The Neo-Assyrian Empire - (Empires Through the Ages in Global Perspective) by Simonetta Ponchia & Giovanni Lanfranchi (Hardcover)

About the Book

In the 8th and 7th centuries BCE, the Assyrians built the first true empire in world history. They introduced governmental structures in the Near East and developed a coherent imperial ideology and culture that became a model of control even beyond

Book Synopsis

The ancient historians considered the Assyrian empire the crucial starting point of a new political system which was adopted by later empires. In modern historical research, this problem still needs to be investigated in a global perspective that studies the development of the imperial model through ages. Abundant epigraphical and archaeological sources can be used in investigating the expansionistic tacticts, the control structures, and the administrative procedures implemented by the Assyrians through a continuous effort of adaptation to evolving situations and changing needs. The book provides an updated outline of the history of the Assyrian empire and its neighbours, a detailed analysis of the technical and ideological aspects of the construction of the Assyrian empire, and of its long-lasting legacy in the Near East and in the West. For its broad theoretical framework, which includes the reference to studies of ancient and modern empires and imperialism, the book is intended not only for the specialists of Ancient Near Eastern history, but also for a wider public of Classical and Medieval historians and of historians interested in world and global history.

About the Author

Simonetta Ponchia, University of Verona, Italy; Giovanni Battista Lanfranchi, University of Padova, Italy.