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Thin End of the Wedge explores life in the ancient Middle East. There are many wonderful stories we can tell about those people, their communities, the gritty reality of their lives, their hopes, fears and beliefs. We can do that through the objects they left behind and the cities where they once lived. Our focus is on the cultures that used cuneiform (“wedge-shaped”) writing, so mostly on ancient Iraq and nearby regions from about 3000 BC to about 100 AD. Thin End of the Wedge brings you expert insights and the latest research in clear and simple language. What do we know? How do we know anything? And why is what we know always changing? Why is any of this important today? We won’t talk to you like you’re stupid. But you won’t need any special training to understand what we’re talking about. This is an independent production by me as an individual. It is not supported by my employer or any other organisation I am involved with, and the views expressed here do not necessarily reflect theirs.
74 Episodes
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Christopher discusses new ideas around the murder of King Sennacherib. Who really killed him and why? Was it a coup? Where was Esarhaddon and why wasn't he in Nineveh? [Much of this first section of the episode was published as part of Episode 71. 8:03-10:30 is not found there. And everything from 25:19 is also new] Next he addresses the question of how the kings of this dynasty ran their empire. What does social network analysis reveal about how they coped with information flow? Who wa...
This is a special episode presenting the prize-winning research of three early career scholars: William McGrath, Alessia Pilloni, and Christopher Jones. What prizes did they win, and what was their research about? We hear about the latest news from Isin II period history, astrology in the Late Babylonian period, and a military coup in the Neo-Assyrian period. 1:24 William McGrath2:10 dissertation6:08 key conclusions9:10 publication plans10:48 what's next?13:45 Alessia Pilloni14:27 ...
This episode was recorded live at the Rencontre Assyriologique Internationale conference held in Helsinki in July 2024. Simo Parpola reflects on his long and momentous career. He explains how he became an assyriologist, and how he came to focus on the Assyrians. A key collaboration led to one of the most significant projects in assyriological history. What was it like to study large groups of tablets in the days before bulk digitisation? How did they identify so many joins remotely? Simo...
Carolyne introduces us to the study of ancient plant remains, especially carpology--the study of seeds, fruits, and flowers. In her case study she takes us to the site of Logardan in the Kurdish region, and explains what she could learn from the remains found in kilns. We discuss the role and uses of dung.2:02 archaeobotany4:08 how to train5:09 site of Logardan6:37 role of archaeobotany9:47 comparison with results from other fields12:30 main results from Logardan14:00 why use dung?18:28 dung ...
Witold discusses the labour market under Hammurabi of Babylon. What kind of work could you get, and what would you be paid in exchange? Who would be looking for employment, who would take them on, and who held the balance of power? 1:45 how we know about getting a job2:54 who are the job seekers?3:48 how common was it?4:58 what jobs are there beyond harvest time?6:17 what kind of people are working?8:19 how good were conditions?11:12 different jobs for men and women?13:03 do workers replace y...
Amy discusses the multi-sensory presence of the queens of Assyria. What was queenly dress and what meaning did each part of it convey? How does the evidence from art compare to what we learn from archaeology? Can we identify personal choice? She also talks about what it's like to wear queenly clothes, and what experimental archaeology can tell us. 2:45 sources for textiles5:13 experimental archaeology6:37 tombs of the queens8:35 art versus archaeology9:50 queenly dress14:28 symbolism17:...
Rune, Seraina, and Gustav discuss their recently completed project on geomapping cuneiform. Where were inscriptions found and where are they now? How many tablets are there? What counts as a tablet anyway? They reveal the challenges of integrating datasets, and explore the potential opened up by knowing where inscriptions really come from. 4:18 GLoW project7:44 data collection10:51 how many tablets are there?13:50 provenance problems17:06 why 'where' matters20:50 what distribution tells us24:...
Omar discusses the importance of studying gender as part of assyriology. What are the big themes now, and how did we get here? He focuses on two areas of special interest: masculinity, and eunuchism. What can we expect from the conference on gender studies (GeMANE) hosted in Malta this April? And what is the context of assyriology in Malta?0:37 Introducing Ellie2:56 the importance of studying gender5:39 current trends8:59 gender beyond only women11:54 masculinities16:21 eunuchs23:58 org...
The site of Ur is easily one of the most important in Iraq. In this interview, originally recorded in late 2021, we hear from the person responsible for managing that site. Ali talks about Ur's significance, and its role in local life. What are the plans for the development of this key site? 4:18 introducing Lina7:02 importance of Ur7:34 what tourists can see8:39 information for visitors9:12 what Ur means to Iraqis10:15 excavations11:04 site conservation11:49 future of tourism12:19 cultural a...
