Anatolia to Egypt. The Oxford Handbook of Cuneiform Culture examines the Ancient Middle East through the lens of cuneiform writing. The contributors, a mix of scholars from across the disciplines, explore, define, and to some extent look beyond the boundaries of the written word, using Mesopotamia’s clay tablets and stone inscriptions not just as ‘texts’ but also as material artefacts that offer much additional information about their creators, readers, users and owners.

Este livro examina o Antigo Oriente Médio sob o ângulo da escrita cuneiforme. Porém, os estudiosos que aqui escrevem procuram ir além dos limites da palavra escrita, usando as tabuinhas de argila e as inscrições em pedra da antiga Mesopotâmia não apenas como textos, mas também como artefatos materiais que oferecem muitas informações adicionais sobre seus criadores, leitores, usuários e proprietários.

Karen Radner is Alexander von Humboldt Professor of the Ancient History of the Near and Middle East at Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Germany.

Eleanor Robson is a Professor of Ancient Near Eastern History at the Department of History, University College London, UK.

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Histórias do Antigo Oriente Médio: uma bibliografia

PONGRATZ-LEISTEN, B. Religion and Ideology in Assyria. Berlin: Walter de Gruyter, 2015, 553 p. – ISBN 9781614514824.

The aim of this book is to go back in time and contextualize the development of Neo-Assyrian ideology from its origins in the earliest days of Aššur. Simultaneously, this book seeks to document the enormity of Assyria’s cultural interaction over space and time with “outside groups”. The goal here is to trace Assyrian ideology in its formative stages and to expose the emergence of certain tropes during the early history of Aššur. In other words, my primary interest lies in the development of Assyrian ideological discourse against the backdrop of changing political-historical conditions. Control of a large territorial state required an ideological system that anchored the monarchy in established ideational frameworks and religious traditions. The formulation and promulgation of such an ideology was an act of agency. A further objective of this book, therefore, is to reveal the voice of the ancient scholars and to demonstrate their agency in the shaping of the image of the king in the surviving sources. Narratives of power and ritual served to anchor kingship in the mythical past and were essential strategies for sacralizing kingship. Because ritual and narratives of power were informed by and made use of myth and Weltanschauung, they adapted perpetually to changing political landscapes. The assumption here is that cosmogonies and myths at large not only create their own versions of the world but that they also have a strong impact on the political action of elites and on their ideological discourse.

Beate Pongratz-Leisten is Professor of Ancient Near Eastern Studies at Institute for the Study of the Ancient World, New York University, USA.

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Histórias do Antigo Oriente Médio: uma bibliografia

LIVERANI, M. Assiria: La preistoria dell’imperialismo. Bari: Laterza, 2017, 402 p. – ISBN 9788858126684.

Gli obiettivi di questo lavoro sono pertanto due. Il più ovvio è quello di fornire la mia visione dell’ideologia imperiale assira. L’altro, invece, è di carattere comparativo, e a sua volta ha un duplice intento. Il primo consiste nel trarre dalla comparazione una più completa gamma di idee e di problematiche, di similitudini e divergenze, che giovino a meglio chiarire e meglio articolare il caso assiro. Il secondo intento è di mostrare come lo stesso caso assiro possa contribuire ad una migliore comprensione del fenomeno storico generale – con la peculiarità non trascurabile che esso si pone diacronicamente a monte dei tanti altri imperi successivi. Non c’è alcuna voglia di stabilire ingenui «primati», semmai quello di ricercare le «forme semplici» dell’imperialismo, forme che l’Assiria offre in maniera più diretta ed esplicita delle più complesse e sofisticate ideologie successive (Introduzione. Imperialismo: la materialità e l’ideologia).

Mario Liverani, uno dei maggiori studiosi del Vicino Oriente antico, rivoluziona la storia dell’antica Assiria, mostrando come qui siano emersi per la prima volta alcuni dei tratti caratteristici comuni a tutti gli imperi comparsi nella storia del mondo. Da Roma a Bisanzio, dall’impero britannico all’egemonia USA: il dominio con ogni mezzo disponibile per ricavarne vantaggi, la colpevolizzazione del nemico, l’attribuzione di una valenza universale alla propria missione hanno sempre accompagnato la vita di ogni impero.

