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Summary: The History of Ancient Mesopotamia in an accessible way
Review: Before "Ancient Iraq" I never knew it was possible to write about (ancient) history in such an accessible way . I will never forget lighting on this sentence: "...a formidable warrior whose name sounds like the beat of a battle-drum, Gungunum, King of Larsa." George Roux showed me that History need not be a dull science when a storyteller uses imagination to color the images he wants us to remember. Georges Roux left us last August, but won't be forgotten. Chris Cleutjens
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Summary: An essential purchase for anyone interested in Mesopotamia
Review: Georges Roux stated that his goal in writing "Ancient Iraq" was to provide the layman reader with a cohesive introduction to the history of ancient Mesopotamia, incorporating archaeological and historical finds up to 1992. In this regard, I think Roux succeeded splendidly, and he did so by pointing out and explaining general patterns in Mesopotamian history. This book really breathes life into the ancients and allows the reader to see beyond the cold and lifeless sculptures and tablets.
Although the book is full of interesting topics, what really struck me was how long the Sumerian culture managed to exist in some form or another despite the successive waves of foreign invaders. To survive 3000 years in such unstable conditions really demonstrates how sophisticated and influential Sumero-Akkadian culture was at that time.
As the title suggests, "Ancient Iraq" deals primarily with ancient civilizations that resided within the confines of modern-day Iraq. As a result, the Sumerians, Babylonians, and Assyrians ae given center stage, while other cultures in the Near East, such as the Egyptians, Hittites, and Persians are only briefly reviewed, despite their interaction with the Mesopotamians.
Pictures, maps, and various timelines are also included in the book. Unfortunately, pictures of artifacts are either B&W photos or simple line drawings, and I felt this presentation really failed to bring forth the beauty inherent in such objects. Many of the same photos are presented in color in another book ("The Cultural Atlas of Mesopotamia"), and the difference is like night and day. Nevertheless, I should say that Roux's narrative does not suffer at all from this slight shortcoming, and most readers probably will not care about the visual aids.
All in all, I found this book to be quite engaging and believe that anybody interested in ancient Mesopotamia should have this book in their personal library. It was a another reviewer's opinion that this was the best book of its kind available on the market today. I wholeheartedly agree.
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Summary: An Illuminating Read
Review: I am a lay reader, with very little if any knowledge of ancient history. I stumbled upon this book quite by chance, and am proud to say that I am astounding my friends and acquaintances with all I know about it now. After years of study, Roux is still clearly in love with his favorite subject, and it makes Ancient Iraq a fascinating and compelling read. I was absolutely stunned by what all the Sumerians, Assyrians, and Babylonians are responsible for when laying the foundations of our present civilization. The chapters on government and law are especially enlightening, when compared to present day domestic and foreign policy. I learned so much from this book: it is an excellent summarization from what is years and years of study and research. Highly recommended.
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Summary: The book made me visit all important archeological sites
Review: I have read this book during my engagement on the huge construction project in Iraq. It has inspired me so much that I visited almost all of the accesible sites (Ur, Uruk, Eridu, Kish, Babylon, Dur Kurigalzu, Ashur, Nimrud, Nineveh, etc.). I would like to thank Mr. Roux on his wonderful work.
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Summary: An Illuminating Read
Review: I purchased this book because it contains information on The Flood taken from ancient accounts found in Iraq. They are similar in many respects to the account of Noah found in The Bible, but are different in some other respects, e.g., people and possessions that were placed aboard the ark. It is worthwhile reading for people studying comparitive religion (who do not have mindset on the issue). There is no doubt that a large flood occurred in the distant past (recent scientific evidence from the Black Sea indicates an event), but the information contained herein provides a different viewpoint. Besides the information indicated above, there is a wealth of information on ancient Iraq. The book is very useful for those people studying that era.
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Summary: An interesting account of ancient Iraq
Review: I purchased this book because it contains information on The Flood taken from ancient accounts found in Iraq. They are similar in many respects to the account of Noah found in The Bible, but are different in some other respects, e.g., people and possessions that were placed aboard the ark. It is worthwhile reading for people studying comparitive religion (who do not have mindset on the issue). There is no doubt that a large flood occurred in the distant past (recent scientific evidence from the Black Sea indicates an event), but the information contained herein provides a different viewpoint. Besides the information indicated above, there is a wealth of information on ancient Iraq. The book is very useful for those people studying that era.
