Equid Ritual, Sacrifice, and Ancestor Veneration in Bronze Age Syria: Umm el-Marra Excavations 2006, 2008

Lecture | October 12 | 4-6 p.m. | Barrows Hall, 254 Barrows

Speaker/Performer: Professor Glenn Schwartz, Whiting Professor of Archaeology, Department of Near Eastern Studies, Johns Hopkins University

Sponsor: Near Eastern Studies

Professor Schwartz’s work at the site concentrates on the problems of origins, collapse and regeneration of an early urban center that was inhabited from c. 2700-1200 BC. The results of his excavations include a remarkable, intact “royal tomb” from c. 2300 BC that included 5 adults and 2 babies along with wealthy grave goods. The tomb formed part of a long-standing tradition of monumental tomb building on the highest point of the site, and several other tombs (all previously looted) have also been excavated. The talk will consider the relationship between monumental funerary installations and the rise of complex urban structures during a period of early state formation in the ancient Near East.

Event Contact: 510-642-6162