1. Map: Ancient Near East (color)
2. Map: Ancient Near East (II) (color)
3. Map: Ancient Near East with Precipitation Scale (color)
4. Map: Mesopotamia and Ancient Western Asia (color)
5. Map: The Fertile Crescent and Ancient Near East (color)
6. Map: Western Asia Topography (color)
7. Map: Sumer and Elam, 4th millennium B.C. (showing both ancient and modern coastlines) (color)
8. Map: Modern Syria and Tell Hamukar (color)
9. Map: Northern Mesopotamia (Upper Khabur Basin, NE Syria), 3rd Millennium urban sites & survey areas color
10. Map: Southern Mesopotamia (Roux)
11. O.I. Map: Southern Mesopotamia (colorized)
12. O.I. Map: Southern Mesopotamia (for printing). Instructions: copy file to disk; open file in any drawing program; in "Page Setup"-commmand, set page to "Landscape"-orientation; print file with command, "fit to page."
13. Map: The Ancient Near East (black and white; for printing). Instructions: copy file to disk; open file in any drawing program; in "Page Setup"-commmand, set page to "Landscape"-orientation; print file with command, "fit to page."
14. Map: Akkadian Empire of Sargon I of Agade (Akkad)
15. Map: Mesopotamia, Persian Gulf, and Indus River Valley (Meluhha) Trade Contacts (color)
16. Map: Kingdoms of Israel and Judah (color)

SATELLITE AND AERIAL PHOTOGRAPHS OF MESOPOTAMIA AND WESTERN ASIA

1. Photo: The Black Sea
2. Photo: The Black Sea: Hypothetical reconstruction of lake before alleged flooding (river courses conjectured)
3. Satellite Photo: Ruins of Babylon (whole city)
4. Satellite Photo: Ruins of Babylon and Modern Hillah, Main section of city
5. Satellite Photo: Ruins of Babylon, North section of city and palace area
6. Satellite Photo: Ruins of Babylon, North section of city, Hanging Gardens area, Gate of Ishtar, and Ninmah temple
7. Satellite Photo: Ruins of Babylon, central section, remains of Etemenanki (ziggurat of Marduk= "Tower of Babel")
8. Satellite Photo: Ruins of Babylon, north section, U.S. Army base, helicopter landing pad (located near or over the Gate of Sin [=Nanna])
9. Photo: Aerial Photograph of Ur, Temple and Ziggurat Precinct

HISTORIOGRAPHY AND METHODS

1. Chart: Sources, Methods and Disciplines in Ancient Near Eastern Studies (traditional)
2. Chart: Sources, Methods and Disciplines in Ancient Near Eastern Studies (anthropological)

LAND AND ENVIRONMENT: WESTERN ASIA

1. Chart: Mesopotamia: Topographical Features and Geographical Zones
2. Index-map of Photographs of Archaeological Sites and Topography of Mesopotamia (Oriental Institute web site)
3. Schematic Drawing: Plan of Sumerian Agricultural and Irrigation System
4. Photo: Topography of Southern Mesopotamia: the Road to Eridu
5. Photo: The Tigris River near Samarra (north of Baghdad)
6. Photo: Sandstorm in Central Mesopotamia
7. Photo: Khafaje (east of Baghdad). Accumulation of natural salts on surface of land due to deforestation, over-watering and over-production of agriculture
8. Photo: Abu Salabikh Leaching of salts through wet ground from over-irrigation and over-production
9. Drawing: Stratigraphy: The Nine Levels of Troy

CREATION MYTHOLOGIES AND COSMOLOGIES

1. Chart: Babylonian Cosmogony of the Enuma Élish
2. The Syncretism of Sumero-Akkadian Deities (HTML-format)

3. Drawing: Marduk and his Sea Serpent
4. Photo: Cylinder Seal Impression: God Enki (Ea) within the Abzu (watery abyss)
5. Photo: Cylinder Seal Impression: Sun-god Shamash Rises in the Horizon (with the Hunter, Ishtar, Ea and Adda the Vizier)

LANGUAGE AND WRITING

1. Chart: Afro-Asiatic Languages
2. Map: Distribution of Afro-Asiatic Languages
3. Chart: Stemma of Semitic Languages
4. Mesopotamian Bulla with tokens
5. Jemdet Nasr Tablet (BM) and Hieroglyphic/Cuneiform Chart
6. Samples: Protoliterate and Sumerian Tablets
7. Demonstration: Writing Cuneiform on a Clay Tablet
8. Prism of Sennacherib (704-681 B.C.)

