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Sebastian Fink

University of Innsbruck, Department of Ancient History and Ancient Near Eastern Studies, Faculty Member

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Leiden University

Greta Van Buylaere

University of Münster

Nagoya University

Chikako Watanabe

Osaka Gakuin University, Osaka, Japan

Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München

Chikako E Watanabe

Osaka Gakuin University, Osaka, Japan

UCLouvain (University of Louvain)

University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire

Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam

Barbara N. Porter

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Papers by Sebastian Fink

Assurbanipal the Humanist? The Case of Equal Treatment

by Sebastian Fink and Sanae Ito

State Archives of Assyria Bulletin 23, 2017

Assurbanipal, Lipit-Eshtar and Šulgi are kings who emphasize their abilities as scribes. 1 Obviou... more Assurbanipal, Lipit-Eshtar and Šulgi are kings who emphasize their abilities as scribes. 1 Obviously, being a scribe and being well versed in scholarly literature is not the central topic when it comes to the highly ideological representation of Mesopotamian kings in royal inscriptions, but, as Beate Pongratz-Leisten has demonstrated, the ability of the king to interact with his scholars was part of the Herrschaftswissenschaft. 2 Therefore, a basic understanding of what his scholars were doing was a necessity for every king, even if he was illiterate. A humanist is someone who stresses the value and the dignity of humans and their ability to develop themselves, to reach a stage of being a truly educated human being. But how can this development be reached? Through hard work and exercise seems to have been the answer of all ages. In Renaissance Italy the study of Greek and Roman texts was considered to be the way to develop the potential of every human being and Jens Høyrup argued that we could understand the non-utilitarian mathematics of the Old Babylonian scribes as an expression of "un humanisme différent". 4 One might consider the use of the term Humanism anachronistic for the Ancient Near East, but there surely was a basic conviction that humans had to develop themselves and their skills through hard workespecially in scribal circles. The dignity of the human being does not derive from what an actual human being is, but from what it could be. Interestingly, the fields kept in highest esteem are often the most impractical ones. So, for example, Sumerian

The 12th Century Collapse and Assyria. Turning Point or “Usual Crisis”?

by Sebastian Fink and Vladimir Sazonov

Responses to the 12th Century BC Collapse Recovery and Restructuration in the Early Iron Age Near East and Mediterranean, Edited by Mait Kõiv and Raz Kletter, 2024

The article assesses the impact of the end of the bronze age on Assyria and discusses discontinui... more

(Julian Degen / Sebastian Fink) Revaluating the Sardanapalus Monument in Cilicia Greek Travelogues and Ancient Near Eastern Hedonism

by Sebastian Fink and Julian Degen

Studia Antiqua et Archaeologica, 2024

This article presents a novel interpretation of the famous hedonistic monument of Sardanapalus, a... more This article presents a novel interpretation of the famous hedonistic monument of Sardanapalus, as depicted by numerous Greek and Roman authors, particularly within historiography related to Alexander. The
argument unfolds in two steps. First, the Greek tradition regarding Sardanapalus and the inscription is discussed in detail, and then the description of foreign monuments in Greek travelogue texts and their relation to ancient Near Eastern texts will be analysed. It is argued that the image of the hedonistic king Sardanapalus was inspired by one of Ashurbanipal’s inscriptions, rather than being solely attributed to an inner-Greek discussion.

Neo-Assyrian Victory Celebrations. A Spectacle for the People

Ceremonies, Feasts and Festivities in Ancient Mesopotamia and the Mediterranean World Performance and Participation Proceedings of the 11th Melammu Workshop, Barcelona, 29–31 January 2019 Edited by Rocío Da Riva, Ana Arroyo and Céline Debourse, 2022

This article discusses the way Assyrian kings spread their "propaganda", how they conciously shap... more

Oriental Despots in the Inscriptions of Assurbanipal

Edward Dąbrowa (ed.), Autocratic Rule in Antiquity, Melammu Workshops and Monographs 12, Münster: Zaphon, 2024

The paper discusses the motif of the oriental despot in the inscriptions of Assurbanipal.

What is Moses but Plato speaking Hebrew? An Inquiry into Literary Borrowings.

In: Hakola, Raimo; Orpana, Jessi; Huotari, Paavo (eds.): Scriptures in the Making. Texts and Their Transmission in Late Second Temple Judaism. Leuven/Paris/Bristol: Peeters (= Contributions to Biblical Exegesis and Theology, 109), 57-79., 2022

This chapter re-addresses the question and significance of literary borrowings in the ancient wor... more This chapter re-addresses the question and significance of literary borrowings in the ancient world. For this end, two older cases of such claims, one from antiquity and one from the early days of Assyriology, are discussed in order to highlight the ideological implications of such claims.
Then a possible link between Genesis and Plato’s Symposium is discussed
and two scenarios are presented.

If you are intersted in an offprint, send me an email: [email protected]

Fink, Sebastian (2020): Language and Race in Assyriology: from Benno Landsberger to Wolfram von Soden. in: Garcia-Ventura, Agnès; Verderame, Lorenzo (eds.): Perspectives on the History of Ancient Near Eastern Studies. State College, PA., 25-43.

