Mesopotamia: Writing, Reasoning, and the Gods - Softcover

Bottéro, Jean

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0226067270 ISBN 13: 9780226067278

Publisher: University of Chicago Press, 1995

Synopsis

Our ancestors, the Mesopotamians, invented writing and with it a new way of looking at the world. In this collection of essays, the French scholar Jean Bottero attempts to go back to the moment which marks the very beginning of history.

To give the reader some sense of how Mesopotamian civilization has been mediated and interpreted in its transmission through time, Bottero begins with an account of Assyriology, the discipline devoted to the ancient culture. This transmission, compounded with countless discoveries, would not have been possible without the surprising decipherment of the cuneiform writing system. Bottero also focuses on divination in the ancient world, contending that certain modes of worship in Mesopotamia, in their application of causality and proof, prefigure the "scientific mind."

About this title

About the Author:

Jean Bottero, a scholar of rare abilities, is Director Emeritus of Assyriology in the Department of Philology and History at the Ecole pratique des hautes etudes. Bottero's other books include Mesopotamia: Writing, Reasoning, and the Gods (1992) and a volume on ancient Mesopotamian cuisine.

Language Notes:

Text: English (translation)
Original Language: French

About this edition

• Publisher: University of Chicago Press
• Publication date: 1995
• ISBN 10: 0226067270
• ISBN 13: 9780226067278
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 326