- Unknown Binding
- Publisher: Allen (1964)
- ASIN: B001JNBNLW
- Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 3,114,944 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
Ancient Iraq (Penguin History)
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
102 of 103 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Georges Roux, who died recently at a good old age, was a remarkable man. He was an Anglophile French doctor who worked in Iraq many years ago for an international oil company. While in Iraq and later, he was fascinated by the epic history of the Mesopotamian civilizations that succeeded one another over three thousand years. As a non-specialist, he appreciates the difficulties of the ordinary reader when confronted with a subject whose ancient history, languages, literature and archaeology are all difficult, specialist fields. He wrote the book for Penguin Books in English from the outset, and since it sold very well Penguin came back to him for revised editions. He had a great range of contacts, and his revisions were first-class. The last revised edition is up to date to the time of the Gulf War, since when there has been no further archaeological work in Iraq. I read this book when it first came out. I teach the subject at university level, and I have always recommended it as an excellent and thorough introduction. It reads very well, and contains a wealth of information that is put over with great clarity. People to whom I have recommended it have come back and told me how good a book they think it is.
48 of 49 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Now in its 3rd edition, Ancient Iraq remains the most complete and readable overview of the history of this cradle of civilization. Interestingly, the word Iraq comes from the name of the Sumerian city state Uruk. There is now a village called Warka near the ruins of the ancient city.
The introductory chapters explore the geographical setting, archaeological research and the paleo-, meso- and neolithic periods. Following on, the author discusses the Hassuna, Samarra, Halat, Ubaid, Uruk and Jemdat timeframes, and the ancient trade routes.
Next up is the Sumerian civilization, with a study of its origin, religion, history and mythology. The story of Gilgamesh is covered here. There was a Semitic interlude and a final Sumerian renaissance before the torch of history passed to the Semites in the form of the Akkadians and later the Assyrians and Babylonians. The statesman and lawgiver Hammurabbi is thoroughly dealt with.
But other peoples played a part too, like the Hurrians, Mitannians and Kassites. Insofar as they impacted upon the history of the area, empires like the Hittite and the Egyptian are also considered. There are detailed narratives on the Assyrian empire, the Chaldean kings and the fall of Nineveh and later of Babylon. After this event, Mesopotamia ceased to be a seat of empire and passed from the Persians to the Greeks, the Parthians, the Sassanids and ultimately to the Arabs.
In the Epilogue, we learn of the heritage of this civilization, such as enduring religious symbols like the Maltese cross, the tree of life an the crescent. Some words have come down to us, like "alcohol" (guhlu in Akkadian), "myrrh" (murru) and "naphta" (naptu), "abyss" (abzu in Sumerian). Some Sumerian words still live in Hebrew, like Egal (great house) = Heikal = Temple and the personal name Eitan (Etana).
The book contains plates with photographs and illustrations, and concludes with bibliographic notes, comparative history tables, various interesting maps and indices of names and subjects. For those interested in the paleolithic origins of civilization, I recommend Lost Civilizations Of The Stone Age by Richard Rudgley. If you have a taste for alternative history, the book Ramses II And His Time by Immanuel Velikovsky has much to say about Babylon and the Chaldeans. And finally, Empires Of The Word: A Language History Of The World by Nicholas Ostler, deals extensively with ancient Mesopotamia, its languages, culture and empires.
31 of 32 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
This is an excellent book for anyone wanting to really understand the very beginnings of settled culture and civilisations. It is a serious and academic book, but the author Georges Roux is also interested in putting across heavy and well-researched material to 'lay' people as well as more learned academics.
I am personally obsessed with early civilisations and the more I read and understand, the more I am held in awe by our ancestors. This book is a great introduction to what can be a veritable wealth and minefield of information, and is also something that would give people a taste for other branches of ancient history, such as the study of other ancient cultures, archaeology, the trade and 'intercourse' between great and ancient civilisations, and so on. All in all, a very good book!
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Don't doubt buying it for a second!
I bought this book as I'm interested in classics, having studied classical civilisations at A level. Read more
Published 7 months ago by Laura
Golden Oldie
Although Roux's book is a little dated, and some of the place names he uses have changed, it is still without companion as a superb introduction to the civilisations of ancient... Read more
Published 9 months ago by Mr. M. J. Farren
Really not that great
I bought this book first on the weight of the other reviews to read as a primer to the subject. Unfortunately i found the style difficult to read with a heavy reliance on terms and... Read more
Published 14 months ago by Wakanai
Mesopotamia's history well written
Simply the best book i have ever read on the subject.
Georges Roux succeeds in clearly reviewing Iraq ancient history. Read more
Georges Roux succeeds in clearly reviewing Iraq ancient history. Read more
Published 21 months ago by Eric le rouge
A witty friend pops in to help you grasp Mesopotamian history
This is one of the marvellous books written by someone who knows so much that he makes it sound all too easy; Christopher Duffy has a similar style and Bindhoff's Tudor England is... Read more
Published on 24 Sep 2009 by Charles Vasey
good book
I wanted to learn a bit about Mesopotamia, so I chose this book because of the positite reviews. I'm glad I did! Read more
Published on 30 Dec 2008 by Mr. Graham Burns
A Comprehensive Read
After reading many general histories of Mesopotamia, I found George Roux's Ancient Iraq the most useful and comprehensive. Read more
Published on 10 Feb 2004 by Simon J. Smith
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