Susan Pollock

Feasts, Funerals, and Fast Food in Early Mesopotamian States

In an interview published in an Italian newspaper in November 2000, the Rev. Massimo Salani declared, “Fast food reflects the individualistic relation between man and God introduced by Luther…Lacking the community aspect of sharing, fast food is certainly not a Catholic model” (cited in the Washington Post, Nov. 18, 2000, p. B9). Billed by some as the excommunication of the hamburger, Salani’s remarks touched a raw nerve, provoking reactions that ranged from endorsement by some religious figures and those who oppose American-style fast food to indignation on the part of such international heavyweights as McDonalds.

Bureaucrats and managers, peasants and pastoralists, imperialists and traders: Research on the Uruk and Jemdet Nasr periods in Mesopotamia

In recent decades the Uruk and Jemdet Nasr periods of the fourth millennium B. C. in Mesopotamia have been the subject of considerable research by scholars of the ancient Near East. Interests in and interpretations of these periods have focused on their credentials as early states, urban societies, and the immediate antecedents of Sumerian civilization. In this overview, I first present a brief historical background on the study of these periods, followed by a critical review of recent approaches that have had significant impacts on current directions of research and understanding of the fourth millennium. Finally, I suggest some research avenues currently being tentatively explored that may be especially appropriate for developing further our understandings of these periods.

Of Priestesses, Princes And Poor Relations: The Dead In The Royal Cemetery Of Ur

Archaeological discoveries of dead individuals, usually in the form of burials, have frequently captured the imaginations of public and professional audiences alike. In addition to the allure of exotic artefacts and seemingly bizarre funeral rites, burials offer rich possibilities for investigating myriad aspects of past social, cultural and even individual life. This discussion focuses on one of the more renowned archaeological excavations of an ancient cemetery, the Royal Cemetery of Ur. Consideration of who was and who was not buried in the cemetery suggests that cemetery burial was the prerogative of those people who were closely attached to ‘public’ institutions. This leads to a number of observations on Sumerian treatment of the dead and attitudes toward death, as these can be approached from archaeological and textual sources.

The looting of the Iraq Museum: Thoughts on archaeology in a time of crisis

Abstract The looting of the Iraq Museum has been widely proclaimed to be the worst cultural destruction since World War II; some have compared it to the decimation wrought by the Mongol invasion of Baghdad. Others have contended that the damage was wildly exaggerated. Any attempt at understanding the events surrounding the looting and destruction of the museums collections must examine both what happened and how it was represented to a worldwide audience through the news media. I compare these events with the toppling of a statue of Saddam Hussein in Fardus Square and the burning of major libraries in Baghdad and suggest that their perceived significances for Western audiences stem in large measure from the extent and tone of press reporting. The long-standing coverage by major mainstream news media of Mesopotamian archaeology as foundational to Western civilization may be a prime reason why otherwise pro-(US) government reporting also included some critical coverage about the loss of the museum collections. Such circumstances challenge archaeologists to use media interest to convey more nuanced and ethically responsible views of archaeology to broader publics.

Household production at the Uruk Mound, Abu Salabikh, Iraq

Restructuring of the economy is thought to have accompanied the emergence of ancient states and urban societies in the Near East, beginning in the Uruk period (fourth millennium B.C.), but scholars disagree on the precise nature of economic change. Through investigations at the Uruk Mound of Abu Salabikh, an Uruk-period town in southern Mesopotamia, we examine the contexts of production within one community. Our analyses rely primarily on data collected during detailed mapping of the surface of the site, supplemented by data from surface scraping and excavation. The results of our work suggest that the manufacture of pottery and the production and use of stone tools for processing plants, animals, and their products were widespread in the community, rather than organized or controlled by a few centralized institutions. Our findings suggest that state control in the Uruk period was not based on direct control of the production of these staple items.

Scalar differences: temporal rhythms and spatial patterns at Monjukli Depe, southern Turkmenistan

Abstract New investigations at the site of Monjukli Depe in southern Turkmenistan challenge traditional ideas regarding the distinction between the Neolithic and the Aeneolithic in this region. It had previously been argued that the former (the ‘Jeitun’ culture) represented an expansion of agricultural villages from Mesopotamia, while the latter (best known from the site of Anau) marked the incorporation of local Iranian elements. By integrating multi-scalar analyses of the layout, architectural design and patterning of different household activities at Monjukli Depe, a more nuanced interpretation of temporal and spatial variability of the sites successive occupations becomes possible. The new insights afforded by this approach show that the contrast between the Neolithic and Aeneolithic may not have been as clear-cut as has traditionally been believed.

A Gate to a Darker World: Excavating at the Tempelhof Airport

An archaeology of the recent past has no academically established place in the German university system. Memory politics, on the other hand, especially in connection to the Nazi period, is highly thematized in history departments but also underpins the work of grass-roots as well as more institutionalized organizations. In this chapter we discuss the genesis of an archaeological project that focuses on twentieth century remains, in particular those of the Nazi period (1933–1945), at the former Tempelhof airfield (Berlin). We explore some of the tensions and confrontations that surround such a project, especially the intertwining of archaeology, memory politics, and the varying interests with stakes in the ways this large open park in the midst of the bustling city of Berlin is used.

Rubbish, Routines, and Practice: Chipped Stone Blades from Uruk-Period Sharafabad, Iran

Abstract Through the analysis of chipped stone blades from Uruk-period Sharafabad (Khuzestan), this paper examines routines and practices of villagers faced with agricultural uncertainty and state demands. Annual, seasonal and intra-seasonal patterns of tool production, use and discard, along with evidence for various domestic pursuits, show that villagers maintained elements of their daily lives in the face of poor crop yields but altered both types and intensities of production activities in order to do so. The results demonstrate the possibilities of archaeological analyses at very line temporal scales, while at the same time illustrating some methodological and interpretive challenges posed by such research.

Presentism and the LAW

We welcome the Lampeter Archaeology Workshops (LAW) attempt to clarify the ways in which they understand relativism in post-processual archaeology and especially their distinctions among several kinds of relativism. We would like to comment on links between epistemological relativism and a particular view of history (or, more generally, the past) that the LAWs discussion raises. In particular, we draw attention to several implications of their positions, including the relative emphasis placed on the past and/or the present in archaeological interpretations, different ways of linking past and present, and the political implications of such links

Archaeology's "People"

We commend González-Ruibal et al. (above) for their well-formulated challenge to a widely held view in Anglophone archaeology. Their insistence that archaeologists must rethink their position in a radically changed political context is highly apposite, although we do not agree entirely with all of their arguments. Here, we address three principal issues.