Table of Contents
Alphabetical List of Entries vii
Topical List of Entries ix
How to Use This Book xiii
Preface xv
Timeline xvii
Historical Overview xxi
Mesopotamia and the Rise of Civilization: A-Z 1
Primary Source Documents 149
Creation 149
Inanna and Enki 152
The Flood 155
Enmerkar and the Lord of Aratta 157
Gilgamesh and Agga 159
The Netherworld-From the Epic of Gilgamesh 161
Umma and Lagash 164
Uru-inim-gina 165
Two Kings 166
Enheduanna 168
The Cursing of Agade 170
Gudea 172
Shulgi 174
Sheep and Grain 176
Schooldays 179
Inanna and Dumuzi 181
Kanesh Letters 183
Mari Letters 185
Hammurabi's Law Code 187
The Dialogue of Pessimism 190
Key Questions 193
Question 1 Was the natural environment of the Euphrates and Tigris valleys the key causal factor in the development of the world's earliest civilization? 193
Question 2 Was international trade fundamental to Mesopotamia's economic and cultural development as a civilization? 205
Question 3 Was the invention of writing critical to the emergence of civilization in Mesopotamia? 217
Annotated Bibliography 231
Index 239
About the Author and Contributors 256