Therefore, all these facts taken together allow the conclusion that science, in the strict sense ... more Therefore, all these facts taken together allow the conclusion that science, in the strict sense of the word, is something that could only be created by the Indo-Germans as determined by northern race. Wolfram von Soden, 1936 this ArticLe investigAtes the connection of language and race in selected writings of Benno Landsberger and Wolfram von Soden and could be understood as a "genealogical" investigation in the birth of the sentence above. Therefore, I will first give an overview on language and race outside Assyriology and then move on to a discussion of Landsberger's and von Soden's works. Language and Race Outside Assyriology: A (Very) Short Introduction Race was a main category in scientific 1 thought at least until the end of the Second World War, but there were always voices that opposed the idea of clear and distinguishable human races. 2 Especially in historical subjects, one has to deal with the problem of historical change, and historians want to give good answers to questions Author's note: I thank Lorenzo Verderame and Agnès Garcia-Ventura for the invitation to read this paper in an inspiring atmosphere in Rome as well as for their comments on this article. Additionally, I thank Kerstin Droß-Krüpe and Malte Gasche for their comments on earlier drafts of this text and Florian Krüpe for providing me with hard-to-find literature. Gina Konstantopoulos was kind enough to correct my English and to provide me with additional references to literature. I am most grateful for Jakob Flygare's comments and corrections. 1. When I use the term scientific, I do not use it in any relation to truth in an absolute sense. Here my usage of scientific just implies that these statements were believed to be scientific by quite a number of researchers at a given time and consequently also by broad parts of the population. Hutton (1999, 206-61), in his book on linguistics in the Third Reich, formulates this in the following way: "But both linguistics and race theory have been associated with chauvinism, group narcissism, cultural solipsism; each was implicated in the cultural politics of Nazi Germany. Both have adopted the mantle of modern science, with the avowed aim of improving upon the vague and imprecise categories that ordinary people construct. It is hard to see why a science of linguistic classification should be respectable, while a science of racial classification is viewed with suspicion. Either both are scientific activities, or neither is." 2. See for example Franz Boas. On Boas see the contributions in Pöhl and Tilg 2011. Baker 1998 states that Boas and his school were the main driving forces behind the changing views on race in the United States.

THE NEO-ASSYRIAN EMPIRE AND THE HISTORY OF SCIENCE: WESTERN TERMINOLOGY AND ANCIENT NEAR EASTERN SOURCES

G.B. Lanfranchi, R. Mattila and R. Rollinger (eds.): WRITING NEO-ASSYRIAN HISTORY SOURCES, PROBLEMS, AND APPROACHES, 2019

The paper discusses the role of the Assyrian evidence for the history of science and therfore als... more The paper discusses the role of the Assyrian evidence for the history of science and therfore also discusses the definition of science, rationality and proofs (which are often taken as the watershed between a pre-scientific and a scientific approach to nature) in the light of the Mespotamian evidence.

Der Indienhandel Mesopotamiens. Ein Überblick

Trade and Seafaring in Antiquity. Red Sea – Persian Gulf – Indian Ocean, 2023

The present article discusses the evidence for trade with India (Meluḫḫa in the cuneiform sources... more The present article discusses the evidence for trade with India (Meluḫḫa in the cuneiform sources) in the third millennium BC. Therefore, royal inscriptions, literary texts, administrative documents and lexical lists are analyzed. These texts inform us about ships going to India, possibly about Indians living in Mesopotamia and finally about the nature of the trade with India. One mythological text introduces us to the geographical conception of the world at the beginning of the second millennium, where Tilmun (Bahrein), Makkan (Oman) and Meluḫḫa (Indus valley) were seen as a part of the Mesopotamian universe. According to these texts the main trade goods imported from India were precious stones, especially Karneol and Lapislazuli, and wood. Besides stones and wood also exotic animals were imported from India. The main exports of Mesopotamia were textiles, wool and perfumed oil.

SOURCES AT THE END OF THE CUNEIFORM ERA

The aim of this article is to discuss several groups of sources which are of special interest reg... more The aim of this article is to discuss several groups of sources which are of special interest regarding the question of Mesopotamian identities after 539 bce, towards the end of the use of cuneiform writing. In this late period, several languages and scripts were in use in Mesopotamia; therefore, groups of Akkadian, Aramaic, Greek, and Sumerian texts are discussed. The scripts used are Aramaic letters, cuneiform, and the Greek alphabet. A scholar who is interested in late Mesopotamian identities needs to take all these documents into account. This article aims at giving a brief overview on available textual material and where to find it. The topics of these texts vary from administrative documents to highly literary texts. The authors discuss Aramaic inscriptions, legal and administrative cuneiform texts, the astronomical diaries, the Seleucid Uruk scholarly texts, the late Babylonian priestly literature, Emesal cult-songs from the Hellenistic period, the Graeco-Babyloniaca (clay tablets containing cuneiform and Greek), and finally Greek inscriptions from Mesopotamia. This article is a collaborative product of the workshop "Construction of Identities and late Mesopotamian archives (after 539 bce)" which took place on March 12-13, 2020, at the University of Helsinki. Organized by the Centre of Excellence "Ancient Near Eastern Empires," 1 The names of authors are presented in alphabetical order. In practice, Sebastian Fink and Saana Svärd wrote Section 1, "Introduction" as well as edited the article. Ingo Kottsieper wrote Section 2 "Selected editions of Aramaic texts from the Achaemenid empire," Tero Alstola wrote Section 3 "Legal and Administrative Texts from the Neo-Babylonian and Persian Periods," Paola Corò and Laurie Pearce wrote Section 4 "The Legal texts in the

Criticizing the King in Ancient Mesopotamia – an Overview, In Claudia Horst (ed.): Der Alte Orient und die Entstehung der Athenischen Demokratie. Wiesbaden (= Classica et Orientalia 21)., 11-36.

Assyrians and Babylonians in Classical Sources

The paper invesitgates the role of Assyrian and Babylonian kings and queens in Greek and Roman hi... more

Kaupunkien tuho muinaisessa Lähi-idässä

Complex Genealogies in Mesopotamia: From Mesilim to Tukultī-Ninurta I

The current article examines four case studies of complex genealogies in Mesopotamia from the 3 a... more The current article examines four case studies of complex genealogies in Mesopotamia from the 3 and 2 millennia BCE. The first three case studies are focused on the complex genealogies used by 3 millennium BC kings in the Early Dynastic Period III, in Lagaš II, and in the period of 3 Dynasty of Ur. The fourth case study deals with Assyrian king Tukultī-Ninurta I (1242–1206 BCE). Rezumat. Autorii examinează patru studii de caz al unor genealogii complexe din Mesopotamia din mileniile III–II a.Chr. Primele trei cazuri se concentrează pe genealogiile complexe folosite de regii din mileniul al III-lea a.Chr. în Epoca Dinastică Timpurie III, în Lagaš II, și în perioada celei de-a treia dinastii din Ur. Al patrulea studiu de caz se ocupă cu regele asirian Tukultī-Ninurta I (1242–1206 a.Chr.).