This book outlines the basic features of Assyrian imperialism within the framework of the general development of the imperial idea, all the while insisting on noting comparative material. The intent is twofold: (1) to better understand Assyria through comparison with later empires, and (2) to underscore the relevance of the Assyrian model and its influence on later history. Although the first intention profits ancient historians, the second goal is addressed to modern and contemporary historians, who too often ignore (or at least disregard) the long historical background lying behind more recent developments. The world in general, in the present climate of globalization, deserves to be better informed about pre-modern and non-Western trajectories of world history.

Sommario
Introduzione. Imperialismo: la materialità e l’ideologia
1. Dio lo vuole
2. Comunicare con Dio
3. Guerra santa e giusta
4. Esplorare per conquistare
5. La periferia funzionale
6. Collezionismo
7. Esibizione pubblica
8. Marcare il territorio: le stele
9. Le iscrizioni celebrative
10. La titolatura reale
11. La giustificazione difensiva
12. Battaglie e assedi
13. Giuramenti e violazioni
14. Punire e perdonare
15. Distruggere per ricostruire
16. «Exporting Despotism»
17. La città al centro del mondo
18. Le province
19. Da tributari a deportati
20. La rete di comunicazioni
21. Diventare Assiri
22. La prosperità imperiale
23. L’unificazione tecnologica
24. L’unificazione religiosa
25. L’unificazione linguistica
26. L’impero prototipo
27. Traiettorie dell’imperialismo
28. Imperi antichi e moderni
29. Celebrazione e realtà
30. La visione degli altri
Cartine
Immagini
Fonti e bibliografia

Mario Liverani (nato a Roma il 10/01/1939) è professore emerito di Storia del Vicino Oriente antico presso l’Università “La Sapienza” di Roma, Italia.

Recomendo. E muito. O livro acabou de ser publicado em italiano e em inglês. Cf. também aqui.

Para saber onde consultar as fontes assírias usadas por Mario Liverani, clique aqui. Para ver a bibliografia citada por Mario Liverani, clique aqui.

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Histórias do Antigo Oriente Médio: uma bibliografia

BLACK, J. ; GREEN, A. Gods, Demons and Symbols of Ancient Mesopotamia. Illustrations by Tessa Rickards. Austin: University of Texas Press, [1992] 2016, 192 p. – ISBN 9780292707948.

Este livro oferece um guia introdutório às crenças e costumes dos antigos habitantes da Mesopotâmia, conforme revelado em sua arte e seus escritos entre cerca de 3.000 a.C. e o advento da era cristã. Deuses, deusas, demônios, monstros, magia, mitos, simbolismo religioso, ritual e o mundo espiritual são todos discutidos em entradas alfabéticas que variam de relatos curtos a ensaios extensos. Os nomes são fornecidos nas formas suméria e acadiana, e todas as entradas são totalmente referenciadas. Uma introdução útil fornece informações históricas e geográficas e descreve as fontes de nosso conhecimento sobre a religião, mitologia e magia do “berço da civilização”.

This book offers an introductory guide to the beliefs and customs of the ancient Mesopotamians, as revealed in their art and their writings between about 3000 B.C. and the advent of the Christian era. Gods, goddesses, demons, monsters, magic, myths, religious symbolism, ritual, and the spiritual world are all discussed in alphabetical entries ranging from short accounts to extended essays. Names are given in both their Sumerian and Akkadian forms, and all entries are fully cross-referenced. A useful introduction provides historical and geographical background and describes the sources of our knowledge about the religion, mythology and magic of “the cradle of civilization”.

Jeremy Allen Black (1951 – 2004) was a leading Assyriologist, master of Sumerian literature, and Oxford University Lecturer.

Anthony Green (1956-2012) was a field archaeologist and expert in Ancient Near Eastern religious iconography. He has conducted extensive archaeological fieldwork in Syria and Iraq and writes on ancient Mesopotamian art and archaeology.

Tessa Rickards is a freelance archaeological illustrator specializing in ancient Mesopotamia. She has worked as an illustrator on numerous international excavations in the Middle East.

PODANY, A. H. The Ancient Near East: A Very Short Introduction. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2014, 148 p. – ISBN 9780195377996.

In this slim volume Amanda H. Podany ambitiously covers roughly three thousand years of history in the Ancient Near East, starting with the appearance of cuneiform writing around 3600 B.C. and continuing forward to the fall of the Neo-Babylonian Empire to the Achaemenid Iranian Empire in 539 B.C. For The Ancient Near East Podany uses a chronological presentation, as opposed to a thematic presentation. After an introductory chapter, Archaeology and Environment, each of the following chapters looks a specific chronological period in Near Eastern History. An abbreviated chronology of the main periods, references, and a short but well organized selection of suggestions for further reading round out the book. Amanda H. Podany is Professor and Chair of History at California State Polytechnic University, Pomona, USA.

