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Ancient Persian Art and Architecture
Persian art and architecture in the present day is associated with the nation of Iran and usually designated as beginning with the Achaemenid Empire (c. 550-330 BCE) but has an even longer history with its origins dating back to before the...
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Ancient Mesopotamian Pharmacist Prepares Elixir
An Arab folio on which is depicted a pharmacist preparing an elixir. From the manuscript of the De Materia Medica by Dioscorides, 1st century CE. Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York
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Fashion & Dress in Ancient Mesopotamia - From Basic to Accessorized in the Ancient World
Fashion and dress in Mesopotamia – clothing, footwear, and accessories – were not only functional but defined one's social status and developed from a simple loincloth in the Ubaid period (circa 6500-4000 BCE) to brightly colored robes and...
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Dogs & Their Collars in Ancient Mesopotamia
Among the many contributions to world culture credited to Mesopotamia is an object so familiar to people in the modern world that few pause to consider its origin: the dog collar. Throughout the ancient world, from China to Rome, dogs are...
Definition
Elam - The Ancient High Country
Elam was a region in the Near East corresponding to the modern-day provinces of Ilam and Khuzestan in southern Iran (though it also included part of modern-day southern Iraq) whose civilization spanned thousands of years from circa 3200 to...
Definition
Ancient Celts
The ancient Celts were various tribal groups living in parts of western and central Europe in the Late Bronze Age and through the Iron Age (c. 700 BCE to c. 400 CE). Given the name Celts by ancient writers, these tribes and their culture...
Definition
Ancient Egypt
Egypt is a country in North Africa, on the Mediterranean Sea, and is home to one of the oldest civilizations on earth. The name 'Egypt' comes from the Greek Aegyptos which was the Greek pronunciation of the ancient Egyptian name 'Hwt-Ka-Ptah'...
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Medicine in Ancient Mesopotamia - A Gift of the Gods to Their People
In ancient Mesopotamia, the gods informed every aspect of daily life, including the practice of medicine. Gula, the Sumerian goddess of healing, presided over the medical arts, guiding doctors and dentists in the treatment of health problems...
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Twelve Stories from the Mesopotamian Scribal School
Sumerian schools (known as edubba, “House of Tablets”) trained the scribes of ancient Mesopotamia in reading, writing, interpretation of texts, general knowledge, and the specifics of whatever field they would eventually work in. The Sumerian...
Article
Ten Ancient Elam Facts You Need to Know
Elam, located in the region of the modern-day provinces of Ilam and Khuzestan in Iran, was one of the most impressive civilizations of the ancient world. It was never a cohesive ethnic kingdom or polity but rather a federation of different...