The Day Storm in Mesopotamian Literature

Der hier vorliegende Artikel untersucht das Konzept eines gottlichen (Entscheidungs-)Tages, spezi... more

S. Fink, V. Sazonov. Complex Genealogies in Mesopotamia: From Mesilim to Tukultī-Ninurta I - SAA 25/2019

by Vladimir Sazonov and Sebastian Fink

The current article examines four case studies of complex genealogies in Mesopotamia from the 3 r... more The current article examines four case studies of complex genealogies in Mesopotamia from the 3 rd and 2 nd millennia BCE. The first three case studies are focused on the complex genealogies used by 3 rd millennium BC kings in the Early Dynastic Period III, in Lagaš II, and in the period of 3 rd Dynasty of Ur. The fourth case study deals with Assyrian king Tukultī-Ninurta I (1242-1206 BCE). Rezumat. Autorii examinează patru studii de caz al unor genealogii complexe din Mesopotamia din mileniile III-II a.Chr. Primele trei cazuri se concentrează pe genealogiile complexe folosite de regii din mileniul al III-lea a.Chr. în Epoca Dinastică Timpurie III, în Lagaš II, și în perioada celei de-a treia dinastii din Ur. Al patrulea studiu de caz se ocupă cu regele asirian Tukultī-Ninurta I (1242-1206 a.Chr.).

Persian “Enlightenment”

A Companion to the Achaemenid Persian Empire

Chapter 2 Language and Race in Assyriology: From Benno Landsberger to Wolfram von Soden

Perspectives on the History of Ancient Near Eastern Studies

The Hunter and the Asses: A Neo-Assyrian Paean Glorifying Shalmaneser III

Zeitschrift für Assyriologie und vorderasiatische Archäologie

The present article gives a new edition and analysis of ‘The Hunter and the Asses’ (LKA 62) and d... more The present article gives a new edition and analysis of ‘The Hunter and the Asses’ (LKA 62) and discusses its political, historical and literary setting. We argue for the identification of the text as a paean, glorifying the campaigns of Shalmaneser III to the west against the coalition of 12 kings led by the king of Damascus.

Gilgameš und Uršanabi

Revue D Assyriologie Et D Archeologie Orientale, Dec 2, 2014

Cet article explore la relation de Gilgames et Ursanabi et propose une interpretation alternative... more

Assurbanipal the Humanist? The Case of Equal Treatment

by Sebastian Fink and Sanae Ito

State Archives of Assyria Bulletin 23, 2017

Assurbanipal, Lipit-Eshtar and Šulgi are kings who emphasize their abilities as scribes. 1 Obviou... more Assurbanipal, Lipit-Eshtar and Šulgi are kings who emphasize their abilities as scribes. 1 Obviously, being a scribe and being well versed in scholarly literature is not the central topic when it comes to the highly ideological representation of Mesopotamian kings in royal inscriptions, but, as Beate Pongratz-Leisten has demonstrated, the ability of the king to interact with his scholars was part of the Herrschaftswissenschaft. 2 Therefore, a basic understanding of what his scholars were doing was a necessity for every king, even if he was illiterate. A humanist is someone who stresses the value and the dignity of humans and their ability to develop themselves, to reach a stage of being a truly educated human being. But how can this development be reached? Through hard work and exercise seems to have been the answer of all ages. In Renaissance Italy the study of Greek and Roman texts was considered to be the way to develop the potential of every human being and Jens Høyrup argued that we could understand the non-utilitarian mathematics of the Old Babylonian scribes as an expression of "un humanisme différent". 4 One might consider the use of the term Humanism anachronistic for the Ancient Near East, but there surely was a basic conviction that humans had to develop themselves and their skills through hard workespecially in scribal circles. The dignity of the human being does not derive from what an actual human being is, but from what it could be. Interestingly, the fields kept in highest esteem are often the most impractical ones. So, for example, Sumerian

The 12th Century Collapse and Assyria. Turning Point or “Usual Crisis”?

by Sebastian Fink and Vladimir Sazonov

Responses to the 12th Century BC Collapse Recovery and Restructuration in the Early Iron Age Near East and Mediterranean, Edited by Mait Kõiv and Raz Kletter, 2024

The article assesses the impact of the end of the bronze age on Assyria and discusses discontinui... more

(Julian Degen / Sebastian Fink) Revaluating the Sardanapalus Monument in Cilicia Greek Travelogues and Ancient Near Eastern Hedonism

by Sebastian Fink and Julian Degen

Studia Antiqua et Archaeologica, 2024

This article presents a novel interpretation of the famous hedonistic monument of Sardanapalus, a... more This article presents a novel interpretation of the famous hedonistic monument of Sardanapalus, as depicted by numerous Greek and Roman authors, particularly within historiography related to Alexander. The
argument unfolds in two steps. First, the Greek tradition regarding Sardanapalus and the inscription is discussed in detail, and then the description of foreign monuments in Greek travelogue texts and their relation to ancient Near Eastern texts will be analysed. It is argued that the image of the hedonistic king Sardanapalus was inspired by one of Ashurbanipal’s inscriptions, rather than being solely attributed to an inner-Greek discussion.

Neo-Assyrian Victory Celebrations. A Spectacle for the People

Ceremonies, Feasts and Festivities in Ancient Mesopotamia and the Mediterranean World Performance and Participation Proceedings of the 11th Melammu Workshop, Barcelona, 29–31 January 2019 Edited by Rocío Da Riva, Ana Arroyo and Céline Debourse, 2022

This article discusses the way Assyrian kings spread their "propaganda", how they conciously shap... more

Oriental Despots in the Inscriptions of Assurbanipal

Edward Dąbrowa (ed.), Autocratic Rule in Antiquity, Melammu Workshops and Monographs 12, Münster: Zaphon, 2024

The paper discusses the motif of the oriental despot in the inscriptions of Assurbanipal.

What is Moses but Plato speaking Hebrew? An Inquiry into Literary Borrowings.

