Sumer and the Sumerians

by Harriet Crawford

Mesopotamia produced one of the best-known ancient civilizations, with a literate, urban culture and highly-developed political institutions. Harriet Crawford reviews the extraordinary social and technological developments in the region over a period of two millennia (from 3800 to 2000 BC) in this fully revised and expanded edition of her classic text. Drawing on the most up-to-date historical and archaeological sources, she describes the physical environment and covers architecture, trade and industry, the development of writing, and changes in social and political structures. First Edition Hb (1991): 0-521-38175-4 First Edition Pb (1991): 0-521-38850-3

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Ancient History, Archaeology, Ancient, Research

262 pages, Hardcover

First published April 26, 1991

About the author

Dr. Harriet Crawford (Institute of Archaeology, University College London): Director, The Joint Kuwaiti-British Archaeological Expedition to As-Sabiyah. Dr. Crawford has had a long and distinguished career in Western Asian archaeology, having written numerous articles and books. She has a long-standing love of the Sumerians and their civilization. Prior to initiating the British Archaeological Expedition to Kuwait, she was a director of the successful London-Bahrain Archaeological Expedition, which excavated at Saar. She is currently an Honorary Visiting Professor at the Institute of Archaeology, UCL, and a Fellow of the McDonald Institute, Cambridge.

Reviews

[Bryn Hammond · Rating 3 out of 5]

A university set text for me. Good, plain information. I worry about its age (amendments 2004); obviously people are better off with her newly-edited The Sumerian World. It was for a unit on ancient art, which is odd because my one complaint was about the art -- don't let the cover persuade you there is any: only line drawings, and furthermore, I didn't like her discussions of art. Too ready to dismiss pieces as 'provincial' or crude when there's a hell of a lot more to them. I gather her strength is archaeology.

[Courtney · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book has some great information but it is poorly organized and the author doesn’t seem to have a set audience in mind. Though the book is supposedly meant for students who are just beginning to learn about the archaeology of the near east, I found that you have to have a solid grasp of archaeological concepts and know quite a bit about the region and it’s history. I have both and this book was still a struggle to get through in many ways - especially in the early chapters.

However, I can’t deny the authors knowledge on the subject and if you are looking for an in-depth look of the Sumerian culture that goes beyond popular history this is what you are looking for. I am looking forward to reading Crawford’s more recent ‘The Sumerian World.’

[Flash Sheridan · Rating 1 out of 5]

I agree with some of the other reviewers that it’s not clear who, if anyone, this book is intended for. I’ve only gotten through the first two chapters, but the poor organization means that the book is only fully comprehensible by those who don't need it. A crucial point in expository writing is to define your terms when you first use them, especially in a book for “students beginning to study the archeology and history of the ancient Near East.” The author introduces the discussion of the crucial Uruk archeological period at the beginning of chapter 2 by saying that it “was a long one…,” without either saying what its evidentiary meaning is, or (until much later) what its likely timeframe was. Admittedly there are very large error bars on the chronology; presenting those along with the various plausible dates is precisely the duty of the author of a book for beginning students. Even the relative chronology of the various archeological periods are poorly presented; even a simple introductory sentence along the lines of “The chief archeological periods, in approximate order, are…” would have been better than presenting them piecemeal.

The author’s evidence-based presentation isn’t even a consistent privileging of epistemology over comprehensibility. When we come to politics (“It is clear that the priesthood too could exercise considerable control…” on page 31), it seems clear that this has to be based on written evidence, but there has been no preceding mention of this, much less a discussion of the evidence and its limitations. (For a book on a people most notable for the invention of writing and a civilization relying on it, this seems an astonishing choice.)

Another key duty of an author, though I admit that this one is less often honored, is to ensure that a map being discussed actually labels all the place names mentioned. This is particularly painful for map 2, where most of the discussion is of places not labelled, e.g., the Taurus and Zagros mountains, Jezirah (“the former” is too ambiguous to be helpful), and Samarra, among many others.

[George Mills · Rating 2 out of 5]

The book did not hold my attention & I stopped reading after approx. 50 pages. It seems that it is not a book for a lay-person who wants to know the history and world outlook of the Sumerians. It seems that the book is dedicated more to what we don't know than what we do know. The Sumerians deserve more than this.

[Rob Markley · Rating 3 out of 5]

Disappointing. Sumer must be terribly hard to get a handle on and yet pressure to publish - Kramer is still the best I've found

[Shapur · Rating 2 out of 5]

Uhm, not quite well structured, I assume? I can't force myself to read this, mainly because of the way it's written, it's somewhat clumsy and whacky (?), if that could even be said about historical non-fiction. Nonetheless I learned bits and pieces of information I deem valuable.

And also feel fed up about Sumerians. Up to the next culture.

Oh god, it's Babylon... Oh god...

[Eyani · Rating 5 out of 5]

Like the book says, this was not written for the lay person. This book is a survey of Sumerian culture/material culture intended for undergrad students of archaeology. This is not a fun book about Ziggurats and cuneiform, go away...

[Dan Mowbray · Rating 2 out of 5]

Didn't really engage me like the other book i'm reading on Ancient Babylon

[Mary · Rating 3 out of 5]

Provides an overview of what the archaeological evidence tells us about Sumerian civilization. Most of the illustrations are maps, floor plans, or line drawings. I would have found more photographs, especially of the sculptures and grave goods discussed, helpful. Sometimes with all the detailed descriptions of evidence, it can be difficult to keep track of the big picture - Crawford's final chapter summarizing political and economic trends was very welcome.

[Birte]

While this was generally interesting, the writing was not easy to get through and even more, I feel like I barely learnt anything from this and I could barely recount anything that was actually about the society of the Sumerians.

[Vanttefan · Rating 3 out of 5]

it is about the Sumer and Sumerians. i have read it for one year, so i forget what it exactly tell. it is not a interesting book but an academic one.

[Gabriel Clarke · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating and, reading the conclusions of the last chapter (written in 2004) and its hopes for future for Iraqi scholarship and the potential for continuing research, unintentionally heartbreaking.

[Kubilay Çırakoğlu · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you are interested in Sumerian history, you must read it