Scribes: Did you mean...?

The Epic of Gilgamesh is among the most popular works of literature in the present day and has influenced countless numbers of readers but, for the greater part of its history, it was lost. The Assyrian Empire fell...

The lives of women in ancient Mesopotamia were regulated by a patriarchal hierarchy, but within this social structure, there were many who distinguished themselves and some who were able...

The best-known vision of the Norse afterlife is that of Valhalla, the hall of the heroes where warriors chosen by the Valkyries feast with the god Odin, tell stories from their lives, and fight each other in preparation...

The description of Babylon and Babylonian customs in Histories by the Greek historian Herodotus (l. c. 484-425/413 BCE) has long been challenged for accuracy and been found wanting, leading some scholars to dismiss the work...

The Hymn to Nisaba (circa 3rd millennium BCE) is a poem praising Nisaba, the Sumerian goddess of writing and accounts who also served as scribe of the gods. The poem is officially dedicated...

Ancient views of the afterlife are reflected in literature, tomb inscriptions, and grave goods. Then, as now, a belief in another stage of existence after death was a shared belief by all ancient...

The question "Why do bad things happen to good people?" has been asked for millennia, probably since before writing was invented, but at least since circa 1700 BCE when the Sumerian (and later...

Disease has been a part of the human condition since the beginning of recorded history – and no doubt earlier – decimating populations and causing widespread social upheaval. Among the worst infections recorded...

In Norse belief, the soul of the deceased might wind up in any one of a number of afterlife realms. There was Valhalla, the realm of Odin where the dead warriors drank, fought, and told stories, Folkvangr ('the Field...

The Legend of Cutha (also known as the Cuthean Legend of Naram-Sin, Cutha Legend, and Kutha Legend) is a fictional work dated to the 17th century BCE belonging to the genre known as...