In: Hakola, Raimo; Orpana, Jessi; Huotari, Paavo (eds.): Scriptures in the Making. Texts and Their Transmission in Late Second Temple Judaism. Leuven/Paris/Bristol: Peeters (= Contributions to Biblical Exegesis and Theology, 109), 57-79., 2022

This chapter re-addresses the question and significance of literary borrowings in the ancient wor... more This chapter re-addresses the question and significance of literary borrowings in the ancient world. For this end, two older cases of such claims, one from antiquity and one from the early days of Assyriology, are discussed in order to highlight the ideological implications of such claims.
Then a possible link between Genesis and Plato’s Symposium is discussed
and two scenarios are presented.

If you are intersted in an offprint, send me an email: [email protected]

Fink, Sebastian (2020): Language and Race in Assyriology: from Benno Landsberger to Wolfram von Soden. in: Garcia-Ventura, Agnès; Verderame, Lorenzo (eds.): Perspectives on the History of Ancient Near Eastern Studies. State College, PA., 25-43.

Therefore, all these facts taken together allow the conclusion that science, in the strict sense ... more Therefore, all these facts taken together allow the conclusion that science, in the strict sense of the word, is something that could only be created by the Indo-Germans as determined by northern race. Wolfram von Soden, 1936 this ArticLe investigAtes the connection of language and race in selected writings of Benno Landsberger and Wolfram von Soden and could be understood as a "genealogical" investigation in the birth of the sentence above. Therefore, I will first give an overview on language and race outside Assyriology and then move on to a discussion of Landsberger's and von Soden's works. Language and Race Outside Assyriology: A (Very) Short Introduction Race was a main category in scientific 1 thought at least until the end of the Second World War, but there were always voices that opposed the idea of clear and distinguishable human races. 2 Especially in historical subjects, one has to deal with the problem of historical change, and historians want to give good answers to questions Author's note: I thank Lorenzo Verderame and Agnès Garcia-Ventura for the invitation to read this paper in an inspiring atmosphere in Rome as well as for their comments on this article. Additionally, I thank Kerstin Droß-Krüpe and Malte Gasche for their comments on earlier drafts of this text and Florian Krüpe for providing me with hard-to-find literature. Gina Konstantopoulos was kind enough to correct my English and to provide me with additional references to literature. I am most grateful for Jakob Flygare's comments and corrections. 1. When I use the term scientific, I do not use it in any relation to truth in an absolute sense. Here my usage of scientific just implies that these statements were believed to be scientific by quite a number of researchers at a given time and consequently also by broad parts of the population. Hutton (1999, 206-61), in his book on linguistics in the Third Reich, formulates this in the following way: "But both linguistics and race theory have been associated with chauvinism, group narcissism, cultural solipsism; each was implicated in the cultural politics of Nazi Germany. Both have adopted the mantle of modern science, with the avowed aim of improving upon the vague and imprecise categories that ordinary people construct. It is hard to see why a science of linguistic classification should be respectable, while a science of racial classification is viewed with suspicion. Either both are scientific activities, or neither is." 2. See for example Franz Boas. On Boas see the contributions in Pöhl and Tilg 2011. Baker 1998 states that Boas and his school were the main driving forces behind the changing views on race in the United States.

THE NEO-ASSYRIAN EMPIRE AND THE HISTORY OF SCIENCE: WESTERN TERMINOLOGY AND ANCIENT NEAR EASTERN SOURCES

G.B. Lanfranchi, R. Mattila and R. Rollinger (eds.): WRITING NEO-ASSYRIAN HISTORY SOURCES, PROBLEMS, AND APPROACHES, 2019

The paper discusses the role of the Assyrian evidence for the history of science and therfore als... more The paper discusses the role of the Assyrian evidence for the history of science and therfore also discusses the definition of science, rationality and proofs (which are often taken as the watershed between a pre-scientific and a scientific approach to nature) in the light of the Mespotamian evidence.

Der Indienhandel Mesopotamiens. Ein Überblick

Trade and Seafaring in Antiquity. Red Sea – Persian Gulf – Indian Ocean, 2023

The present article discusses the evidence for trade with India (Meluḫḫa in the cuneiform sources... more The present article discusses the evidence for trade with India (Meluḫḫa in the cuneiform sources) in the third millennium BC. Therefore, royal inscriptions, literary texts, administrative documents and lexical lists are analyzed. These texts inform us about ships going to India, possibly about Indians living in Mesopotamia and finally about the nature of the trade with India. One mythological text introduces us to the geographical conception of the world at the beginning of the second millennium, where Tilmun (Bahrein), Makkan (Oman) and Meluḫḫa (Indus valley) were seen as a part of the Mesopotamian universe. According to these texts the main trade goods imported from India were precious stones, especially Karneol and Lapislazuli, and wood. Besides stones and wood also exotic animals were imported from India. The main exports of Mesopotamia were textiles, wool and perfumed oil.

SOURCES AT THE END OF THE CUNEIFORM ERA

The aim of this article is to discuss several groups of sources which are of special interest reg... more The aim of this article is to discuss several groups of sources which are of special interest regarding the question of Mesopotamian identities after 539 bce, towards the end of the use of cuneiform writing. In this late period, several languages and scripts were in use in Mesopotamia; therefore, groups of Akkadian, Aramaic, Greek, and Sumerian texts are discussed. The scripts used are Aramaic letters, cuneiform, and the Greek alphabet. A scholar who is interested in late Mesopotamian identities needs to take all these documents into account. This article aims at giving a brief overview on available textual material and where to find it. The topics of these texts vary from administrative documents to highly literary texts. The authors discuss Aramaic inscriptions, legal and administrative cuneiform texts, the astronomical diaries, the Seleucid Uruk scholarly texts, the late Babylonian priestly literature, Emesal cult-songs from the Hellenistic period, the Graeco-Babyloniaca (clay tablets containing cuneiform and Greek), and finally Greek inscriptions from Mesopotamia. This article is a collaborative product of the workshop "Construction of Identities and late Mesopotamian archives (after 539 bce)" which took place on March 12-13, 2020, at the University of Helsinki. Organized by the Centre of Excellence "Ancient Near Eastern Empires," 1 The names of authors are presented in alphabetical order. In practice, Sebastian Fink and Saana Svärd wrote Section 1, "Introduction" as well as edited the article. Ingo Kottsieper wrote Section 2 "Selected editions of Aramaic texts from the Achaemenid empire," Tero Alstola wrote Section 3 "Legal and Administrative Texts from the Neo-Babylonian and Persian Periods," Paola Corò and Laurie Pearce wrote Section 4 "The Legal texts in the

Criticizing the King in Ancient Mesopotamia – an Overview, In Claudia Horst (ed.): Der Alte Orient und die Entstehung der Athenischen Demokratie. Wiesbaden (= Classica et Orientalia 21)., 11-36.

