The history of the Ancient Near East involves a huge time span, from the
founding of Babel, Erech, Akkad, Calneh, and Nineveh by Nimrod following Noah's flood,
through the Persian empire millenia later. It encompasses the rise and fall of the
Sumerians in Mesopotamia (modern Iraq), the Hittites in Anatolia (modern Turkey), the
Assyrians, the Babylonians, the Medes, and the Persians (modern Iran). The societies of
Egypt and Israel, also having long histories, developed alongside the Near Eastern empires
and peoples, not prior to them.
Oriental Institute Museum
A showcase of the history, art and archaeology of the ancient Near East.
The virtual museum archives are beautiful.
Odyssey Online:
Near East
Explore the ancient Near East and its people, mythology, daily life, death
and burial practices, writing, and archaeology. A really fantastic site!
Ancient Near Eastern Art
at the Michael C. Carlos Museum
“This collection embodies the legacy of the ancient Near East from
the beginnings of agriculture and writing to the growth of the first cities and empires.
It is wide-ranging geographically and embraces the regions and ancient cultures of
Mesopotamia (modern Iraq and parts of Syria), ancient Iran, the Levant (countries
bordering the eastern Mediterranean), Anatolia (Turkey), and Northwest Africa.”
Oriental
Institute Museum Highlights of the Collection
Scroll down to the region index, and visit especially Anatolia, Assyria, Iran, and Mesopotamia.
Each regional exhibit contains a large collection of artifacts of all kinds.
The sites on the left are pages with excellent historical content. The
sites below are links pages, specifically chosen for the quality of pointers to other
sites for further research.
Abzu: Resources for
the Study of the Ancient Near East
The Argos of Ancient Near Eastern studies.
Ancient Mesopotamia
Nicely annotated links to other sites: Mesopotamian art and archaeology,
mythology and religion, history, and mathematics.
Ancient Near East by the
Mining Co.
The Mining Co.'s history pages are a good place to begin the study of a
topic, because they are geared for the general reader rather than the historian.
Creative Impulse: Mesopotamia
This award-winning site is the place to begin for resources on the study
of every aspect of the Ancient Near East. Here you can find more pages dealing
specifically with Assyria, Babylon, and Persia, as well as the Sumerians.
Other Ancients
One of the nicest annotated links page to only useful websites dealing
with Mesopotamia, Babylon, Sumer, King Sargon, Akkadian Empire, Dynasty of Ur, Sumerians,
Akkad, cuneiform, Assyria, Hammurabi, Babylon, Chaldeans, and Celts. A high- quality
resource, this site takes time to load, but is worth it.
