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The Latest Breaking News from Mesopotamia

‘A very basic human desire to want some control’: US exhibition explores the power of magic

Objects that were believed to have some form of magic effect are part of an exhibition exploring how ancient cultures tried to change the world around them

The Guardian - US

What If Pythagoras Wasn’t the First? The Truth Hidden in Ancient India

For most of us, the Pythagorean theorem is one of the first big ideas we learn in mathematics. A simple rule connecting the sides of a right triangle. And almost always, it is introduced with one name, Pythagoras. But what if that story is incomplete? What if this idea existed…

Times Life

4 Lost Religions of the Ancient World You Never Knew Existed

Hundreds and thousands of years ago, people used to worship deities and Gods that have faded almost entirely from the consciousness of today’s humanity. In fact, if we look back at those periods, we will be able to see Gods of fertility, rain, underworld or storms, holding deep-rooted influence over…

Times Life

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8,000-year-old pottery shards reveal ancient Mesopotamians understood maths before numbers invented

Decoration of pottery and seals in Halafian culture reflects high level of mathematical awareness, study says

The Independent UK

In ancient Mesopotamia, what was a ziggurat?

A ziggurat (also spelled ziqqurat) was a raised platform with four sloping sides that looked like a tiered pyramid.

The Conversation

Gender ambiguity was a tool of power 4,500 years ago in Mesopotamia

Gender-ambiguous people in ancient Mesopotamia were powerful and important members of society more than four millennia ago.

LiveScience

Not just ‘eunuchs’ or sex workers: in ancient Mesopotamia, gender-diverse people held positions of power

Today, trans people face politicisation of their lives and vilification from politicians, media and parts of broader society.

The Conversation

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Friday essay: how societies evolved into fear-dominated goliaths – then collapsed

We think of ancient civilisations as operating very differently from the way our economy works today. Yet the Bronze Age Assyrians living in Mesopotamia, around 4,000 to 3,000 years ago, began the basis of modern capitalism, in a region spanning most of modern-day Iraq, eastern Syria and southeastern Turkey. The…

The Conversation

4,000-year-old silver goblet found bearing ‘origin story of Universe’

Researchers say art combines elements of various myths and legends from across ancient Mesopotamia

The Independent UK

Signatures meant more in Mesopotamia than they do now − what cylinder seals say about ancient and modern life

The earliest form of the signature came from ancient Iraq in the form of cylinder seals.

The Conversation

5,000-year old 'cultic space' discovered in Iraq dates to time of the world's first cities

Archaeologists in Iraq have discovered the remains of a 5,000-year-old building that might have been used as a "cultic space" or temple for worship.

LiveScience

The Psychology Behind Why We Love Games of Chance

Games of chance have been with us for millennia, from ancient Mesopotamia dice games to modern online lottery and casino sites.

inkl

Meskalamdug's Helmet: One of the world's oldest helmets depicts a Mesopotamian prince's man bun

This 15-karat gold helmet was discovered in a royal tomb at Ur, but it may only have been worn for ceremonial purposes.

LiveScience

DNA analysis from 4,600-year-old skeleton uncovers hidden link between Egypt and Mesopotamia

Sealed inside a rocky tomb for over four millennia, an Egyptian skeleton has just revealed a hidden chapter of ancient history.

Euronews

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The Independent UK

Secrets of ancient societies revealed through DNA from 4,000-year-old teeth

Ancient DNA has revealed links between the cultures of Egypt and Mesopotamia

LiveScience

Ram in the Thicket: A 4,500-year-old gold statue from the royal cemetery at Ur

This statue covered in gold leaf and semiprecious stones may have been used in ancient Mesopotamian sunrise rituals.

LiveScience

Human sacrifices found in a Bronze Age tomb in Turkey were mostly teenage girls

Archaeologists are unsure why unrelated teenagers were buried in an elaborate Bronze Age tomb but think their age may be a clue.

The Guardian - UK

‘Spreadsheets of empire’: red tape goes back 4,000 years, say scientists after Iraq finds

Ancient Mesopotamian stone tablets show extraordinary detail and reach of government in cradle of world civilisations

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LiveScience

Massive Mesopotamian canal network unearthed in Iraq

Researchers have identified an extensive Mesopotamian canal network that supplied ancient farms in the Eridu region with water from the Euphrates river before the first millennium B.C.

LiveScience

Queen Puabi's lyre: A bull-headed music maker played for Mesopotamian royalty 4,500 years ago

A lyre in a treasure-laden royal tomb discovered in Mesopotamia is the earliest stringed instrument ever found.

LiveScience

7,000-year-old alien-like figurine from Kuwait a 'total surprise' to archaeologists

A newfound clay head from the sixth millennium B.C. is the first of its kind ever found in Kuwait, but similar finds have been unearthed from ancient Mesopotamia.

LiveScience

5,000-year-old artifacts in Iraq hint at mysterious collapse of one of the world's 1st governments

Newly analyzed 5,000-year-old clay bowls unearthed in Iraq may be evidence of early government-like rule, a new study finds.

The Independent UK

Major discovery on origin of writing in birthplace of civilization

The four original inventions of writing are recognized in Mesopotamia, Egypt, China, and the Mayan culture

LiveScience

Origins of world's earliest writing point to symbols on 'seals' used in Mesopotamian trade

Researchers investigating how the first writing arose identified the motifs on preliterate "cylinder seals" used in the trade of agricultural products and textiles.

The Conversation

Why ancient Mesopotamians would have used a sheep’s liver to predict Donald Trump’s election odds

I’m standing in a basement kitchen prodding at a sheep’s liver, looking for marks on its smooth surface. People crowd around to film the proceedings, since I’m here to ask a question that everyone wants to know the answer to: will Donald Trump win the US election?

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