Assyrians and Babylonians in Classical Sources

The paper invesitgates the role of Assyrian and Babylonian kings and queens in Greek and Roman hi... more

Kaupunkien tuho muinaisessa Lähi-idässä

Complex Genealogies in Mesopotamia: From Mesilim to Tukultī-Ninurta I

The current article examines four case studies of complex genealogies in Mesopotamia from the 3 a... more The current article examines four case studies of complex genealogies in Mesopotamia from the 3 and 2 millennia BCE. The first three case studies are focused on the complex genealogies used by 3 millennium BC kings in the Early Dynastic Period III, in Lagaš II, and in the period of 3 Dynasty of Ur. The fourth case study deals with Assyrian king Tukultī-Ninurta I (1242–1206 BCE). Rezumat. Autorii examinează patru studii de caz al unor genealogii complexe din Mesopotamia din mileniile III–II a.Chr. Primele trei cazuri se concentrează pe genealogiile complexe folosite de regii din mileniul al III-lea a.Chr. în Epoca Dinastică Timpurie III, în Lagaš II, și în perioada celei de-a treia dinastii din Ur. Al patrulea studiu de caz se ocupă cu regele asirian Tukultī-Ninurta I (1242–1206 a.Chr.).

The Day Storm in Mesopotamian Literature

Der hier vorliegende Artikel untersucht das Konzept eines gottlichen (Entscheidungs-)Tages, spezi... more

S. Fink, V. Sazonov. Complex Genealogies in Mesopotamia: From Mesilim to Tukultī-Ninurta I - SAA 25/2019

by Vladimir Sazonov and Sebastian Fink

The current article examines four case studies of complex genealogies in Mesopotamia from the 3 r... more The current article examines four case studies of complex genealogies in Mesopotamia from the 3 rd and 2 nd millennia BCE. The first three case studies are focused on the complex genealogies used by 3 rd millennium BC kings in the Early Dynastic Period III, in Lagaš II, and in the period of 3 rd Dynasty of Ur. The fourth case study deals with Assyrian king Tukultī-Ninurta I (1242-1206 BCE). Rezumat. Autorii examinează patru studii de caz al unor genealogii complexe din Mesopotamia din mileniile III-II a.Chr. Primele trei cazuri se concentrează pe genealogiile complexe folosite de regii din mileniul al III-lea a.Chr. în Epoca Dinastică Timpurie III, în Lagaš II, și în perioada celei de-a treia dinastii din Ur. Al patrulea studiu de caz se ocupă cu regele asirian Tukultī-Ninurta I (1242-1206 a.Chr.).

Persian “Enlightenment”

A Companion to the Achaemenid Persian Empire

Chapter 2 Language and Race in Assyriology: From Benno Landsberger to Wolfram von Soden

Perspectives on the History of Ancient Near Eastern Studies

The Hunter and the Asses: A Neo-Assyrian Paean Glorifying Shalmaneser III

Zeitschrift für Assyriologie und vorderasiatische Archäologie

The present article gives a new edition and analysis of ‘The Hunter and the Asses’ (LKA 62) and d... more The present article gives a new edition and analysis of ‘The Hunter and the Asses’ (LKA 62) and discusses its political, historical and literary setting. We argue for the identification of the text as a paean, glorifying the campaigns of Shalmaneser III to the west against the coalition of 12 kings led by the king of Damascus.

Gilgameš und Uršanabi

Revue D Assyriologie Et D Archeologie Orientale, Dec 2, 2014

Cet article explore la relation de Gilgames et Ursanabi et propose une interpretation alternative... more

Societies at War : Proceedings of the tenth Symposium of the Melammu Project held in Kassel September 26-28 2016 & Proceedings of the eight Symposium of the Melammu Project held in Kiel November 11-15 2014

Österreichische Akademie der Wissenschaften, 2020

„Krisen“ und „Untergänge“ als historisches Phänomen

Universal- und kulturhistorische Studien. Studies in Universal and Cultural History

Conceptualizing Past, Present and Future: Proceedings of the Ninth Symposium of the Melammu Project. Held in Helsinki / Tartu May 18-24, 2015

(eds.), Powerful Women in the Ancient World, Münster 2021 (Melammu Workshops and Monographs 4), 586 pages

by Kerstin Droß-Krüpe and Sebastian Fink

Kerstin Droß-Krüpe / Sebastian Fink: Preface and Acknowledgements Powerful Women in the An... more Kerstin Droß-Krüpe / Sebastian Fink: Preface and Acknowledgements

Powerful Women in the Ancient World in the Light of the Sources

Annette Zgoll: Innana conquers Ur: A Hitherto Unknown Myth Created by En-ḫedu-ana for Mutual Empowerment

Gina Konstantopoulos: The Many Lives of Enheduana: Identity, Authorship, and the “World’s First Poet”

Nicole Brisch: Šamḫat: Deconstructing Temple Prostitution One Woman at a Time

David A. Warburton: Hatshepsut: The Feminine Horus and Daughter of Amun on the Throne of Atum

Lloyd Llewellyn-Jones: Bathsheba and Beyond: Harem Politics in the Ancient Near East

Martti Nissinen: The Agency of Female Prophets in the Bible: Independent or Instrumental? Prophetic or Political?

