Ancient near East : Historical Sources in Translation

This book provides the reader with the primary sources for the history of the ancient Near East. Covering the period from the earliest historical and literary texts (ca. 2700 BC) to the advent of Alexander the Great (331 BC), it presents new translations of Mesopotamian and ancient Near Eastern historiographic texts, and other related materials. An opening chapter sets out the themes of the book and discusses the difficulties of translating cuneiform texts into English, as well as the difficulty of reconstructing ancient Near Eastern history from textual sources. Texts featured in the main body of the book range from the code of Hammurabi to the Assyrian royal inscriptions. For each text, a detailed commentary is provided, placing it in its historical and cultural context. A map helps to orient the reader.

Mark W. Chavalas is Professor of History at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse. He has edited or authored six books, including most recently Life and Culture in the Ancient Near East (2002), Mesopotamia and the Bible (2002) and Bible Background Commentary of the Old Testament (2000). He is currently on the Board of Trustees of the American Schools of Oriental Research.