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Summary: A thorough review of the history of Ancient Mesopotamia
Review: I was looking for a book which would provide the history of ancient Mesopotamia and bought this book after reading the reviews of other customers. It is a well written book and easy to read, covering the history of Mesopotamia from the earliest times up the end of the ancient world. Its main focus is from the early dynasties up to the conquest of Babylonia by Cyrus the Great, with the last chapter (out of 25) and a short Epilogue summarizing the events of the area after that. Chapters 1 to 4 chapters survey the geography, and the prehistory of Mesopotamia. Chapters 5 to 24 details the known political, military, economic, and societal events of each of the main periods of Mesopotamian history, with separate chapters on the Gods of Sumer, and the Age of Heroes which discuss the stories of the Flood, Gilgamesh, and other heroes of that age. The book provides extensive notes and bibliography for further reading on a chapter by chapter basis which I found most useful in helping my understanding. It also has a detailed chronology on all of the known major dynasties of the period which is about the most complete I have seen. There are 20 of plates (black and white) many of which I have seen in other books, and some 21 detailed illustrations , as well as several maps which I found to be quite helpful, but certainly not the best I have seen.
Up to now, the books I have read on this area were on rather more specific periods or topics, such as "Babylon" by Joan Oates;. "Treasures of Darkness" by Thorkild Jacobsen on Mesopotamian religion, and a number of books on the Hittites and the eastern Mediterranean. I was therefore looking for other books which would fill the gaps in my knowledge. I had ordered this book along with Wolfram von Soden's "The Ancient Orient", which describes itself as an introduction to the study of the Ancient Near East, which it certainly is. I found "Ancient Iraq" to be an excellent follow up book. The most informative sections for me were the chapters on the Sumerians, the "Time of Confusion" (c 1300BC to 900BC), and those on the Assyrian Empire. These are all periods which I want to know more about; - the Sumerians for how their civilization developed from small settlements along the "Land of the Two Rivers" to the development of the city and national states of the second half of the 3rd millennium; - The Time of Confusion, because to the general lack of archaeological information about the Dark Age which seems to have occurred in most of the ancient Near East; - the Assyrians because I really didn't know very much about them except for some of their later kings from the references in the Bible. I was happy to see that in general, the author does not attempt to take sides into the details of the various differences of scholarly opinion about what happened during this period, which suited me fine, since I was looking for a historical survey rather than a discussion of the competing theories. So as far as chronology is concerned, this book follows the generally accepted dating systems. I was also happy to see included a number of translations of the texts from the original sources as well as the inclusion of a large number of Sumerian and Akkadian words In summary, the book is an excellent complement to my growing library of other books on the ancient Near East, and helpful in its descriptions of the relationships of the Mesopotamian states with the neighbouring states in Asia Minor, Syria, Palestine, Israel, Egypt to the west, and Iran to the east. It therefore met my expectations, and I would recommend it to any student who is interested in developing a detailed knowledge about the history of ancient Mesopotamia.
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Summary: Excellent Read!
Review: If you are looking to learn about ancient Mesopotamian civilization, this is a must read! I found this book to be an excellent read. Roux does a fine job with this book and I would recommend it to anyone with a interest in the different periods of Mesopotamian history. I did find it a little dry, but what do you expect from a book about an ancient civilization?
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Summary: Readable and essential
Review: Iraq is not a fashionable topic these days, but ancient Iraq is something else. This is one of the only books available in print describing ancient Mesopotamia in toto, including not only the southern region (Sumeria) and the middle regions (Babylonia), but also Assyria in the north. Information on Assyria is particularly hard to come by for the nonspecialist. The author is not a trained archeologist; as a physician he worked as a medical officer for the Iraq Petroleum Co. for nine years in the '50s, and his series of articles in the company publication "Iraq Petroleum" formed the basis for this book. He is now a respected scholar in this field. Distinct from the three dozen or so other works in ancient history I have read, this one takes pains to describe how various facts are gathered, and how their reliability may be assessed. The whole work has the flavor of someone who has taken trouble to learn something, and wants eagerly to share it with his readers. I strongly recommend this book.
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Summary: Iraq and Roll
Review: Mesopotamia is an ancient civilization with a new history, uncovered almost from scratch in the huge excavations of the last century. Roux takes you through about four thousand years in four hundred pages with surprising breadth and verve. The author loves his subject and his enthusiasm is contagious. Even where I got lost in the long names of foreign kings and distant battles, the crisp writing kept me turning pages. A great resource on a fascinating subject.
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