Stéphanie Anthonioz: Women at the Heart of the Tribal System in the Book of Genesis

Paola Corò: Between a Queen and an Ordinary Woman: On Laodice and the Representation of Women in Cuneiform Sources in the Hellenistic Period

Claudia Horst: Antigone: Political Power and Resonance

Florian Krüpe: Mighty, but quiet? Elpinice between Conflicting Priorities in Interpretations and Sources

Sabine Müller: On a Dynastic Mission: Olympias and Kleopatra, Agents of their House

Timothy Howe: (Re)Taking Halikarnassos: Ada, Alexander the Great and Karian Queenship

Josefine Kuckertz: Amanishakheto: A Meroitic Ruling Queen of the Late 1st Cent. BC / Early 1st Cent. AD

Kordula Schnegg: Cornelia: A Powerful Woman

Francesca Rohr Vio: Domum servavit, lanam fecit: Livia and the Rewriting of the Female Model in the Augustan Age

Christiane Kunst: Iulia maior on the Move: exemplum licentiae and euergetis

Helmuth Schneider: Der Tod Messalinas. Folge sexueller Libertinage oder Machtkalkül?

Brigitte Truschnegg: Feminine, influential and different? The Presentation of Julia Domna

Udo Hartmann: Zenobia of Palmyra: A Female Roman Ruler in Times of Crisis

Ireneusz Milewski: “Earthly yoke”? The Estate of Valeria Melania

Ewan Short / Eve MacDonald: Shirin in Context: Female Agency and the Wives of the Sasanian King Khosrow Parviz

Powerful Women in the Ancient World in Modern Thought

François de Callataÿ: Cleopatra as a Strong Woman in Modern Times: A less Negative Episode in a Disfigured Tradition?

Martin Lindner: Rome Herself: Female Characters in Günther Birkenfeld’s Augustus Novels (1934–1984)

Anja Wieber: Depicting the Palmyrene Queen Zenobia: From Baroque “femmes fortes” to Modern Comic Books

Societies at War. Proceedings of the Tenth Symposium of the Melammu Project held in Kassel September 26-28 2016 & Proceedings of the Eighth Symposium Held in Kiel November 11-15 2014, Wien 2020 (Melammu Symposia 10) (mit Kerstin Droß-Krüpe, Sebastian Fink und Robert Rollinger)

by Kerstin Droß-Krüpe, Kai Ruffing, and Sebastian Fink

Johanna Luggin, Sebastian Fink (eds.), Battle Descriptions as Literary Texts. A comparative approach

Battle Descriptions as Literary Texts. A comparative approach, 2020

S. Fink, V. Sazonov (eds.) Geneaologies in Ancient World. STUDIA ANTIQUA ET ARCHAEOLOGICA 25/2, 2019

by Sebastian Fink and Vladimir Sazonov

Stéphanie Anthonioz and Sebastian Fink (eds.), Representing the Wise. A Gendered Approach. Proceedings of the 1st Melammu Workshop in Lille 2016, Melammu Workshops and Monographs 1, Münster, 2019.

by Sebastian Fink and Stéphanie ANTHONIOZ

Representing the Wise. A Gendered Approach, 2019

2019 (R. Da Riva, M. Lang and S. Fink, eds.), Literary Change in Mesopotamia and Beyond and Routes and Travellers between East and West. Proceedings of the 2nd and 3rd Melammu Workshops. Melammu Workshops and Monographs 2. Münster: Zaphon Verlag.

by Rocio Da Riva and Sebastian Fink

Raija Mattila , Sanae Ito, Sebastian Fink (eds.), Animals and their Relation to Gods, Humans and Things in the Ancient World (Universal- und kulturhistorische Studien. Studies in Universal and Cultural History), Wiesbaden, 2019.

by Sebastian Fink and Sanae Ito

While Human-Animal Studies is a rapidly growing field in modern history, studies on this topic ... more While Human-Animal Studies is a rapidly growing field in modern history, studies on this topic that focus on the Ancient World are few. The present volume aims at closing this gap. It investigates the relation between humans, animals, gods, and things with a special focus on the structure of these categories. An improved understanding of the ancient categories themselves is a precondition for any investigation into the relation between them. The focus of the volume lies on the Ancient Near East, but it also provides studies on Ancient Greece, Asia Minor, Mesoamerica, the Far East, and Arabia.

Conceptualizing Past, Present and Future, Proceedings of the Ninth Symposium of the Melammu Project Held in Helsinki / Tartu, May 18-24, 2015, Edited by Sebastian Fink and Robert Rollinger, Münster, 2018

Sebastian Fink, Robert Rollinger (eds.), Oswald Spenglers Kulturmorphologie. Eine multiperspektivische Annäherung (Universal-und kulturhistorische Studien. Studies in Universal and Cultural History), Wiesbaden, 2018

Mit der Krise des Nationalstaates am Ende des 20. Jahrhunderts und der Erfahrung einer zusehends ... more Mit der Krise des Nationalstaates am Ende des 20. Jahrhunderts und der Erfahrung einer zusehends vernetzten und globalisierten Welt gewinnt auch eine neue Perspektive in den Geschichtswissenschaften an Bedeutung. Dieser neue Blick auf die Vergangenheit macht den Weg frei für eine innovative und interdisziplinäre Annäherung an das Phänomen einer vernetzten Weltgeschichte, in der Europa nicht mehr das Zentrum der Welt darstellt, von dem aus "Historie" vermessen wird. Dieser universale Blick auf die Geschichte soll durch die neue Reihe befördert werden. Die Reihe umfasst alle Weltregionen und alle Epochen der Menschheitsgeschichte. Sie will vergleichende und auf dem neuesten Stand der Forschung gewonnene Einblicke in das Laboratorium der Weltgeschichte gewähren und befördern. Die Reihe versteht sich als eine peer-reviewed series, die sowohl für Monographien wie für Sammelbände offen ist.

Sebastian Fink, Martin Lang, Manfred Schretter (eds.), Mehrsprachigkeit. Vom Alten Orient bis zum Esperanto (dubsar 2), Münster, 2018

This book contains the proceedings of an interdisciplinary conference on Multilingualism.

Robert Rebitsch, Friedrich Pöhl, Sebastian Fink (eds.), Die Konstruktion des Kannibalen zwischen Fiktion und Realität, (Philippika 111), Wiesbaden, 2017

Friedrich Pöhl, Sebastian Fink (eds.): Kannibalismus, eine anthropologische Konstante?

