Imagine you’re a traveller in the 18th century BCE and have just arrived at the gates of Sippar after a two-day journey from Babylon. After passing through the gates, you are taken aback as the city is bursting with activity. Caravans from far away in Elam have just arrived, and throughout the streets, numerous merchants and shopkeepers can be heard shouting, selling their merchandise and negotiating its prices. While proceeding toward the Ebabbar temple complex to pay homage to the city’s famed patron, the sun god Shamash, you suddenly arrive at an enclosed neighbourhood which seems as busy as any other. You can’t help but notice one difference: the overwhelming majority of the people around you are women walking about without any male guardian. You have, in fact, entered the quarter of the nadîtums, a select group of women who have been dedicated to the sun god. They formed an interesting anomaly in an otherwise unforgiving patriarchal society. They weren’t married, managed their own property and could even expand their estate. Though sometimes regarded as one of the most remarkable examples of women who escaped the clutches of the Babylonian patriarchy, their independence knew its limits. This article will briefly discuss these nadîtums and assess their standing within Babylonian society as well as their perceived autonomy.

Interpretations of the Eastern Roman Empire and its emperors are heavily influenced by various cultural and political agendas. From Greece’s attempted monopoly over Constantinople’s memory fueling its 20th-century imperial aspirations, to Serbia justifying their expansionist ambitions with a 14th-century East Roman court title, many states throughout history have attempted to take a slice of the metaphorical “Byzantine pie”. To understand this phenomenon’s roots in contemporary Byzantine studies, we must turn to one of the early giants of the field: George Ostrogorsky.

How did Persia build the war machine that conquered from the Aegean to the Indus? This first installment examines the Achaemenid infantry — from the elite Immortals to archers, javelin-throwers and mercenaries drawn from across the empire.

This article explores the pivotal period that followed the reign of Bactrian king Euthydemus I (c. 230-200 BCE) and introduces the rulers who followed in his footsteps. As we will see, some of these kings were among the most innovative monetary reformers of the ancient world, using their coinage in creative ways to communicate with their diverse subjects.

The Qazvin school of painting marked a key transitional phase in Safavid art, bridging the court style of Tabriz and the individualistic painting of seventeenth-century Isfahan. Emerging after Shah Tahmasp I moved the Safavid capital to Qazvin in the mid-sixteenth century, it blended the traditions of Herat and Tabriz with new stylistic features, including elongated figures, lyrical compositions, refined colour harmonies, monumental wall paintings, and single-page works. The period also produced significant royal manuscripts, such as the Shahnameh of Shah Isma'il II, and nurtured artists who shaped the later Isfahan school, leaving a lasting legacy in Persian painting.

During the early 18th century BCE, the Ancient Near East was a constant battleground between various warlords and kings who wanted to extend their influence over their neighbouring countries. However, besides hostility, there was also room for friendship. One could not take on the whole world, and alliances were therefore crucial in cementing one's place in the complex patchwork of kingdoms and city-states. In an age of kings, dynastic marriages were the most common and efficient way to establish friendship between two royal houses. For the Old Babylonian period, such political unions are nowhere so vividly attested as in the city of Mari. Hundreds of letters shed light on the complex process and consequences of arranging a political marriage. This article wishes to address this topic through one concrete example: the union between Princess Beltum and King Yasmaḫ-Adad. The source material not only informs us of the wider political implications of their matrimony but also gives us some rare insights into the personal side of such a marriage.

In present-day minds, the Uyghur people are associated with Islam. Yet, this is a relatively recent development in their history. It is only after the integration of the Uyghur kingdom of Qocho (ca.840–14th century) into the Chagatai Khanate during the 14th century that they slowly began to convert to Islam. Long before that, in 762/763, the Uyghur kingdom adopted Manicheism as its state religion. But why would a steppe khaganate choose a religion that originated in Mesopotamia? And, why would they adopt a religion that prohibited the consumption of dairy products and meat, which represented a significant part of the steppe diet?

This article will explore how the Great Kings imbued every facet of the architectural marvel that is Persepolis with symbolism. From the art adorning its walls to its place within the royal calendar, we shall see how the capital became arguably the greatest symbol of Achaemenid ideology. Finally, we shall observe how its destruction at the hands of Alexander of Macedon has unintentionally turned the site into a symbol of historical preservation for modern historians.

One night, somewhere in the uplands of southwestern Iran, a king came looking for treasure. The target was a temple; ancient, wealthy, and deeply embedded in the life of the surrounding community. Inside, it was said, lay stores of silver and gold accumulated over generations. For a ruler under pressure, it must have seemed like a solution waiting to be claimed. But the king never left alive. This episode, associated with Antiochus III the Great (r. 223-187 BCE), is more than a dramatic anecdote, it captures, in a single moment, a tension that ran through the Seleucid Empire: the uneasy relationship between royal power and sacred wealth.

Beer has been part of our diet quite literally since the dawn of history. As soon as writing was invented in the land of the Tigris and Euphrates, our sources testify to the widespread production and distribution of this alcoholic beverage. Breweries continued to operate throughout the entire length of Ancient Mesopotamia’s rich and long history. Initially barley-based, dates became the central component in crafting beer at the turn of the first millennium BCE. This article wishes to shed some light on the beer, beer culture, and beer enterprises of Babylonia, with particular attention to the 1st millennium BCE, drawing on the rich source material left by the various Neo-Babylonian and Achaemenid archives from Ancient Iraq.