Life in the Ancient Near East, 3100-332 B.C.E.

By Daniel C. Snell

Book Overview

In this sweeping overview of life in the ancient Near East, Daniel Snell surveys the history of the region from the invention of writing five thousand years ago to Alexander the Great's conquest in 332 B.C.E. The book is the first comprehensive history of the social and economic conditions affecting ordinary people and of the relations between governments and peoples in ancient Egypt, Jordan, Israel, Iran, Iraq, Lebanon, Syria, and Turkey. To set Near East developments in a broader context, the author also provides brief contrasting views of India, China, Greece, and Etruscan Italy. Snell organizes his book chronologically in time spans of about five hundred years and considers broad continuities. Drawing on the latest scholarship in many fields and in many languages, he sets forth a detailed picture of what is known about the demography, social groups, family, women, labor, land and animal management, crafts, trade, money, and government of the ancient Near East. For general readers with an interest in historical events that have influenced the development of Europe and the Middle East, for specialists seeking a broader understanding of early periods of Middle Eastern history, and for anyone with an interest in the Bible, this book offers a fascinating tour of life in ancient Western Asia.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0300076665
• ISBN13: 9780300076660
• Release Date: September 1998
• Publisher: Yale University Press
• Length: 296 Pages
• Weight: 1.29 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 6.0" x 9.1"

Customer Reviews

An informative read

Snell's book is important in bringing together available social historical evidence (it is also very well documented). I found particularly enlightening Snell's discussion of slaves/slavery and women. I gave the book a 4-star rating because Snell's organization of the information he has marshalled is, at times, disjointed and hard to follow--probably because the ancient Near East is so hard to periodize. Nonetheless, the book was an informative read and could be used to supplement introductory works on the ancient Near East that emphasize imperial history at the expense of social history.

An interesting read

Snell's book is important in bringing together available social historical evidence; it is also very well documented. I found particulary enlightening Snell's discussion of slaves/slavery and women. I gave the book a 4-star rating because Snell's organization of the information he has marshalled is, at times, disjointed and hard to follow--probably because the ancient Near East is so hard to periodize. Nonetheless, the book was an interesting read and should be used to supplement introductory works on the ancient Near East that emphasize imperial history at the expense of social history.

Ancient Mesopotamia

I was first introduced to Snell's book in an undergrad archaeology class the year it was first published. This book is different from other more traditional Mesopotamian books as it has a short but heartfelt fictional story placed at the beginning of each chapter. This has remained in my mind sense the first time I read it and keeps it alive in my memory. The book covers topics as follows: The origins of cities, The rise of Empires, Reform within those Empires, Retrenchment and Empire, Assyrian Domination of Mesopotamia, Babylon and Persia, and Trends and Implications within those periods. I highly recommend this book for an insight into Mesopotamian life, culture, and historical background