Lagash: Did you mean...?

The lower half of this carved and polished granite statue has survived. It probably represents a seated figure of Gudea, ruler of Lagash. Lagash II period, circa 2150 BCE. From Seleucia ad Tigrim (5 miles south-west of Seleucia...

A locator map of Hammurabi's Babylonia, showing the Babylonian territory upon his ascension in 1792 BC and upon his death in 1750 BC. The river courses and coastline are those of that time period — in general, they...

Local trade in ancient Mesopotamia began in the Ubaid period (circa 6500-4000 BCE), had developed into long-distance trade by the Uruk period (circa 4000-3100 BCE), and was flourishing by...

The gods of the Mesopotamian region were not uniform in name, power, provenance or status in the hierarchy. Mesopotamian culture varied from region to region and, because of this...

The Legend of Sargon of Akkad (circa 2300 BCE) is an Akkadian work from Mesopotamia understood as the autobiography of Sargon of Akkad (Sargon the Great, reign 2334-2279 BCE), founder of...

The English word 'veterinarian' as defining one who provides medical care to animals, comes from the Latin verb veheri meaning “to draw” (as in "pull") and was first applied to those who cared for “any animal...

The Ludlul-Bel-Nemeqi (c. 1700 BCE) is a Sumerian and later Babylonian poem on the theme of unjust suffering, which is thought to have influenced the biblical Book of Job. Also known as The Poem of the Righteous Sufferer, the...

For whom have I labored? For whom have I journeyed? For whom have I suffered? I have gained absolutely nothing for myself, I have only profited the snake, the ground lion! The Epic of Gilgamesh, Tablet...

The rise of Sumerian civilization in southern Mesopotamia (c. 6000–2300 BCE) represents one of the earliest transformations from agrarian village life to urban state formation. Located between the...

Stele of the Vultures fragments, dated to the Early Dynastic III Period (2600-2334 BCE), commemorating the victory of the city of Lagash over Umma. Louvre, Paris.