The seven articles in this volume are devoted to the discourse on cannibalism. The articles range... more

Carl Friedrich Lehmann-Haupt. Ein Forscherleben zwischen Orient und Okzident

Sebastian Fink, Klaus Eisterer, Robert Rollinger, Dirk Rupnow (eds.) The articles in this vo... more

Beards in the Formulation of the Gender of Foreign Kings in the Neo-Assyrian period

by Ellie Bennett and Sebastian Fink

At the Edges of Empires: Territories and Processes nearby and between Emerging Great Powers in Antiquity At the Edges of Empires: Territories and Processes nearby and between Emerging Great Powers in Antiquity

by Stefanie Schmidt, Gina Konstantopoulos, and Sebastian Fink

Call for Papers for the General Sesson of Melammu Symposia 10 "Societies at War" (Kassel 25-29 September 2016)

by Kerstin Droß-Krüpe and Sebastian Fink

First Melammu Workshop: Representing the Wise: A Gendered Approach

by Stéphanie ANTHONIOZ and Sebastian Fink

Studia Mesopotamica 1 2014

Orientalistische Literaturzeitung, 2016

Studia Mesopotamica 2 2015

Orientalistische Literaturzeitung

Rezension zu Neumann, Hans (Hrsg.): Wissenskultur im Alten Orient. Weltanschauung, Wissenschaften, Techniken, Technologien. Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz, 2013. in: WZKM 104, 2014.

Alter Orient und Altes Testament 281 N e u m a n n , H a n s (Hrsg.): Wissenskultur im Alten Orie... more Alter Orient und Altes Testament 281 N e u m a n n , H a n s (Hrsg.): Wissenskultur im Alten Orient. Weltanschauung, Wissenschaften, Techniken, Technologien. Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz, 2013 (Colloquien der Deutschen Orient-Gesellschaft 4). XII+433 S. ISBN 978-3-447-06623-5. 43,20 €. Wissenskultur scheint heute ein Schlagwort der Wirtschaftswissenschaftler zu sein, die seit einigen Jahren die Ressource Wissen entdeckt haben, die es zu managen und in die Wissenskultur der Unternehmen einzubetten gilt. Wie der vorliegende Band zeigt, beschäftigen sich jedoch auch die Altertumswissenschaften mit Fragen der Wissenskultur. Die dem Band zugrundeliegende Konferenz im Jahr 2002 kann als ein Trendsetter angesehen werden, denn im Jahr 2010 wurde in Stuttgart sogar ein interdisziplinärer Masterstudiengang Wissenskulturen eingerichtet. Wenn der Begriff der Wissenskultur in den Altertumswissenschaften vielleicht auch etwas anders akzentuiert wird als in den Wirtschaftswissenschaften, kann man einige der Beiträge durchaus als Abhandlungen über Wissensmanagement lesen. So behandelt etwa Eckart Frahm die Weitergabe und Tradierung schriftlich fixierten Wissens im Gelehrtenmilieu, Walter Farber untersucht die Rolle der Lamaštu-Beschwörungen im mesopotamischen Schulunterricht und Manfried Dietrich untersucht die Tradierung und Veränderung mesopotamischen Gedankengutes in Ugarit. Robert K. Englund beschäftigt sich damit, wie die Administration der Ur-III Zeit Arbeitsleistungen durch die Benutzung von Silberäquivalenten bewertbar machte und Norman Yoffee untersucht das kulturelle Wissen um den Umgang mit Gesetzen in Mesopotamien. Alle diese Untersuchungen können sich auf Texte stützen, die Informationen über die Art der Weitergabe des Wissens liefern.

Rezension zu Hans Neumann, Reinhard Dittmann, Susanne Paulus, Georg Neumann, Anais Schuster-Brandis (Hrsg.): Krieg und Frieden im Alten Vorderasien. 52e Rencontre Assyriologique Internationale, AOAT 401, 2014

Powerful Women in the Ancient World (Kassel, 31.01-01.02.2019)

by Sebastian Fink and Kerstin Droß-Krüpe

Program of the conference „(Self-)Presentation and Perception of Powerful Women in the Ancient ... more

30 juillet – 3 août 2018, SBL-EABS Session What a God is not : The Early History of Negative Theology, SBL International Meeting, Helsinki, Finland.

by Stéphanie ANTHONIOZ and Sebastian Fink

The question “What is a god?” has been treated extensively in literature. In this session, we wan... more The question “What is a god?” has been treated extensively in literature. In this session, we want to approach that question from a different angle. When people start to answer this question in a negative way, namely by negating positive statements about gods or by questioning the human ability to understand the divine at all, this demonstrates a more sophisticated approach to this question. The questioning of the wide spread anthropomorphic understanding of the divine often seems to go hand in hand with negative theology.
Negative theology is usually thought to have started with Plato. This session aims at investigating the history of negative theology in the Eastern Mediterranean and Mesopotamia before Plato and thereby investigating negative theology before Plato. We use a quite broad definition of negative Theology, namely as describing god by negating positive statements (has no human form, does not walk around, is not born by a mother, …).
This session should provide a common ground for a broad comparative approach and we especially encourage researchers with a background in Early Greek Religion and Philosophy, Egyptology, Hittitology, Assyriology, Levant and Old Testament Studies to bring relevant texts to our attention and to discuss them in this session.

2019 [with S. Fink], "Introduction," pp. 107-111 in R. Da Riva, M. Lang and S. Fink (eds.). Literary Change in Mesopotamia and Beyond and Routes and Travellers between East and West. Proceedings of the 2nd and 3rd Melammu Workshops. Melammu Workshops and Monographs 2. Münster: Zaphon Verlag.

by Rocio Da Riva and Sebastian Fink

Einleitung: Oswald Spenglers Kulturmorphologie – eine multiperspektivische Annäherung

