Kozyreva N.V. Studies in the History of Southern Mesopotamia in Early Antiquity (from the 7th to the middle of the 2nd millennium BC). St. Petersburg : Contrast, 2016. 552 p., ill. (Studia Mesopotamia). ISBN 978-5-4380-0149-2
The book provides a historical reconstruction o f the social institutions, economic and political
structures of Southern Mesopotamia and its neighbours in Early Antiquity. The period was marked
by dynamic interactions o f the different ethnic groups with different cultural and economical
background which culminated in creating the earliest forms o f life and labour organization in the
city-states along with the first systems o f government, the appearance o f written language and
writing down the first law collections. The study relies on exhaustive research o f the numerous
epigraphic evidences (Sumerian and Akkadian cuneiform texts), excavated artifacts and the interpretation
o f the archaeological record as a whole. The book is accessible to a wider audience,
while it also provides a wealth o f new material to the specialist in the field.
On February 19, 2025, the IOM RAS will host the annual Iranological Conference in memory of O. F. Akimushkin. The program of the Conference is now available.