Enrique introduces us to a major new resource in digital assyriology: The electronic Babylonian Library. What does it offer and what are its aims? He discusses the issues facing the field and the potential of digital tools, including AI, to help solve them. To what extent can Babylonian literature be reconstructed now, and what we can do with it? 2:08 what is the eBL?4:59 how much Babylonian literature do we have?6:16 the non-literary fragments10:27 why launch now?11:50 what's the reaction / ...
At the Rencontre in Leiden this summer, the IAA awarded its annual prizes celebrating the excellence of early career scholars. There were prizes for the best dissertation, best first article, and a research subsidy. I tracked down the prize winners to ask them about their work. 2:17 Clélia Paladre2:57 thesis on Iranian glyptic4:38 the Proto-Elamite phenomenon6:14 working at the Louvre7:31 Tomoki Kitazumi8:29 translating in the Hittite empire11:45 interpreters in the ancient Near East13:...
Shigeo shares the results of fieldwork at a site that was once a key city on the edges of the Assyrian empire. How do we know which city it was? He describes the key finds, and interprets their significance. What can we learn from a necklet?2:22 Yasin Tepe4:54 goals6:38 identification as Dur-Ashur9:12 results12:44 who lived there?13:44 inscribed necklet of a slave18:49 future work23:20 TsukubaShigeo's Academia Shigeo's ResearchGateMusic by Ruba HillawiWebsite: http://wedgepod.orgYouTube: http...
Susanne pulls back the curtain on how exhibitions are made. She explains how the topic was chosen, and how that vision is translated into reality. How long does it take, how many people are involved, and just what needs to be done?2:17 about Back to School3:27 goals5:37 what's on show?7:16 star pieces10:10 recreating an ancient school11:05 how to display tablets17:06 why school and why now?19:10 return to Nippur and the Nippur Tablet Project23:5...
Louise discusses Ishtar, one of the most enigmatic and fascinating deities of the ancient Middle East. What characteristics were assigned to her, and what stories were told about her? What happened when Ishtar met Gilgamesh? Louise also discusses the reception of Ishtar and Gilgamesh. What do people find interesting about them now? She explains how being based in Australia influences her research.1:56 how many Ishtars are there?3:20 male or female?5:11 Ishtar in myths7:38 Ishtar as the archet...
This special episode is a follow-up on the big annual conference. I offer some thoughts on what happened, and on how things might be in the future. As part of this, I catch up with three colleagues who have appeared as guests. Two were among the very first guests, who kindly helped me start the podcast. It was a leap in the dark for all of us. Since then, there have been a lot of changes for Gina and Jana. The third is a more recent guest, but someone who will shape our experience at next yea...
The organising team of RAI 68 Leiden introduce us to what we can expect from the conference. Why did they pick inequality as a topic? And how do they address inequality in the conference design? What role does live-streaming play in a modern Rencontre?2:03 about RAI 68 Leiden2:52 what's different?3:33 childcare support4:23 why "inequality" as the topic?5:41 live-streaming papers9:37 scheduling papers fairly12:41 building networks16:39 recognising contributions17:35 Leiden's RAI tradition18:44...
Nicholas explains about imprisonment in ancient Iraq. Were there prisons? Who would be confined, how long for, and why? What would someone do in prison? And whose interest did confinement serve?2:08 confinement in ancient Iraq5:11 were there prisons?7:45 why would you be confined?8:53 for whose benefit?10:01 the religious dimension14:11 sources15:29 life in confinement18:15 labour in confinement19:58 could you tell if someone was imprisone...
Agnès discusses the history of the field, and why that matters now. Cast collections were an important part of Spain's early interest in ancient Iraq. How did these collections form? Who was interested? What were they interested in? And why? The history of the field has also impacted how we interpret objects, and how we read ancient texts. What lessons does that teach us? 3:16 why study the history of the field?5:47 what is a cast?7:39 casts in 19th/20th century9:38 ca...
Eckart has just published a new history of Assyria. What sources can we draw on? How reliable are they? He talks about Assyria's remarkable royal women and how they were remembered. What did the Assyrians achieve and what is their legacy?3:39 how have we heard of the Assyrians?6:42 biblical and classical texts as sources9:36 what do we need to know about Assyria?12:44 Assyrian royal women18:33 were the Assyrians really 'cruel'?23:44 empathy for the Assyrians25:31 their greatest achievements?2...
Parsa explains how decision-making took place in ancient Iraq. When you asked the assembly of gods for a yes/no answer to help you solve a difficult problem, how would they agree on what to reply? Why would these answers be time limited? And how would they make their answer visible in the entrails of the sacrificial sheep? 2:35 what is extispicy?6:25 who used it?11:17 how long was a divine answer valid?15:15 consensus decision making19:28 were all gods equal in voting?23:07 did gods each vote...
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