Oswald Spenglers Kulturmorphologie, 2018

Die in diesem Band vorliegenden Beiträge sind das Resultat einer internationalen Tagung, die vom ... more Die in diesem Band vorliegenden Beiträge sind das Resultat einer internationalen Tagung, die vom 28. September bis zum 2. Oktober 2014 unter dem Titel "Stadien menschlicher Entwicklung: Ansätze zur Kulturmorphologie heute" im Kloster Wöltingerode, Niedersachsen, stattfand. Im Zentrum der Konferenz stand das Werk Oswald Spenglers (1880-1936), das aus vier unterschiedlichen Blickwinkeln beleuchtet wurde. Neben der heute fl orierenden Rezeptionsforschung 1 war es ein erklärtes Ziel, neue Perspektiven auf Spenglers Werk zu bieten und auch an die inzwischen weitgehend verebbte Diskussion um einzelwissenschaft liche Erkenntnisse Spenglers anzuschließen. Das Hauptwerk Oswald Spenglers, der "Untergang des Abendlandes", jährt sich 2017 zum hundertsten Mal (Abschluss der Arbeiten am ersten Band im April 1917) und Spenglers Th ese, oder präziser der Titel seines Werkes, wird angesichts der verbreiteten Krisen-und Untergangsstimmung inzwischen wieder als besonders aktuell wahrgenommen, was schon ein kurzer Blick auf die Konjunktur der Spenglerforschung der letzten Jahre zeigt. 2 Gilbert Merlio und Daniel Meyer, die Herausgeber des 2014 erschienenen Bandes "Spengler ohne Ende", analysierten diesen Befund folgendermaßen: "Wenn die Größe eines Denkers an seiner Rezeption gemessen werden kann, dann ist Oswald Spengler zweifelsohne ein großer Denker". 3 Die Erklärung für dieses Rezeptionsphänomen fällt nicht leicht 4-der Zeitpunkt des Erscheinens des ersten Bandes im September 1918, wenige Wochen vor dem Ende des Ersten Weltkriegs und der einschlägige Titel etwa werden immer wieder genannt-und verwundert manchmal angesichts der breiten Front von Wissenschaft lern, die Spenglers Herangehensweise als unwissenschaft lich verurteilten und zudem zahlreiche Fehler bei 1 In den letzten Jahren erschienen zwei Bände zur Spenglerrezeption: Merlio und Meyer 2014 sowie Gasimov und Lemke Duque 2013. In Lüneburg fand eine Tagung zur Spenglerrezeption bei den postmodernen Denkern statt, die wohl auch in naher Zukunft publiziert werden wird. 2 David Engels bietet ein Onlineverzeichnis aktueller Forschungsliteratur zu Spengler auf seiner Homepage: http://www.davidengels.be/spenglerliteratur (zugegriff en: 17.09.2017). 3 Merlio und Meyer 2014: 7. 4 Auch der von Zaur Gasimov und Carl Antonius Lemke Duque herausgegebene Band zu "Oswald Spengler als europäisches Phänomen" geht der Rezeption Spenglers in der Zwischenkriegszeit nach (Gasimov und Lemke Duque 2013).

Einleitung: Sprachsituation und Sprachpolitik

Zaphon Verlag, 2018

Introduction : [Special issue: Complex Genealogies in the Ancient World]

Crisis in Early Religion: An Introduction

Springer eBooks, 2022

Studia Antiqua et Archaeologica 25/2 (December 2019)

by Studia Antiqua et Archaeologica, Sebastian Fink, Vladimir Sazonov, Siim Mõttus, Mait Kõiv, Alexandr Loginov, Vladimir Shelestin, Stephan SCHARINGER, and Cornel Balla

Studia Antiqua et Archaeologica, 2020

Studia Antiqua et Archaeologica 25/1 (August 2019) http://saa.uaic.ro/issues/xxv-1/ CUPRINS – ... more Studia Antiqua et Archaeologica 25/1 (August 2019)

http://saa.uaic.ro/issues/xxv-1/

CUPRINS – CONTENTS – SOMMAIRE

PAPERS OF THE INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE
Genealogies in the Ancient World
Tartu (Estonia) 2016

—Sebastian FINK & Vladimir SAZONOV
——Introduction

—Sebastian FINK & Vladimir SAZONOV
——Complex Genealogies in Mesopotamia: From Mesilim to Tukultī-Ninurta I

—Siim MÕTTUS
——On the Lineage of King Telepinu

—Mait KÕIV
——Manipulating Genealogies: Pheidon of Argos and the Stemmas of the Argive, Macedonian, Spartan and Median Kings

—Jakub KUCIAK
——Der Mythos im Dienst der Politik: das Beispiel der euripideischen Tragödie Ion

—Stephan SCHARINGER
——A Genealogy of Pythagoras

—Tarmo KULMAR
——The Origin Myths as a Possible Basis for Genealogy of the Inca Imperial Dynasty in Ancient Peru

ARTICLES

—Radu-Ștefan BALAUR
——Community Structure, Economy and Sharing Strategies in the Chalcolithic Settlement of Hăbășești, Romania

—Casandra BRAȘOVEANU
——Settlement Spatial Distribution from Late Chalcolithic to Early Hallstatt. Case Study: Cracău-Bistrița Depression

—Anna LAZAROU
——Prehistoric Gorgoneia: a Critical Reassessment

—Alexandr LOGINOV & Vladimir SHELESTIN
——La perception du sceptre en Grèce de l’époque d’Homère et de Mycènes à la lumière des parallèles de l’Orient Antique

—Larisa PECHATNOVA
——Die Hypomeiones in Sparta

—Elena NIKITYUK
——Kalokagathia: to a Question on Formation of an Image of the Ideal Person in Antiquity and During Modern Time

—Maxim M. KHOLOD
——On the Representation and Self-representation of the Argead Rulers (before Alexander the Great): the Title Basileus

—Dragana NIKOLIĆ
——Stoneworkers’ Hercules. A Comment on an Upper Moesian Inscription

—José María ZAMORA CALVO
——Remarks on the so-called Plotinus’ Sarcophagus (‘Vatican Museums’, inv. 9504)

—Cornel BALLA
——Some Considerations on the Praefectus ripae legionis primae Ioviae cohortis et secundae Herculiae musculorum Scythicorum et classis in plateypegiis

—Felix-Adrian TENCARIU & Andrei ASĂNDULESEI
——‘Rock Salt Around the Clock’. Ethnoarchaeological Research Concerning Traditional Extraction of Salt for Animal Consumption

Animals and their Relation to Gods, Humans and Things in the Ancient World

by Sebastian Fink and Sanae Ito

Universal- und kulturhistorische Studien. Studies in Universal and Cultural History, 2019

The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this p... more