Mesopotamian clay maps, dating back 5,000 years, provide a fascinating glimpse into the ancient world’s perception of geography, particularly its rivers. These clay tablets not only depict the ...

A team of archaeologists in Iraq, led by Sebastian Rey, the British Museum’s curator of ancient Mesopotamia, has uncovered compelling evidence of the empire’s formidable bureaucracy. The discovery, ...

The world’s oldest known writing system may have had its origins in the imagery on decorated cylinders used to denote ownership or record transactions. Some of the symbols on these cylinder seals ...

An Akkadian cylinder seal, circa 2350-2150 B.C.E., depicts a contest scene. The image on the right shows the impression the seal would make. Gift of Nanette B. Kelekian, in memory of Charles Dikran ...

Art is a space where conversations collide in Maryam Yousif’s whimsical, cheeky and thoughtful three-dimensional works—exchanges that connect the women of Mesopotamia’s long history with family ...

Ur, sent a clay tablet containing a complaint to a copper merchant named Eanasir. This tablet is recognized by the Guinness World Records as the world's oldest written customer complaint. Writing and ...

Researchers studying clay balls from Mesopotamia have discovered clues to a lost code that was used for record-keeping about 200 years before writing was invented. The clay balls may represent the ...

Around 4000 years ago, in the land between the rivers Tigris and Euphrates, Ancient Mesopotamia developed the first written language of the world. On view until June 2020, the “Ancient Mesopotamia ...

Serdar Yalçin does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond ...