#487 – Irving Finkel: Deciphering Secrets of Ancient Civilizations & Flood Myths

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Dec 12, 2025

Irving Finkel, a curator at the British Museum and expert on ancient languages, delves into the secrets of Mesopotamian history. He discusses the origins of cuneiform writing and how it transitioned from pictographs to phonetic representations. Finkel uncovers a Mesopotamian flood narrative predating Noah, sharing details about constructing a replica ark based on ancient instructions. He also explores the significance of everyday texts, the complexities of translating cuneiform, and the cultural impact of ancient games—all while reflecting on the richness of human history.

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INSIGHT

Sound Is The Writing Revolution

Cuneiform's leap was encoding sound, not just pictures, which let scribes record full language and literature.
That phonetic shift liberated writing to capture grammar, proverbs, and complex thought.

INSIGHT

Lexicography Locked In Longevity

Early scribes invented lexicography to standardize and teach signs, preventing exponential drift of symbols.
This early system preserved cuneiform's stability for millennia across generations of scholars.

INSIGHT

Göbekli Tepe Could Precede Writing

Göbekli Tepe may show seals with pictographs implying writing millennia before Mesopotamia.
If true, organized architecture there suggests earlier administrative and communicative complexity.

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Irving Finkel is a scholar of ancient languages and a longtime curator at the British Museum, renowned for his expertise in Mesopotamian history and cuneiform writing. He specializes in reading and interpreting cuneiform inscriptions, including tablets from Sumerian, Akkadian, Babylonian, and Assyrian contexts. He became widely known for studying a tablet with a Mesopotamian flood story that predates the biblical Noah narrative, which he presented in his book “The Ark Before Noah” and in a documentary that involved building a circular ark based on the tablet’s technical instructions.
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Transcript:
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EPISODE LINKS:
Irving’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/drirvingfinkel/
The Ark Before Noah (book): https://amzn.to/4j2U0DW
Irving Lectures Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLYXwZvOwHjVcFUi9iEqirkXRaCUJdXGha
British Museum Video Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL0LQM0SAx603A6p5EJ9DVcESqQReT7QyK
British Museum Website: https://www.britishmuseum.org/
The Great Diary Project: https://thegreatdiaryproject.co.uk/

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OUTLINE:
(00:00) – Introduction
(00:43) – Sponsors, Comments, and Reflections
(09:53) – Origins of human language
(15:59) – Cuneiform
(23:12) – Controversial theory about Göbekli Tepe
(34:23) – How to write and speak Cuneiform
(39:42) – Primitive human language
(41:26) – Development of writing systems
(42:20) – Decipherment of Cuneiform
(54:51) – Limits of language
(59:51) – Art of translation
(1:05:01) – Gods
(1:10:25) – Ghosts
(1:20:13) – Ancient flood stories
(1:30:21) – Noah’s Ark
(1:41:44) – The Royal Game of Ur
(1:54:43) – British Museum
(2:02:08) – Evolution of human civilization