Book
Open Access
The Ancient World Revisited: Material Dimensions of Written Artefacts
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Edited by:
Marilina Betrò
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In collaboration with:
Jesper Eidem
Language:
English
Published/Copyright:
2024
About this book
Open Access
Written artefacts are traditionally studied because of their content. Material aspects of these artefacts enrich the study of ancient history in many ways. Eleven case studies in five sections on the ancient world, including the Near East, Egypt, the Mediterranean, China and India, demonstrate the impact of a holistic approach that considers materiality and content alike.
Following an introductory sketch of relevant research, the first section, ‘Methodological Considerations’, critically examines the limitations the evidence available imposes on our understanding. ‘Early Uses of Writing’ addresses material and spatial aspects of inscriptions, and their communicative functions over the textual ones. The third section, ‘Material Features’, deals with clay, wooden and papyrus manuscripts and demonstrates the importance of an integrated approach. The contributions to ‘Co-presence of Written Artefacts’ take into account that written artefacts come in clusters. The final section, ‘Cultural Encounters’, presents studies on the interactions between social strata and ethnic groups, challenging previous ideas.
The volume contributes to the comparative study of written artefacts in ancient history, stimulating cross-disciplinary and -cultural research.
Following an introductory sketch of relevant research, the first section, ‘Methodological Considerations’, critically examines the limitations the evidence available imposes on our understanding. ‘Early Uses of Writing’ addresses material and spatial aspects of inscriptions, and their communicative functions over the textual ones. The third section, ‘Material Features’, deals with clay, wooden and papyrus manuscripts and demonstrates the importance of an integrated approach. The contributions to ‘Co-presence of Written Artefacts’ take into account that written artefacts come in clusters. The final section, ‘Cultural Encounters’, presents studies on the interactions between social strata and ethnic groups, challenging previous ideas.
The volume contributes to the comparative study of written artefacts in ancient history, stimulating cross-disciplinary and -cultural research.
Author / Editor information
Marilina Betrò, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy; Michael Friedrich, CSMC, University of Hamburg; Cécile Michel, CNRS ArScAn-HAROC, Nanterre, France und CSMC, University of Hamburg.
Topics
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Publicly Available Download PDF |
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Publicly Available Download PDF |
V |
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Michael Friedrich Open Access Download PDF |
1 |
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Methodological Considerations
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Jesper Eidem and Cécile Michel Open Access Download PDF |
31 |
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Jorrit Kelder Open Access Download PDF |
49 |
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Early Uses of Writing
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John Baines and Cao Dazhi Open Access Download PDF |
71 |
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Ingo Strauch Open Access Download PDF |
129 |
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Material Features
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Michele Cammarosano and Michele Cammarosano Open Access Download PDF |
165 |
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Stefano de Martino Open Access Download PDF |
207 |
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Susanne Töpfer Open Access Download PDF |
221 |
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Co-presence of Written Artefacts
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Andréas Stauder Open Access Download PDF |
243 |
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Philippe Clancier Open Access Download PDF |
281 |
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Cultural Encounters
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Gianluca Miniaci Open Access Download PDF |
307 |
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Ludwig D. Morenz Open Access Download PDF |
345 |
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Open Access Download PDF |
369 |
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Open Access Download PDF |
371 |
Publishing information
Pages and Images/Illustrations in book
eBook published on:
March 4, 2024
eBook ISBN:
9783111360805
Hardcover published on:
March 4, 2024
Hardcover ISBN:
9783111359021
Pages and Images/Illustrations in book
Front matter:
6
Main content:
379
Illustrations:
55
Coloured Illustrations:
56
Tables:
5
Audience(s) for this book
Scholars of ancient history, art history, Assyriology, Egyptology, epigraphy, Indology, manuscriptology and sinology
Creative Commons
BY-NC-ND 4.0
Safety & product resources
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Manufacturer information:
Walter de Gruyter GmbH
Genthiner Straße 13
10785 Berlin
productsafety@degruyterbrill.com