MESOPOTAMIAN ARCHITECTURE

1. Drawing: Reconstruction of Ubaid Period Temple Oval at Khafaje [Tutub], Ubaid Period
2. Drawing: Reconstruction of White Temple at Uruk, Ubaid Period
3. Drawing: Reconstruction of Temple of Eridu (niched facade architecture), Ubaid Period
4. Photo: Marsh Arabs Meeting House, interior (viz. Sumerian architecture)
5. Plan of the City Ur, ca. 2100 B.C.
6. Street Plan of the City of Ur, ca. 2100 B.C.
7. Drawing: Cylinder sealing depicting possible ziggurat, Early Dynastic III period (by P. Amiet)
8. Photo: Ziggurat of Ur (Etemenigur), built by Ur-Nammu or Shulgi, prior to excavation
9. Photo: Ziggurat of Ur (Etemenigur) after modern reconstruction
10. Drawing: Reconstruction of the ziggurat of Ur [combined views] (by Sir Leonard Woolley)
11. Animation: Ziggurat of Ur: Then and Now (by P. Piccione)
12. Plan: City of Babylon, ca. sixth century B.C.
13. Drawing: Reconstruction of City of Babylon from west, including temple and ziggurat (color)
14. Drawing: Reconstruction of City of Babylon from north, Gate of Ishtar (color)
15. Photo: Gate of Ishtar (original) re-erected, Berlin Museum
16. Photo: Gate of Ishtar (smaller reconstructed copy), Babylon
17. Photo: Modern Babylon, Processional Road (fenced in) along Reconstructed Walls of Palace Complex, view northward
18. Drawing: Reconstruction of the ziggurat of Babylon, Etemenanki, view from south (profile)
19. Photo: Reconstructed Model of the ziggurat of Babylon, Etemenanki, view from southwest (O.I. Museum)
20. Photo: Model of the temple-complex of Marduk at Babylon, Esagila, view from east
21. Power Point Presentation: Palace of Nebuchadnezzar at Babylon (U.S. Marines) (click to download; file needs Power Point to run). Object lesson: how ancient sites and history take on modern meanings.

MESOPOTAMIAN SOCIETY, LAWS, AND SOCIAL STRUCTURE

1. LOST TREASURES FROM IRAQ (homepage): Oriental Institute IRAQ MUSEUM Database | PHOTOS of archaeological sites in Iraq
2. Assyrian Winged Bull (Lamassu), Khorsabad, Palace of Sargon II (721-705 B.C.). Oriental Institute Museum
3. Photo: Stela of Hammurabi and the Code of Hammurabi

UBAID AND PROTO-LITERATE PERIODS

1. Photo: Tell Hamoukar, northern Mesopotamia (c. 4500 BC), sloping trench with stratigraphic levels (from bottom)
2. Photo: Tell Hamoukar, northern Mesopotamia (c. 4500 BC), sloping trench with stratigraphic levels (from top)
3. Mesopotamian Bulla with tokens
4. Jemdet Nasr Tablet (BM) and Hieroglyphic/Cuneiform Chart
5. Samples: Protoliterate and Sumerian Tablets
6. Drawing: Reconstruction of Ubaid Period Temple from Eridu (niched facade architecture with recessed panels)
7. Drawing: Jemdet Nasr influences on Egypt: Ivory Knife-handle, Gebel el-Arak, Egypt. Mesopotamian motives: master of animals (= Sumerian en) and preying animals, and Mesopotamian-like ships with upraised prows and sterns
8. Drawing: Jemdet Nasr influences on Egypt: Ivory Knife-handle, Gebel el-Tarif, Egypt. Mesopotamian motives: entwined serpents, rosettes, winged griffin, and preying animals
9. Drawing: Jemdet Nasr influences on Egypt: Narmer Palette, Hierakonpolis. Left side depicts Narmer as King of Upper Egypt performing the ritual execution of a Lower Egyptian captive. The right side depicts him as King of Lower Egypt inspecting ten decapitated corpses.
10. Drawing: Jemdet Nasr influences on Egypt: Reconstruction of mastaba of King Djet, Saqqara, Dynasty 1

SUMERIAN HISTORY: EARLY DYNASTIC PERIOD AND UR III (NEO-SUMERIAN EMPIRE)

1. Drawing: Cylinder sealing depicting possible ziggurat, Early Dynastic III period (by P. Amiet)
2. Photo: Aerial Photograph of Ur, Temple and Ziggurat Precinct
3. Photo: Ziggurat of Ur (Etemenigur), built by Ur-Nammu or Shulgi, prior to excavation
4. Photo: Ziggurat of Ur (Etemenigur) after modern reconstruction
5. Drawing: Reconstruction of the ziggurat of Ur [combined views] (by Sir Leonard Woolley)
6. Animation: Ziggurat of Ur: Then and Now (by P. Piccione)
7. Photo: Statue of Sumerian priestess
8. Photo: Statue of Gudea, king of Lagash
9. Photo: Bronze statue of Ur-nammu hauling dirt for a temple-foundation ceremony (from Nippur)

AKKADIAN HISTORY: SARGON AND EMPIRE OF AGADE (AKKAD)

1. Photo: Bronze statue of Akkadian ruler, name uncertain
2. Photo: Bronze statue of Akkadian king, probably Naram-sin

OLD BABYLONIAN HISTORY: HAMMURABI AND THE OLD BABYLONIAN EMPIRE

1. Photo: Stela of Hammurabi and the Code of Hammurabi

OLD ASSYRIAN HISTORY: PUZUR-ASSUR I AND THE OLD ASSYRIAN KINGDOM