Em espanhol:

PODANY, A. H. El antiguo Oriente Próximo: Una breve introducción. Madrid: Alianza Editorial, 2016, 216 p. – ISBN 9788491042754.

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Histórias do Antigo Oriente Médio: uma bibliografia

LIVERANI, M. Antico Oriente: Storia, società, economia. 4. ed. Bari: Laterza, 2011, 899 p. – ISBN 9788842095880.

In queste pagine, divenute un classico della storiografia, il lettore troverà tre millenni di storia (3500-500 a.C.) ripercorsi in modo unitario. Utilizzando tutta la documentazione portata alla luce dalle ultime scoperte archeologiche, e grazie alle sue personali ricerche nell’arco di oltre venticinque anni, Mario Liverani ha potuto finalmente ricostruire, in chiave storica e non solo prevalentemente filologica, le vicende di popolazioni dai nomi altamente evocativi (Sumeri, Hittiti, Assiri, Babilonesi, ecc.). Il ricco e vario apparato illustrativo per ogni periodo storico propone il materiale più caratteristico e rappresentativo, documentando il livello tecnologico cui era giunta l’attività produttiva dei popoli dell’Antico Oriente. Mario Liverani (nato a Roma il 10/01/1939) è uno archeologo e storico italiano. Professore emerito di Storia del Vicino Oriente antico presso l’Università La Sapienza di Roma, Italia.

LIVERANI, M. Antigo Oriente: História, Sociedade e Economia. São Paulo: EDUSP, 2016, 832 p. – ISBN 9788531415685.

Em Antigo Oriente, Mario Liverani analisa três milênios de história, entre os anos de 3500 a 500 a.C., apresentando o conhecimento de sumérios, hititas, assírios, babilônios, judeus e fenícios, entre outros povos, os quais deixaram marcas importantes na cultura ocidental. O tradutor, Ivan Esperança Rocha [que foi meu colega na FTCR da PUC-Campinas], ressalta a importância do livro, que apresenta uma nova perspectiva sobre o tema, e sua principal contribuição é a tentativa de tecer uma visão de conjunto nesse campo, distanciando-se de abordagens excessivamente filológicas, elegendo um ponto de vista mais histórico e não se eximindo de indicar opções de recortes cronológicos, temáticos e geográficos. A edição é ilustrada com diversas tabelas cronológicas, mapas e análises textuais que, sem prejudicar a fluência do texto, auxiliam a consulta e permitem ao leitor um contato direto com as fontes da pesquisa. Mario Liverani é professor emérito de História do Antigo Oriente Médio na Universidade La Sapienza de Roma, Itália. 

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Histórias do Antigo Oriente Médio: uma bibliografia

CRAWFORD, H. E. W. Sumer and the Sumerians. 2. ed. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2014, 264 p. – ISBN 9780521533386.

In this fully revised and expanded edition of her classic text, Sumer and the Sumerians [first edition: 1991], Harriet Crawford reviews the extraordinary social and technological developments in the region from 3800 to 2000 BC. Drawing on the most up-to-date historical and archaeological sources, she provides a thematic exploration of this ancient civilization, examining its physical and historical background, changing settlement patterns, public and private architecture and cultural developments of the period. In this new edition, the chapter on Manufacturing Industries and Trade has been enlarged and divided into two chapters. In addition, a new chapter on the contemporary developments in Upper Mesopotamia is included. The final chapter reflects on the future of the heritage of Iraq in the aftermath of the second Gulf War.  Harriet E. W. Crawford is Reader Emerita at Institute of Archaeology, Universtiy College London, UK.

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Uma página que divulga congressos sobre a Antiguidade. Criada por pesquisadores da área em universidades espanholas. A página está em espanhol, inglês e italiano.

