The purpose of the papers read at the meeting held in Helsinki, Finland, in 2014, and of the relevant proceedings forming this volume, was to discuss and update the historical methodologies adopted in the past and present study of the Neo-Assyrian Empire. The title of the meeting and of this proceedings volume, “Writing Neo-Assyrian History”, clearly indicates the aim of the organizers and of the participants: to submit to both specialized scholars and educated readers a comprehensive outline of the various studies about Neo-Assyrian history, and to thoroughly comment on all possible problems so as to offer a basic “manual” for further innovative studies. All this was conceived in the framework of the scientific mission of the International Research Project which produces the series State Archives of Assyria, aimed at publishing all available Neo-Assyrian texts according to a modern and commonly shared editing system.
The importance of the meeting and of this volume is relevant not only because of the innovative character of most articles, but also because of the prospective methodological spin-off in other historical sectors, from Greek and Roman history to medieval, modern or even Oriental (e.g., Chinese, Japanese, Indian) history. The importance of the spin-off in other sectors of the history of Ancient Mesopotamia, and in general of the Ancient Near East, is self-evident.
The volume offers a distinctive contribution to knowledge in history and historiography in general, but also in demonstrating and applying a tight connection between history, philology, archaeology and history of art, extending to the fields of ideology, politics, sociology, religion, economy and law.
The sources discussed in the various articles extend from cuneiform texts of various kinds to monumental relics and archaeological findings of all kinds, studied according to the most updated Assyriological methodologies and the most advanced historical approaches.
Abbreviations
Introduction, Raija Mattila, Giovanni Battista Lanfranchi, Robert Rollinger
1. History of Research and General Questions
A History of Research on the Neo-Assyrian Empire, Grant Frame
The Neo-Assyrian Empire and Its Chronological and Geographical Frameworks, Ariel M. Bagg
The Composition and Structure of the Neo-Assyrian Empire: Ethnicity, Language, and Identities, Frederick Mario Fales
The Neo-Assyrian Empire and the History of Science: Western Terminology and Ancient Near Eastern Sources, Sebastian Fink
Texts, Scribes, and Literary Traditions: A General Introduction, Jamie Novotny
2. How to Deal with the Neo-Assyrian Sources
The Role of the Royal Inscriptions in Reconstructing Assyrian History, Mario Liverani
The Neo-Assyrian Royal Inscriptions as Text: History, Ideology, and Intertextuality, Eckart Frahm
Neo-Assyrian Eponym Lists and Eponym Chronicles: Contents, Stylistic Variants, and Their Historical-ideological Background, Shigeo Yamada
3. The Religious Texts
Religious Texts as a Historical Source: Assyrian Prophecies as Sources for Esarhaddon's Nineveh A Inscription, Martti Nissinen
Neo-Assyrian Religious Texts and the Problem of Their Redaction Process, Simo Parpola
4. The Literary Texts
Literary Texts as Historical Sources: How to Approach and Use Them, Simonetta Ponchia
5. The Letters
Letters as a Historical Source: How to Use and Deal with Them, Mikko Luukko
The Problem of Original Letter, Draft, and Copy, Sanae Ito
6. The Administrative and Legal Texts
Legal Texts as a Historical Source: How to Use and to Deal with Them, Betina Faist
Administrative Texts and Their "Sitz im Leben": Text Production and Bureaucratic Contexts, Salvatore Gaspa
7. The Treaties
Neo-Assyrian Treaties as a Source for the Historian: Bonds of Friendship, the Vigilant Subject and the Vengeful King's Treaty, Karen Radner
8. Archaeological Sources
Bas-reliefs as a Source for Neo-Assyrian History, Davide Nadali
Archaeological Remains and Neo-Assyrian History, Janoscha Kreppner
Urban Planning and Neo-Assyrian History, Maria Grazia Masetti-Rouault
The History of Art and Neo-Assyrian History, Ann Gunter
9. Neo-Assyrian Onomastics
Onomastics as a Historical Source, Ran Zadok
10. The Periphery of Assyria
Hieroglyphic Luwian Texts and Neo-Assyrian History, Annick Payne
Aramaic and Phoenician Texts and Neo-Assyrian History, Helène Sader
