Download PDF The Sumerians Their History Culture and Character Phoenix Books Samuel Noah Kramer Books
Download PDF The Sumerians Their History Culture and Character Phoenix Books Samuel Noah Kramer Books
Download As PDF : The Sumerians Their History Culture and Character Phoenix Books Samuel Noah Kramer Books
The Sumerians, the pragmatic and gifted people who preceded the Semites in the land first known as Sumer and later as Babylonia, created what was probably the first high civilization in the history of man, spanning the fifth to the second millenniums B.C. This book is an unparalleled compendium of what is known about them.
Professor Kramer communicates his enthusiasm for his subject as he outlines the history of the Sumerian civilization and describes their cities, religion, literature, education, scientific achievements, social structure, and psychology. Finally, he considers the legacy of Sumer to the ancient and modern world.
"There are few scholars in the world qualified to write such a book, and certainly Kramer is one of them. . . . One of the most valuable features of this book is the quantity of texts and fragments which are published for the first time in a form available to the general reader. For the layman the book provides a readable and up-to-date introduction to a most fascinating culture. For the specialist it presents a synthesis with which he may not agree but from which he will nonetheless derive stimulation."—American Journal of Archaeology
"An uncontested authority on the civilization of Sumer, Professor Kramer writes with grace and urbanity."—Library Journal
Download PDF The Sumerians Their History Culture and Character Phoenix Books Samuel Noah Kramer Books
"Do you want to read a few hundred pages of a pompous archeologist from the early 20th century rambling about how great other archeologists are? Do you want an understanding of the history of the Near East that was current when JFK was president? Do you want a lot of uncomfortable racial undertones. Then this is the book for you! Otherwise don't bother.
Two stars for at least being well researched, if 50 years out of date."
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Tags : The Sumerians Their History, Culture, and Character (Phoenix Books) (9780226452388) Samuel Noah Kramer Books,Samuel Noah Kramer,The Sumerians Their History, Culture, and Character (Phoenix Books),University of Chicago Press,0226452387,Essays Travelogues,Sumerians,Sumerians.,Ancient - General,Archaeology,Archaeology by period / region,Essays,General,HISTORY / Ancient / General,Middle Near Eastern archaeology,Non-Fiction,Social Science/General,Sociology,TRAVEL / Essays Travelogues,Travel,UNIVERSITY PRESS,World history BCE to c 500 CE,History / General
The Sumerians Their History Culture and Character Phoenix Books Samuel Noah Kramer Books Reviews :
The Sumerians Their History Culture and Character Phoenix Books Samuel Noah Kramer Books Reviews
- The ancient Sumerians, particularly prior to the unification of the Sumerian city-states by Sargon of Akkad and the rise of the Akkadian, Babylonian, and Assyrian empires, are a fascinating people to study for their wholly pragmatic and spiritual worldviews. In many ways their contributions represent the birth of civilization, yet the scholarship on them is all over the place in terms of quality. Kramer does an excellent job of examining the primary source evidence, having done a wealth of original research himself, and providing evidence-based analyses of Sumerian cultural achievements, particularly in the areas of language, medicine, and education. The lack of postmodern trash academic gobbledygook jargon is also refreshing.
Kramer has an incredible eye for and love of detail, which is both a strength and a weakness in the prose. When the details he uses to support his analyses are themselves interesting, the work is at its greatest value. However, when he includes details on a topic just for the sake of including them, such as in his historiographical treatment of Sumerian archaeological, linguistic, and historical scholarship going back several centuries, one's mind starts to wander. You can pretty much skip that whole section at the beginning of the book unless you're really, really, really interested in every major and minor contribution made by every academic on Sumerian scholarship.
I recommend this work for anyone interested in learning more about these ancient peoples, from ancient history neophytes to the well-read. - Still THE reference to learn about the Sumerians. Complete, well written, informative, captivating.
- "There are few scholars in the world qualified to write such a book, and certainly Kramer is one of them. . . . One of the most valuable features of this book is the quantity of texts and fragments which are published for the first time in a form available to the general reader. For the layman the book provides a readable and up-to-date introduction to a most fascinating culture. For the specialist it presents a synthesis with which he may not agree but from which he will nonetheless derive stimulation."—American Journal of Archaeology
- Do you want to read a few hundred pages of a pompous archeologist from the early 20th century rambling about how great other archeologists are? Do you want an understanding of the history of the Near East that was current when JFK was president? Do you want a lot of uncomfortable racial undertones. Then this is the book for you! Otherwise don't bother.
Two stars for at least being well researched, if 50 years out of date. - I've always been interested in the Sumerian culture, and this book contains a wealth of information about the Sumerians. It provides a detailed account of the discovery of the Sumerian culture, as well as details of the archaeological digs in which Sumerian artifacts have been found. Luckily for us, the Sumerians left quite a bit of writing behind, which leaves evidence of their religion, culture, daily practices, and knowledge of the world.
The author is obviously a very intelligent man who has personal experience in Sumerian archaeology, so his accounts are from his own knowledge and not just random research. His writing is somewhat academic, and while I (as a lay reader) have found the book interesting and understandable, it may turn some casual readers off. - A great read for anyone who is seeking to learn about the ancient Sumerians. Written by one of the first archaeologists to dig in what was once Sumer.
- This tells you more about The Sumerians than you ever thought was known.
- This was state of the art Middle East History in the 1960s. There are many new findings and upgrades to the information now. However, this volume is reliable for much about ancient Sumeria, Babylonia, Assyria, and points inbetween.
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