Fasti Congressuum

Cada semana en algún lugar del mundo, se celebra un congreso, un seminario, un encuentro, una conferencia o un taller cuya temática está directamente relacionada con la Antigüedad. El interés que suscita este periodo en el mundo académico permite un intenso tráfico de ideas al que es difícil seguirle la pista. Fasti Congressuum nace con la intención de transformarse en una herramienta útil para profesionales, investigadores, estudiantes y curiosos al recopilar el mayor número posible de estos eventos en un único calendario con dos tipos de informaciones, las relativas a los Call for Papers y los propios congresos. Su temática se encuadra en los numerosos aspectos relacionados con la Antigüedad Clásica: Roma, Grecia, Egipto, Oriente, Historia, Protohistoria, Arqueología, Epigrafía, Numismática, Arte, Filología, Literatura, Filosofía, Legado, Topografía, Derecho, etc.

Leia um artigo sobre Fasti Congressuum

DUCE PASTOR, Elena et al. Renovando la difusión de call for papers y congresos de la antigüedad: Fasti Congressuum, una propuesta desde las humanidades digitales, Revista Digital Universitaria, 1 de diciembre de 2016, Vol. 17, Núm. 12.

Resumo do artigo

La falta de comunicación entre instituciones y países afecta a la difusión e internacionalización de la labor de los investigadores. Con vistas a solucionar este problema nace Fasti Congressuum, un proyecto internacional cuyo objetivo es la difusión gratuita de call for papers y congresos sobre la Antigüedad. La base del proyecto es el uso de las Humanidades Digitales, las redes sociales y todas las nuevas herramientas que nos permite crear una red de difusión efectiva, instantánea y global de los eventos científicos sobre la Antigüedad. En este artículo se presenta el proyecto Fasti Congressuum desde sus inicios, resultados obtenidos, crecimiento experimentado en apenas año y medio, y la aceptación del proyecto en el mundo académico.

Theorizing “the Ancient Economy”: Three Paradigms

By Thomas R. Blanton IV – Ancient Jew Review – April 12, 2017

Abbreviated version of a paper delivered at the Early Christianity and the Ancient Economy session; SBL Annual Meeting 2016.

It would seem that the study of “the ancient economy” is in a period of ferment. Three new SBL program units have been added since 2004 that treat aspects of the ancient economy: Early Christianity and the Ancient Economy, Economics in the Biblical World, and Poverty in the Biblical World. In the field of classical studies, the 2008 publication of The Cambridge Economic History of the Greco-Roman World has effectively ushered in a post-Finleyan era in the study of Greco-Roman economies by incorporating methods developed in the field of New Institutional Economics. In what follows, we examine representative samples of three emergent methodological trends: (1) the turn toward New Institutional Economics in studies of Greece and Rome; (2) Roland Boer’s model of the economy of ancient Israel; and (3) K. C. Hanson and Douglas Oakman’s social-scientific approach in New Testament studies. These models differ significantly from each other and are drawn from what are often treated as three distinct fields: classics, Hebrew Bible, and New Testament studies. It is precisely the differences between the models that are most illuminating, however, and juxtaposing them quickly reveals the emphases—and omissions—that are specific to and that characterize each model.

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Douglas Oakman no Observatório Bíblico
Roland Boer no Observatório Bíblico
K. C. Hanson no Observatório Bíblico

MCDONALD, L. M. The Formation of the Biblical Canon: 2 volumes. London: Bloomsbury T&T Clark, 2017, … p. – ISBN 9780567669339.

Lee Martin McDonald provides a magisterial overview of the development of the biblical canon — the emergence of the list of individual texts that constitutes the Christian bible. In these two volumes — in sum more than double the length of his previous works on this subject — McDonald presents his most in-depth overview to date. McDonald shows students and researchers how the list of texts that constitute ‘the bible’ was once far more fluid than it is today and guides readers through the minefield of different texts, different versions, and the different lists of texts considered ‘canonical’ that abounded in antiquity. Questions of the origin and transmission of texts are introduced as well as consideration of innovations in the presentation of texts, collections of documents, archaeological finds and Church councils.

In the first volume McDonald reexamines issues of canon formation once considered settled, and sets the range of texts that make up the Hebrew Bible (or Old Testament) in their broader context. Each individual text is discussed, as are the cultural, political and historical situations surrounding them. The second volume considers the New Testament, and the range of so-called ‘apocryphal’ gospels that were written in early centuries, and used by many Christian groups before the canon was closed. Comprehensive appendices showing various canon lists for both Old and New Testaments and for the bible as as a whole are also included.

Lee Martin McDonald is President Emeritus and Professor of New Testament at Acadia Divinity College, Acadia University, Canada. He is also President of the Institute for Biblical Research.