Ricerc@Sapienza

In this paper I discuss various aspects related to the imaginary and to the symbolism of the date palm in the written sources from ancient Mesopotamia through the analysis of two compositions. The first is a Sumerian text known as Inanna and Šukaletuda, which contains in the first part a myth describing the creation of the date palm by a raven instructed by the god Enki. The second is a Babylonian dispute, Palm and Tamarisk, in which the two trees try to prevail one over the other, proclaiming their virtues and functions.

Introduction to the volume and the articles with a discussion of the concept of popular culture and the research perspective on the Ancient Near East

In this article I surveys Sumerian and Akkadian childbirth incantations from the III and II mill. BCE Mesopotamia. In particular, I analyze metaphors of conception and birth, discussing common and diffused topics (the woman associated to the cow, the open/closed way, the boat).

Surveying the references to the sea in Sumerian literature, this paper discusses the general idea that the sea is underrepresented in Mesopotamian cultures of the third millennium BCE. The common idea on Mesopotamian civilizations is that these were based on the rivers. However, recent research suggests the early Mesopotamian urban settlements of the third millennium BCE are on the ancient coast of the Persian Gulf and in the middle of lagoons or marshes. Coastal marsh cultures would not only have looked at the mainland, but also to the sea.

This article surveys the inscribed artefacts found in Tell Zurghul (Nina/Niĝin) for which an origin from this site can be advanced. A history of the archaeological excavations, early travellers’ visits, and local peoples’ frequentation of the site is sketched, and a discussion of the surface findings and the objects appeared in the antiquities market is provided.

In this essay I discuss two classic horror movies from the 1970s and 1980s, The Exorcist (1973) and The Evil Dead (1981). Both movies track the evil’s origin, or at least its historical evidence, to ancient Mesopotamia. In both movies, archaeology plays a crucial role, dealing with or evoking this ancient evil. In the main part of the article, I analyze the two movies focusing on ancient Near Eastern motives and the role played by archaeology. Then I discuss how the reference to ancient Mesopotamian demons builds an idea of remoteness and pre-/intra-religious existence of evil.

In this article I focus on the soundscapes that emerge from Sumerian literary texts. In the introduction, I deal with the terminology and relevance of hearing in Sumerian culture and sensory model. I then discuss the relationship between hearing and knowledge, the power of the word, and the sensorial dimension in cosmogonies.

Le sepolture di equidi sono relativamente comuni nel terzo e secondo millennio a.C. in una vasta area che va dall’Egitto alla Mesopotamia. Durante la campagna di scavo del 2013, una sepoltura di equide è stata scoperta nel sito sumerico di Abu Tbeirah (Iraq meridionale) e riferita alla seconda metà del terzo millennio a.C. L’animale è stato deposto in una fossa poggiato sul lato sinistro con le zampe fortemente flesse e la testa ripiegata sulla spalla destra in una posizione “innaturale”.

This book presents the results of the archaeological activities and specialistic studies carried out at the site of Abu Tbeirah (Nasiriyah, Province of Dhi Qar, southern Iraq) by the Iraqi-Italian joint mission of the Iraqi State Board of Antiquities and Heritage and of Sapienza, led by F. D’Agostino and L. Romano (Dipartimento – Istituto Italiano di Studi Orientali). In the volume the accomplishments of the first seven campaigns (2011-2016) are introduced together with an assessment of the palaeo-environment and landscape surrounding the site.